Nets continue NBA Cup chase in Philly

Brooklyn shooting for second tournament victory

November 21, 2024 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Forward Jalen Wilson and Nets coach Jordi Fernández will try to win their second straight NBA Cup game in Philadelphia Friday night. AP Photo by Gerald Herbert

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Forward Jalen Wilson likened it to the “playoffs”.

Nets coach Jordi Fernández said his team had “won a big game” just 15 contests into his rookie year at the helm.

Moments after holding on for a 116-115 triumph over the visiting Charlotte Hornets before a towel-waving sell-out crowd at Barclays Center Tuesday night, Brooklyn realized it was still alive and well in the NBA Cup.

The Nets (6-9, 1-1 East Group A) will continue their quest to earn a spot in the knockout round of the league’s in-season tournament Friday night at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.

Only by beating the NBA-worst 76ers (2-12, 0-2) will Brooklyn have any chance to earn one of the eight coveted spots afforded to teams that either win their individual groups or earn the one wild card for their conference.

The Orlando Magic and East River rival New York Knicks are both ahead of the Nets with perfect 2-0 marks in the four-game group stage.

Brooklyn dropped its Cup opener in heartbreaking fashion at Madison Square Garden last Friday night when Jalen Brunson drained a go-ahead 3-pointer with 6.2 ticks left on the clock.

Despite missing leading scorer Cam Thomas Tuesday, the Nets remained relevant in the chase for the Cup behind 34 points from Cam Johnson, 17 from Wilson as a fill-in starter and Trendon Watford’s series of clutch plays down the stretch.

Though Fernández has remained steadfast that he’s not buying into what many are labeling a “rebuilding” season in Brooklyn, his team had lost a season-high three in a row and five of six before outlasting the Hornets.

Well-acquainted with group-stage and knockout-round play following his impressive performance as coach of Team Canada at last summer’s 2024 Paris Games, Fernández knew the Nets couldn’t stay in the hunt without surviving Tuesday.

“We won a big game, a Cup game. I think it’s a win for everybody,” he noted.

The Nets hope to have leading scorer Cam Thomas back on the hardwood Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. AP Photo by Noah K. Murray

Fernández got the Nets off to a solid 4-4 start before a pair of road losses to NBA powerhouses Boston and Cleveland. A narrow bounce-back win in New Orleans was negated by back-to-back defeats to the Knicks, including last Sunday’s 114-104 defeat at the Garden.

Though they may be headed toward more of a rebuild, especially with veterans like Johnson and Dorian Finney-Smith being sought after as potential trade pieces, Fernández still believes.

“I’m not satisfied because we have to do it for 82 games,” he said of his first month at the helm. “I’m enjoying it, but when you’re a rookie you learn a lot about the process.

“It’s a learning process for me. I’m embracing it,” he added. “If I make a mistake, it’s an honest mistake. I’m happy with the team that I have, but also with management and ownership.”

Though their Cup chances are infinitesimal following a pair of losses, the Sixers will be out to snap a season high-tying five-game slide Friday.

Joel Embiid’s 35-point, 11-rebound effort wasn’t enough to get Philadelphia back in the win column Wednesday as it suffered a 117-111 defeat in Memphis.

The Sixers did get Tyrese Maxey back from a right-hamstring strain, though he showed signs of rust with eight points on 3-of-13 shooting after being out for nearly two weeks.

Fellow starter Paul George was limited to 17 minutes against the Grizzlies after suffering a hyperextension in his right knee. He is listed as day-to-day headed into Philadelphia’s second group-stage home game.

Thomas was ruled out of Tuesday’s game vs. Charlotte with lower-back tightness and is also day-to-day after Fernández intimated that he wanted him to be “200%, not just 100%” healthy before he returned.

Reserve center Day’Ron Sharpe is nearing his return from a hamstring injury that has sidelined him since training camp, and the Nets will again be without starting pivotman Nic Claxton in Philadelphia due to a lower-back strain.

But Brooklyn is used to being undersized and shorthanded thus far this year.

“Got to cover up for everyone,” Wilson said. “Obviously, not having Nic is a big piece, but like Jordi says, next man has to step up, and we all have to account for what he brings to the team. … There’s not going to be any excuses.”

The Nets and Sixers split four meetings last season, including a 107-86 win by Philadelphia in the City of Brotherly Love in the regular-season finale for both teams on April 14.

Embiid sat out that contest in preparation for the Sixers’ playoff push while the Nets bowed out out of postseason contention for the first time in six years.

Many are predicting a similar end for Brooklyn’s chances of playing beyond the 82-game grind this year, but don’t tell Wilson or Fernández that.

“This is the playoffs,” Wilson said of the ongoing pursuit of the Cup.

Former MVP Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers will try to snap a five-game losing streak when they host the Nets Friday night. AP Photo by Brandon Dill

NOTHING BUT NET: Watford scored 10 points, including the final seven the Nets put up, Wednesday in Brooklyn. Fernández was effusive in his praise of Brooklyn’s training staff in getting the 6-foot-8 power forward back on the hardwood after he had missed their first 13 games with hamstring issues. … Johnson is averaging a career-best 18.1 points per game this season and is netting 19.8 through 10 games this month. … After the Cup clash in Philly, the Nets will embark on a three-game western swing through Sacramento on Sunday, Golden State Monday and Phoenix next Wednesday.