It wasn’t a criticism Drake Powell hasn’t heard before.
After a down game on Friday against the Mavericks that saw the No. 22 pick only tag in for 2:41 off the bench in a sloppy first quarter, Nets coach Jordi Fernández called out Powell and fellow rookie Egor Dëmin for a lack of “readiness to play” that led to a multitude of mistakes.
Partially, the downgrade was because of Nolan Traore’s call-up and time given to the Frenchman over Powell. Yet, the other part of it came down to play.
In his brief time on court, Powell had a turnover and two fouls, along with a block and an assist. Fernández’s words brought him right back to his early playing days.
“It was obviously some of the things I’ve heard before with my player development coach and even when I was younger, going through AAU,” Powell said after practice on Tuesday. “I respect him [Fernández] for that. It just shows that he cares, not only about me as a basketball player but as a human being.”
Powell went on to have conversations with Dëmin about the tough love they heard from Fernández, and how they could bounce back.
On Sunday, they managed to deliver.
Drake Powell of the Brooklyn Nets drives to the basket during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks. NBAE via Getty Images
While Dëmin had a team-high 17 points, Powell went on to score 13 points and tally four rebounds, three assists, and one steal against the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Bucks in the Nets’ biggest blowout in team history, 127-82. He was a plus-31 on the court — a game high.
The 20-year-old was also back on his usual minutes on Sunday (23). Going into the Bucks game, he averaged 21.1 minutes per contest since joining the Nets rotation on Nov. 7 and has logged at least 13 minutes in each appearance.
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As the rookies moved on from the sour game, they still had the continued support of their veterans, who have been tasked to take the NBA record five first-round picks under their wing.
“Every game isn’t going to be perfect for them. We tell them that all the time,” Terance Mann said. “We tell them that all the time, just go out there and give a ton of effort. We try to lead by example and they’ve been following. It’s been great to see, especially the last game. Big bounce-back game for Egor and Drake.”
Fernández, who watched the game from home as he was out with an illness, was also proud of what he saw in a redemption game for both rookies.
Jordi Fernandez of the Brooklyn Nets reacts on the sideline. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
“I think they both did a great job. We knew that that was in them,” Fernández said. “But it’s not just to do it again but sustain it for a long run and do it better. The NBA is a tough business, a tough schedule at times. Whatever it is you gotta keep doing it every night and when you’re 19, the only thing that you know is that you don’t know. … Our guys care and we know how much they care, especially these two kids. They came back and they did what was best for the group and their performance was up to our standards.”
Powell has been a defensive asset since his arrival, and pushes the Nets to get more offense through defense. Since entering the rotation, he has been rather consistent, averaging 6.9 points on 47 percent shooting from the field and 2.3 assists per game.
“At the end of the day, it’s basketball. There’s ups and downs. I think it’s just important to stay levelheaded,” Powell added for one of many rookie-year lessons to be learned.