Is this how things are going to be for the Brooklyn Nets without their starting center? In the first game since losing Brook Lopez to a season-ending foot injury, the Nets got ripped by the Indiana Pacers and suffered an embarrassing 103-86 loss at home.
To be fair, they did lose to the best team in the league (at least from a record perspective). The Pacers are ranked No. 1 in defensive rating and allow a league best 89.4 points. That’s pretty much in line with what they did against the Nets.
Still, Brooklyn has expectations. Failing to meet them seemingly on a nightly basis is starting to take a toll on Jason Kidd. Here is what he had to say about his squad after the latest loss, from Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN:
“I think it is getting very close to just accepting losing,” Kidd said. “We are kind of getting comfortable with losing.
“And we got to make a stand with that because when things get tough, do we just give in,” Kidd continued. “And most of the time right now we do.”
Kidd was asked what can he do when a team is beginning to accept losing.
“You don’t have enough timeouts, you know?” the exasperated rookie head coach said. “I can call as many timeouts to slow it down and call a play and get us in a zone. But we still have to find a way to put the ball in the basket and get stops.
“That is not just individual, but that’s the team,” he continued. “That’s what we have to find out.”
For what it’s worth, Deron Williams denied the coach’s notion that he accepts losing:
Williams said he needs to do more. “I need to play better,” Williams said. “I need to be more aggressive for us to have a chance — especially with Brook going down, that’s what I talked about is stepping up. Tonight was just a bad game for me, throwing the ball all over the place, couldn’t hit a shot. It took my aggressiveness away, and I think I played into what they were trying to do.”
When the Nets started this season, with so much hope and anticipation, Kidd said he wanted to get Williams back to being an elite point guard.
Williams said he wants to show Kidd he can still be that, and that he and the Nets are not growing comfortable with losing. “I’m not comfortable losing,” Williams said. “It’s not fun. Not only when we’re losing during the game but when I go home sitting and thinking about it. It’s not fun.”
What happened on Monday shouldn’t be considered the norm. Yes, Lopez is lost for the season. This means the team will now have to adjust to life without him, and that undoubtedly will take some time.
They are still missing a key piece in Andrei Kirilenko, but the forward is hoping to return sometime this week. With Garnett sliding over to the center position, we can expect better production from him, at least from a defensive standpoint. Jason Terry returned on Monday and played well off the bench. It may sound strange, but they basically will be a new team again by the end of this year. Their situation is less than ideal, but they have to remain patient because there is no other choice.
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