Lopez wants to see Brooklyn improving on its 23rd ranking in assists (19.7).
“I think we really have to get back to what we were doing in the preseason and training camp, which was moving the ball, trusting each other offensively and getting good looks out of that by turning the defense over a couple of times and looking at all our options to turn our good shots into great shots,” said Lopez.
Kidd was credited – perhaps unduly for a player who became little more than a designated 3-point shooter over his final few seasons- for helping Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks achieve offensive fluidity last season. He has yet to instill the same rhythm with Brooklyn.
According to Lopez, that isn’t Kidd’s fault.
“You can’t fault the coaching staff at all in regards to our game plan or scouting other teams,” said Lopez. “We have answers in that regard; we’re just not going out there and doing our job.”
While Lopez has benefited from the offensive system, averaging 19.7 points per game, Pierce and Garnett have combined to average an underwhelming 18.9 points.
Both players appear to have lost two steps this season, a major reason for Brooklyn’s struggles.
Garnett is averaging career lows in minutes (22.5), field-goal percentage (.371), and points (6.5).
Pierce is having the worst season of his career with career lows across the board in minutes (29.1), field goal percentage (.368), 3-point percentage (.268), rebounds (4.9) and points (12.4).
That’s not the production you want from two projected All-Star starters who cost the organization three future first-round picks (and the right to swap a fourth).
With all the struggles the Nets and Garnett have endured this season, the 15-time All-Star was asked if the team simply isn’t as good as people labeled it to be.
Garnett tersely replied, “No.”
Garnett then explained why he believes there is still plenty of hope in Brooklyn.
“We have a lot of guys coming in and we’re asking a lot of them, we have a new system and we’re changing things on the fly,” said Garnett. “Jason has put in a lot of new stuff since Lawrence has left. On top of that, guys who aren’t used to playing a lot of minutes are having a lot of responsibility of playing big minutes and we’re asking a lot of those minutes.”
Johnson gave a more blunt and accurate assessment why Brooklyn can still make the playoffs despite the dreadful start.
“I think we can turn it around,” said Johnson. “The East is pretty bad.”
Like his jump shot, Johnson is a straight shooter, folks.
And he’s right. Only Miami and Indiana are above .500, and the Nets are still ahead of the Knicks in the Atlantic Division standings, just 2 1/2 games behind first-place Boston.
“We all feel confident we have enough to win,” said Kidd. “This team was built with depth. We’ve asked some guys to do a little bit more and they’ve accepted that challenge. Those guys in that locker room have confidence that we can win and we can turn this thing around. It’s just a matter of getting healthy. Those guys will get healthy. But at the same time, the guys that are playing are getting better and we’re closer than maybe the public thinks. We really think we have a great opportunity.”
As long as Brooklyn matches the ineptitude of the Atlantic until healthy reinforcements arrive, they can still win the division.
Someone has to win it, right? Why not Brooklyn?
There’s still a whole lot more basketball to be played. And at some point, the Nets will be playing at full strength.
Michael Scotto is a Sheridan Hoops NBA columnist. You can follow him on Twitter.