BROOKLYN NETS

The Brooklyn Nets were looking to make a statement in their first home game in over 10 days. This was also the first game that the Nets would be playing without Caris LeVert, who suffered a subtalar dislocation of the right foot. He is expected to be healthy and back in the lineup sometime later this season — but his gaping loss, predictably, made navigating the hot temperatures even more difficult. With Jarrett Allen also not active due to an illness, the Miami Heat would prove to be quite the obstacle.

The absence of two of the Nets’ most important contributors on defense was immediately felt. The team was outscored 24-8 in the paint during the first quarter which allowed the Heat to blow open a 16 point lead. The results weren’t any more encouraging on the other side of the court as the Nets had a hard time getting the ball into the basket without LeVert, shooting 20% early on. Perhaps still emotionally drained, Brooklyn just looked lethargic and unable to adapt to Miami’s scorching marks from the floor.

Honestly, the game was pretty ugly.

Some hope was restored as D’Angelo Russell and Jared Dudley subbed in towards the end of the second quarter and led the Nets on a run to close the lead from 22 to just 12 points going into halftime.

That hope was then quickly extinguished in the third quarter. The Nets’ defense was lackluster. The Heat pushed the lead back towards 20. Kenneth Faried got significant playing time. At this point, that pretty much says it all, doesn’t it?

There were a lot of negatives from this game that could be focused on, such as the poor shooting from the three-point line, the lack of energy and focus on both sides of the floor, and the obvious absence of their looming defensive presence in the paint.

It was not all terrible, however, as the Nets grabbed 16 offensive rebounds to the Heat’s five. On top of that, Brooklyn also managed to win the turnover battle, 13-17.

Ultimately, this game demonstrated just how valuable Jarret Allen and Caris LeVert are to this Nets team on both sides of the ball. Luckily, Allen isn’t expected to miss many more games with his illness. In the meantime, we here at The Brooklyn Game wish LeVert a speedy and complete recovery. Until then, things could get pretty troubling in the borough.