The NBA’s two leaders in playing the most youngsters — those under 25 — this season are the Washington Wizards with 19 and the Brooklyn Nets with 18. But by the end of Saturday night’s marathon in our nation’s capital, it was the Nets kids, particularly two boyhood pals, who showed up last and with the most poise.
Jalen Wilson and Drew Timme, two 24-year-old Texas natives who’ve known each other since the fourth grade, combined for 39 points, 13 boards and six assists ... and scored the Nets final six points to win the game, 115-112, and end a six-game losing streak.
The dramatic win was marred by injuries within a minute of each other in the fourth quarter to Cam Johnson who appeared to fall on his tail bone, and Noah Clowney who once again suffered an ankle injury. Both had been key to the Nets comeback. Head coach Jordi Fernandez said post-game that both are being accessed but he had no information on the severity of the injuries.
Wilson and Timme, also first team All-Americans in 2023, played off each other the entire night but the night’s big moment was Timme’s. With the Wizards up one 112-111, following A.J. Johnson’s 32-foot 3-pointer, Fernandez took a timeout and drew up a play for the 6’10” Gonzaga product that worked to perfection. Tyrese Martin hit Timme with the pass as J.T. Thor vainly tried to block it, only to be called for a goal tend...
After Washington’s Colby Jones threw the ball out of bounds under the Wizards basket, Thor quickly fouled Wilson who calmly stroked two free throws giving the Nets a three-point lead with 1.2 seconds. Jones missed a buzzer beater and that was all she wrote.
“It was a two man game for Tyrese and Drew,” Fernandez told the media. “knowing [Timme’s] pretty crafty around the rim. Also, Tyrese had just made a shot and Tyrese made the right play.
“We still needed that stop. Good job by JWil making free throws ... 20 points off the bench... He did a great job today. It got a little scary towards the end. We had three turnovers and two and a half minutes when we were up nine.”
For Timme, it was his second night in the NBA and now has scored 30 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, all off the bench, in his two games. It was only a week ago that he scored 50 points in a Long Island Nets game, winning that one and earning a call-up and a two-year minimum deal.
“I love the bright lights, I guess,” Timme joked with Megan Triplett when asked about his success in March, both this year and in his March Madness turns with the Zags.
“That’s just what we drew up: ‘Rese downhill finishes it or if they help, hit me. If not the corner’s open if they overhelp. So we just made the right play and it happened to be my play. They goal-tended but I think it was going in anyway.”
Timme and Wilson were two of six Nets in double figures by game’s end. Martin finished with 20, Cam Johnson 18, Keon Johnson 15 and Clowney 13. Ziaire Williams and Dariq Whitehead went scoreless.
The game was an up-and-down affair with the Nets going 17 points points at one point in the first half, then rallying in the fourth, going up by nine late before Johnson led the Wizards back. Timme said that Fernandez had some non-PC comments at the half.
“Coach told us basically to nut up, in a PG way. He was like y’all got to (fight). they got 23 free throws, we have three or four. You can say it’s the refs all you want, but at the end of the day you’ve got to attack. You’ve got to make them make calls. So offensively and defensively we had to be more aggressive and that’s what we tried to do.”
As Noah Eagle said at one point, “Timme likes it.”
Up Next
The Nets travel to Dallas Monday night to face the Mavs for a second time in two weeks. Not only is Anthony Davis back, but Dallas may have two of its bigs, Derrick Lively and Daniel Gafford back. It’s a late start: 8:30 p.m. ET.