Nets match worst start of Brooklyn era

Julius Randle and the Timberwolves drove past Noah Clowney and the winless Nets with a big fourth quarter Monday night in Brooklyn. AP Photo by Frank Franklin II

Three quarters worth of “effort” and “competitiveness” weren’t enough to prevent the winless Brooklyn Nets from matching their worst start in a decade on Monday night at Downtown’s Barclays Center.

Twenty-four hours after lambasting his team for its lack of the two aforementioned qualities, Nets coach Jordi Fernández got plenty of both for nearly 36 minutes, but the Minnesota Timberwolves used a lopsided fourth quarter to pull away for a 125-109 victory.

“I’m failing at trying to get my guys to play hard,” Fernández readily ceded following Sunday’s 125-105 defeat to Philadelphia at Barclays.

Though the two scores were eerily similar, the contests were not.

The 17,287 fans gathered to watch Monday’s finale of a three-game homestand on the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush had to be heartened when the Nets (0-7) were even at 28-28 after one quarter.

They rose to their feet as one after Brooklyn overcame a 12-point third-quarter deficit to take an 88-87 lead on Ziaire Williams’ free throw with just under two minutes remaining in the period.

“I thought we took really positive steps. You saw the fight and the purpose and winning two quarters, also allowing less than 30 points in two quarters. For us right now, that’s a win,” Fernández gushed.

However, the Timberwolves (4-3), playing without star forward Anthony Edwards, left the Nets in the dust thereafter.

Minnesota used a 21-7 burst to open a 108-94 cushion on Donte DiVincenzo’s 27-footer midway through the final quarter and the building began to steadily empty.

“I’m really proud of these guys for keep fighting,” the coach went on. “And even when we were down … we punched back and we took the lead. And then at the end, obviously, they’re big and very good defensively, and some of our shots didn’t go in.”

DiVincenzo scored 25 points and former Knick Julius Randle posted a triple-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Minnesota, which won its second straight without its best player available due to a hamstring injury.

Edwards’ absence gave the Nets hope, but Jaden McDaniels stepped up with 22 points and Naz Reid added 21 off the bench for the T-Wolves, who dropped the Nets into infamous company.

Brooklyn Nets' Nic Claxton (33) drives past Minnesota Timberwolves' Naz Reid (11) and Jaden McDaniels (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Nov. 3, 2025, at Barclays Center in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) Nic Claxton rose to the occasion Monday, scoring 17 points while leading Brooklyn in assists and rebounds. However, the Nets still fell to 0-7. AP Photo by Frank Franklin II

The 2015-16 Brooklyn squad also lost its first seven games en route to a 61-loss finish, but these Nets are still a safe distance from the poorest start in franchise history.

The 2009-10 Nets went 0-18 in Newark, N.J., before finishing a team record-worst 12-70.

Cam Thomas poured in 25 points and Nic Claxton had 17 points, eight rebounds and a season-high seven assists for Brooklyn, which got outscored 34-21 over the final 12 minutes to complete a fruitless three-game homestand.

Noah Clowney added 15 points in his first start of the year and Williams had 14 off the bench for Brooklyn, which was without second-leading scorer Michael Porter Jr. (20.8 points per game) due to personal reasons.

Porter openly suggested this week that Fernandez might shuffle the lineup in favor of veteran players over the abundance of rookies that have seen playing time during the first few weeks of this rebuilding campaign.

First-year point guard Ben Saraf was removed from the starting five and didn’t get off the bench vs. Philadelphia.

He did enter in the fourth quarter Monday, putting up five points in four minutes while fellow first-round pick Egor Dёmin only managed two points on 1-of-4 shooting in 22 minutes.

Claxton, who led the team in rebounding and assists, played on a postseason contender in each of his first four campaigns in Brooklyn.

Now, the Nets’ high-flying center is trying to avoid a third straight non-playoff season, if playing beyond early April is even a goal for this massive Downtown rebuilding project.

“(We’re) just trying to get everyone on the same page. Just trying to get everyone to play harder,” he intimated. “I think we did a better job of that tonight.”

“It’s just a part of the journey.. It can happen seven games in. It can happen 50 games in. … We took a step in the right direction tonight.”

The Nets will get their next shot at win No. 1 in Indiana on Wednesday against the reigning Eastern Conference champions.

“We just gotta stay together. We need to get over the hump and get a win,” added Claxton.

Brooklyn Nets' Tyrese Martin, center, shoots over Minnesota Timberwolves' Mike Conley, left, and Rudy Gobert during the first half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Nov. 3, 2025, at Barclays Center in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) Tyrese Martin made his second straight start and put up 12 points against the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves Monday night at Barclays Center. AP Photo by Frank Franklin II

NOTHING BUT NET: One of the Nets’ five first-rounders, Michigan product Danny Wolf, finally made his NBA debut in garbage time Monday, going scoreless in the final few minutes. … Tyrese Martin got his second straight start, scoring 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting to go with three rebounds, two assists and no turnovers in 22 solid minutes. … The Nets got outshot (56% to 40%) and outrebounded (53-40) during Monday’s loss. … Brooklyn is yielding 128.0 points per contests, just ahead of Washington (128.3) for the most in the league. The Nets also rank second-worst with a -15.6 point differential, ahead of only winless New Orleans. … Tip-off in Indiana on Wednesday is slated for 7 p.m. The Nets will return home Friday to host Detroit in their NBA Cup opener.