Feb. 23, 2026, 11:01 a.m. ET

The Brooklyn Nets (15-41) had one game left on their first road trip of the unofficial second half of the season and it was arguably its best chance of winning prior to going back home. Brooklyn had to visit the Atlanta Hawks (28-31) on Sunday and while they were able to get center Nic Claxton back in the lineup, the Nets still didn’t get their desired outcome.

The Nets lost at the Hawks 115-104 despite leading by as many as 11 points in the fourth quarter as Brooklyn just didn’t have an answer for All-Star forward Jalen Johnson once he got going. Forward Michael Porter Jr. led the way for the Nets with 18 points and seven rebounds while Claxton had 15 points and eight rebounds in his return after missing the past three games with hip and ankle injuries.

As mentioned earlier, Brooklyn didn’t have an answer for Johnson as he finished the game with 26 points and 12 rebounds, including putting up 14 points and seven boards in the fourth quarter alone. The Nets go back to Brooklyn for two games, but with that being said, here are three Nets takeaways from Sunday’s loss at Johnson and the Hawks:

Michael Porter Jr. Struggles Once Again

Porter has been struggling with his shooting for awhile now and this game was another example of how Porter’s offensive impact has decreased since even prior to the All-Star Break. Porter finished this game with 18 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, but he shot just 8-of-19 from the field and 1-of-8 from three-point range as the Hawks sold out to defend his three-point attempts.

Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!Nic Claxton Shines In Return From Injury

Claxton returned to Brooklyn’s rotation after missing the past three games, bridging the All-Star break, due to hip and ankle injuries and he looked like he never left. Claxton had an impressive stat line of 15 points, eight rebounds, and five assists despite having to go against Onyeka Okongwu for the majority of the game while being on a minutes restriction.

Nets Have Another Disappointing Collapse In Fourth Quarter

After the Nets took a 102-91 lead with 8:01 left in the fourth quarter, it looked like Brooklyn would be getting their first win since Feb. 9. However, from that point on, Brooklyn was on the wrong end of a 24-2 run in which it became clear that the Nets still have not figured out how to close in the fourth quarter, even with a double-digit lead against a struggling team like Atlanta.