The Brooklyn Nets did not just get to practice on Wednesday morning, but in the middle of a week with just one game, they actually got up and down at HSS Training Center, though a foggy sky in New York City killed most of those great views...
After Head Coach Jordi Fernández called his team's defensive effort “atrocious” following Sunday’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, the practice was not taken lightly.
“We have to be better. I know it, the coaching staff knows it, and the players know it,” said Fernández following practice.
And it’s true; for all the well-deserved praise Brooklyn’s offense has gotten, they have the 27th ranked defense in the NBA, per Cleaning the Glass (which excludes garbage-time from their data). Yes, they’ve been slightly better on that end since returning from that rollicking West Coast road trip, but the 67-point second half they allowed to Milwaukee prompted Fernández to make his harshest public criticism of his team yet, and he stuck by those words on Wednesday.
“More than just the last few possessions, it was the way we — the way our defense was in the fourth, the last six minutes, how we finished defensively in the third. Those are the things we can control. It was very poor, like I said, and after watching film — and we watched film as a group ... we were not good. We have to own it.“
His players agreed. While Gary Trent Jr. and his Bucks teammates made some laughable looks down the stretch, Keon Johnson says Brooklyn’s own defensive miscues were more noticeable on tape: “Definitely, because they were getting a lot of wide-open shots, and that’s something we try to keep other teams from getting. All of it just boils down to effort, just making that extra effort.”
At this point in the season, Keon Johnson is qualified to speak on Brooklyn’s defensive effort. He’s started Brooklyn’s last three games — his first three starts all season — specifically due to his defensive effort, per Fernández.
“I think good things happen to players that work really hard, and they do whatever it takes for the team. Keon has been doing it, and he’s not the only one right now. He’s in this position, like I said, because he deserves it. He still has, you know, work to do and improve, but I’m very happy with him. He’s a guy that can be very, very, very good defensively.”
Keon Johnson certainly has room to grow; though he’s not been hesitant to let the 3-ball fly he’s making just 30.1% of them this year, down from his career-average of 33.2%. And his off-ball defense is still suspect, as he’s prone to getting hung up on screens or lost in rotation...
And yet, it’s clear to see why Fernández thinks Johnson can be a defensive stalwart. He has the short-space athleticism to keep up with the quicker guards the NBA has to offer, and in Brooklynn’s last two outings, his primary assignments (Damian Lillard and Tyrese Haliburton) didn’t do much of anything.
“I’m just taking advantage of the moment I’m in now,” explains the 22-year-old. “You don’t know what will happen on any given night, but every guy — one through 12 — has to be ready for whenever their number is called. So, I feel like whether you’re starting or you’re coming off the bench, you have to come in and make an impact in some way, somehow.”
While Jordi Fernández’s preseason promise that opportunity was going to be solely performance-based and completely devoid of prior reputation was always far-fetched — this is the NBA, after all — Johnson does present a clear example of upward mobility within this new Brooklyn regime. When the Nets signed him to a two-year contract this August after a strong Las Vegas Summer League stint, it was a nice vouch of confidence for 2021’s #21 overall pick. But he was still much further away from Brooklyn’s starting lineup than one Cam Thomas injury.
So, despite Fernández’s disapproval of his team’s energy last night out, he is pleased with many individuals on the roster. That includes Nic Claxton, whose last two games have looked like true Nic Claxton games: blocking shots, creating offense for himself, general spryness, etc.
Brooklyn’s head coach sees Clax’s play as a “combination of him being more comfortable, playing more minutes, being aggressive. Like, that’s what we want him to do, and we want him to do it every game. So he should be comfortable doing it. Also, now if he feels like he’s in better game shape, it’s going to become easier and easier. So it was a good, good first step, right there, and he’s got to continue to get better.”
When asked if he has a plan to keep getting his starting center more touches — we saw Clax isolate, post-up, run the floor, and play in the pick-and-roll against Milwaukee on Sunday — Fernández opted to hand the responsibility over to Clax and point guard Dennis Schröder: “It’s not just me telling them how to do it all the time. Good players, what they do is they show you. So they can figure it out. I’ll give them the ownership. They are very good, and they’ll be even better.”
Brooklyn is sitting at 10-14, the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. Though a low-end playoff spot is certainly not the organization’s goal this season, as evidenced by another dump of trade rumors leading up to December 15, this team is still worth talking about in the present.
Inching closer to full-health, they are suddenly stocked with forwards and centers, playing funky three-big lineups off the bench. Keon Johnson is at the very beginning of a developmental success story, still with a. long way to go but covering his bases nonetheless. The same can be said for Nic Claxton and his attempt to return to peak form.
The next chance for Jordi Fernández’s squad to win a game, and to continue their development, comes this Friday evening in a visit to the Memphis Grizzlies. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET.
Brooklyn Nets hit the community
The holiday season is always special. Hopefully, we reflect on the year, spend time with those we care about, and look forward to the New Year. It’s also the perfect time to give back, and in addition to resting their bodies, that’s how the Brooklyn Nets have taken advantage of all these off days.
December 6, 2024: Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams at the Toys for Tots event at Madison Square Boys and Girls Club in Brooklyn, NY. December 6, 2024: Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams at the Toys for Tots event at Madison Square Boys and Girls Club in Brooklyn, NY. Image via Brian Fleurantin
Brian Fleurantin
On December 6th, Ziaire Williams and the Nets hosted a Toys for Tots event in the Flatbush part of Brooklyn. It was a cold evening, but there were plenty of kids who made the trip out to meet Williams and receive food and gifts for the holidays. Williams was a military kid growing up, as well as an only child, which made after-school programs especially fun and meaningful for him. He took some time at the event to speak with media...
“I always try to remember where I came from,” said Williams. “I remember growing up, the Boys and Girls Clubs, after-school [programs], being a kid running around not knowing what life was gonna throw at me. This is bringing me back full circle, honestly ... This is why I work so hard and do what I do. It’s truly been a humbling experience.”
Though it will be a decades-long process, the Nets have worked to make Brooklyn home since the big move in 2012, and events like this are a key part of their mission. Being able to give back off the court while providing fun on the court goes a long way in creating a welcoming environment for all.
“I think that’s our number one priority as an organization, is to impact the community,” said Jordi Fernández at Wednesday’s practice. “At the end of the day, you play because there’s people watching you, all over the world, but also the people in your own community, which are the most important. And they have to see that, obviously, they are professional basketball players and coaches, and that’s what we do for a living, but at the end of the day, it’s promoting the right things ... and it’s not just by creating entertainment. It’s also by getting out there, being on the ground with the people and with our fans.”
Following Williams’ Toys for Tots event, the Nets held two more events on Monday afternoon. First, Day’Ron Sharpe took 15 local children holiday shopping, in partnership with SCO Family of Services...
We learned Sharpe is an avid fan of the board game Trouble while shopping, and he laughed at the new, electronically driven tastes of today’s young shoppers: “They going straight for laptops, iPads, computers ... I wasn’t doing all that when I was a kid.”
Still, Sharpe says the experience meant a lot to him, even with this being a contract year and he being a potential trade target at the deadline. Though he doesn’t know how long he is for Brooklyn, that didn’t change his mindset on Monday: “I just live in the present, you know? I try to just live life to the fullest every day.”
Shortly after Sharpe’s shopping spree, a trio of Nets joined 35 more kids for a holiday party at Dave & Buster’s, and the smiles on the faces of Tyrese Martin, Trendon Watford, and Cam Thomas are all you need to see to know how that went...
NBC Sports hires Frank DiGraci away from YES Network
The personnel changes have already started for the Brooklyn Nets, though far away from the court. NBC Sports has announced the hiring of Frank DiGraci as coordinating producer for its upcoming NBA coverage, which will start at the beginning of next season.
“He will oversee all production elements of NBC Sports’ game coverage and will serve as its lead producer,” said NBC Sports in a press release, meaning DiGraci is set to depart YES Network, where he has worked for 22 years.
Over that span, DiGraci helmed YES Network’s successful efforts to become the gold standard of local NBA coverage with their Nets telecasts. DiGraci is credited as the father of those segments Nets fans have come to know and love, such as “Ask the Announcers,” “Wear Brooklyn At” and “Who Am I?”.
DiGraci is also the talent evaluator behind YES Network’s stacked roster of play-by-play announcers and color commentators, as one Richard Jefferson can tell you...
Frank was the first guy to offer me a broadcasting job, it was my rookie year so he had to wait . First game I ever called he was the producer and taught me so much over the years. Thank you for everything. You'll be missed @YESNetwork https://t.co/7ok7MI5315
— Richard Jefferson (@Rjeff24) December 11, 2024
While it is a tremendous get for NBC as they look to revitalize their coverage of the NBA in a big way, it’ll certainly be odd for Nets fans to not hear Ian Eagle shouting out “executive producer Frank DiGraci” at the end of Brooklyn games next season.