Nets' Second Unit Shows Some Flashes in Blowout Loss to Hornets

The Brooklyn Nets fell to the Charlotte Hornets 117-86 on Tuesday, halting all the positive momentum built from their big 116-99 win over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday.

The Hornets jumped out to a 35-18 lead after the first quarter, never giving the Nets even a fighting chance to knock down the nest.

Brandon Miller provided an early buzz, scoring 16 points on five-of-five shooting in the first quarter. He finished the game with 25 points on 7-of-13 shooting.

The Nets found a little spark in the second quarter, outscoring the Hornets 27 to 23. Nolan Traoré and Josh Minott scored six points apiece, with Drake Powell chipping in five of his own in the period.

"They were focused," Nets coach Jordi Fernández said. "They were playing the right way. Also understanding how they're defending certain actions. That's the only quarter we won. 23 to 27. I liked that group. They played the right way. They were focused and then they played hard."

A couple of silver linings in this game was that the Nets were able to keep LaMelo Ball and Kon Knueppel somewhat in check, holding both to 4-of-12 shooting.

Traoré had a couple of solid defensive possessions on Ball, as he was able to stay in front of him and force him into a couple of tough shots.

However, this was a far cry from the same defense that looked like it could frustrate LeBron James just days before, which helped the Nets stay competitive against the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Nets allowed Charlotte to shoot 12-of-39 from 3-point range while giving up 29 second change points, proving to be a huge discrepancy in this one.

With just six games left in the season, all the Nets can really do at this point is just continue to build on the defensive principles that have helped keep them in games against some of the most competitive teams in the league, especially in the month of December, when the team went 7-4 and boasted the league's best defensive rating in the month.

The last remaining games could also allow Traoré and Powell an opportunity to work on their all-around games and more on-ball reps.

It also wouldn't be shocking to see Fernández continue to lean into heavy defensive units to close out the season, especially with significant offensive contributors expected to be out for the remainder of the campaign.