Brooklyn Nets' Bench Shines in Near-Comeback Over the 76ers

The bench outscored the starters 57-40 in a 7-point loss.

Mar 14, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward E.J. Liddell (9) react to his score against the Philadelphia 76ers during the fourth quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

A trio of two-way contract players, a 10-day contract player, a trade deadline addition and a rookie made up the Brooklyn Nets' bench rotation Saturday afternoon against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Nets were down by as much as 28 points in the game before rallying to make it a narrow 104-97 defeat.

Michael Porter Jr., Nic Claxton and Drake Powell were all ruled out for the day with minor injuries, while it was announced on Thursday that Day'Ron Sharpe would require season-ending surgery on his thumb. In short, Brooklyn was scraping the bottom of the barrel to fill out its rotation.

Surprisingly, the ragtag group of reserves came through to make it a competitive game.

The Nets' bench lineup combined for 138 minutes compared to the starters' 101 minutes, and four ended the game in double-figure scoring. Josh Minott led the way with an inefficient 14 points in 22 minutes, while also being an effective interior defense presence.

Then there was Ben Saraf, who played a team-high 31 minutes. He ended the game with 12 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals, shooting 6-for-13 from the field. His time playing in the G League helped build strong chemistry with the other players off the bench.

"I think at one point it was all the players for the Long Island Nets that we've played all of us together already," Saraf said. "We know each other... it was very fun to do it on the main stage."

Tyson Etienne was one of those two-way players whom Saraf had plenty of experience with. He posted 11 points, four rebounds and two steals on 3-for-11 shooting –– every shot he took came from three-point range.

E.J. Liddell rounded out the top scorers with 10 points in 11 minutes. He went 4-for-5 from the field, dished out three assists and had a game-high +18 plus/minus.

Chaney Johnson and Malachi Smith combined for 10 points, 13 rebounds, four steals and three blocks. Johnson is another two-way player, and Smith recently signed a 10-day contract with Brooklyn.

The Nets were down by 21 points entering the fourth quarter. An all-bench –– plus Danny Wolf lineup –– brought them back into the game. Brooklyn outscored Philadelphia 41-27 in the fourth quarter, drilling seven triples in the process.

We may never see a bench lineup like this again for the Nets as the season winds down, but it goes to show how determined a group of usually non-rotational players can be when they have a chance to prove themselves.