The Brooklyn Nets (1-8) were feeling good about themselves following Wednesdays’ 112-103 win at the Indiana Pacers and they had another chance to prove themselves on Friday against the upstart Detroit Pistons (7-2). Brooklyn had some bad news to share with Cam Thomas being ruled out for the next three to four weeks due to a left hamstring strain and the Nets clearly missed him.
The Nets lost to the Pistons 125-107 in NBA Cup play and that was despite getting an excellent game from forward Noah Clowney as he continues to grow into his own as a player. Forward Michael Porter Jr. finished the contest with 28 points and five rebounds while Clowney dropped 19 points and two assists to continue what has been an impressive display of growth from him.
Brooklyn began the first half with some of their best basketball as they essentially were going back-and-forth with the Pistons, but Cade Cunningham proved to be too much with his 34 points and 10 assists as he continues his hot start to the season. The Nets trailed by as many as 24 points in this game so with that being said, here are three Nets takeaways from Friday’s loss to the Pistons:
Michael Porter Jr. Shows His Struggles Being The Primary Scoring Option
Porter finished this game with an impressive statline of 28 points, five rebounds, two assists, and one steal while shooting 8-of-17 from the field and 5-of-10 from three-point land, but it’s important to note that Porter did most of his damage when the game got out of hand. Porter struggled in the first half to the tune of nine points on 3-of-8 shooting from the floor and while he dropped 11 points in the third quarter, it was clear that Porter wasn’t able to score in a way to lift the team from experiencing a double-digit deficit.
Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!Noah Clowney Continues To Grow
After a slow start to the season in which Clowney was trying to figure out how to make an impact with less minutes as he was coming off the bench, he may have finally broken through now that he’s a starter. Clowney dropped 19 points and two assists against one of the best defensive teams in the league in the Pistons and now, Clowney had put up at least 15 points in each of his last three games.
Egor Demin Has Solid Starting Debut
Prior to Friday’s loss to the Pistons, Demin had not started in a game for the Nets, effectively being the backup to either fellow rookie Ben Saraf, veteran Tyrese Martin, or veteran Terance Mann. However, head coach Jordi Fernandez finally decided to insert Demin into the starting lineup and while there were some hiccups, the former BYU Cougar played some solid ball with eight points, three rebounds, and seven assists with just one turnover.