G League Watch: Long Island Nets Start March With Win, Loss

The Long Island Nets are now 11-13 in the G League regular season after splitting a pair of games to kick off March.

The Nets first defeated the Texas Legends 110-103 on March 1, but dropped the rematch the following day. Both games were contested away in Frisco, TX. The Dallas Mavericks’ G League team is 8-15 for the season, playing in the G League’s Western Conference.

In the first game, two-way forward Tosan Evbuomwan paced Long Island with 22 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two stocks. The Princeton alum has been back in the G League after initially being a part of the Brooklyn Nets’ rotation following his signing with the team on Jan. 1.

Fellow two-way Reece Beekman was unavailable for both of Long Island’s games against Texas. The 6-foot-3 guard played 27 minutes for Brooklyn against the Detroit Pistons on March 1. He scored three points, going 1-for-5 from the field, dished out one assist and vacuumed up three steals.

Meanwhile, the Nets also have a new two-way signing to report. Kendall Brown, who has played with Long Island all year, penned a two-way deal on Feb. 25. In 37 G League games this season, he is averaging 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.6 blocks in 33.9 minutes per night. Brown is shooting 56.8% from the field and 40% from three, albeit on reduced volume at 90 attempts for the full season.

Brown, a 6-foot-7 wing/forward, was the No. 48 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. He was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves but was immediately sent to the Indiana Pacers. The 21-year-old has played in 21 NBA games across two years in the league, scoring 30 total points in 103 minutes played.

Two other standouts for Long Island were Drew Timme and Tyson Etienne. This has been par for the course for the Nets’ developmental affiliate. Timme scored 22 and 31 points, respectively, while Etienne went off on March 2 with 32 points in 40 minutes. Unfortunately, that was not enough for the Nets to overcome the Legends on that night, suffering a 118-122 loss. Both were contenders to become two-way players for Brooklyn’s main squad.

It remains to be seen what Killian Hayes' future is. Hayes had played with Long Island until inking a 10-day with the Nets; however, he won't be receiving a second contract of that type. The French guard had averaged 9.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists over six games (including five starts) for Jordi Fernández's squad.

Next, Long Island remains on the road. A March 4 game against the Indiana Mad Ants beckons, followed by a cross-state rivalry game against the Westchester Knicks on March 11. Then, “Les Nets” return to their second home in Canada for a two-game stretch.

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