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Brooklyn gets a much-needed win against the Philadelphia 76ers
Brooklyn came into the second night of a back-to-back with a mission, as the Nets wanted to redeem themselves from the previous night when they lost to the shorthanded Grizzlies. They followed that loss up with a strong performance against the Philadelphia 76ers, winning the game 112 to 107.
It was another well-rounded performance from Brooklyn, as Dorian Finney-Smith and Dennis Schroder scored a combined 40 points. Lonnie Walker IV wasn’t far behind, scoring 19 points and getting a plus-minus of +29. Kelly Oubre Jr. had a game-high 30 points, but it wasn’t enough to win.
“Nobody was pouting over there, nobody was pointing fingers. We just hunt better when we’re in a pack. Not just individuals,” Ollie said regarding his team’s performance.
“Just doing the small things in our standards. We say it, but we gotta be about it. Just saying on our business and take care of what we need to take care of and control that."
A performance worthy of praise
The performance against Philly was the quintessential win under interim coach Kevin Ollie. He wanted the team to play with energy across every facet of the game, and his team responded. Granted, they started a bit slower than he liked, which led to a rousing speech during half-time.
Brooklyn’s second-half performance was much better than the first, leading to the win. Every Nets player played like a hunter, which is what Coach Ollie wanted to keep seeing. They battled for every loose ball and rebound while playing with pace on offense.
That kind of performance is what the Nets must do every night, as they can out-work any team in the league. Brooklyn does not have the most talented team, but they can out-hustle opponents, which leads to good results.
Brooklyn needs consistency
The Nets must perform at this level in every game. The players’ effort level should not go down, no matter who the opponent is, especially with what happened against Memphis on Monday.
By maintaining this kind of play style, Brooklyn would be more successful. Coach Ollie would love to play like this often, as his team becomes easier to coach when they follow his instructions of playing with energy and pace. Even if Mikal Bridges is struggling, the Nets can be successful by becoming a more well-rounded team where Everybody Gets Better.
