Noah Clowney hadn’t simply been ready for a breakout efficiency. He’d been working towards one.
The Nets younger huge lastly bought it on Monday, capturing them to a win at New Orleans.
Clowney had 15 factors and hit 5 of 10 from deep.
At 20 years and 120 days previous, he’s the youngest Web to ever hit 5 3-pointers in a recreation.
Regardless of the quiet begin to the season for Clowney, the outing didn’t shock anyone within the Nets locker room.
“No, because I see him shoot every day, and I know he’s a good shooter,” coach Jordi Fernandez mentioned. “When I get mad at the guys is when they stop shooting. And Noah, one thing he’s done consistently is just continue to let it fly and it’s how it works, like you do not control if it’s gonna go in. You can control if you take a good shot. He kept taking a good shot after good shot after good shot. Like 5-for-10, it’s what we want to see. And I want him to keep shooting every time.”
It’s a message he hasn’t needed to inform Clowney twice.
“Jordi has a great medium of, as far as shots go, always pushing confidence,” Clowney mentioned. “But then in general, he has a great medium of just having fun. He’s been very straightforward, but he also is very good at giving his players confidence. And finding that medium is important, and telling us to shoot it. So shoot it.”
Clowney is averaging a modest 6.7 factors and three.7 rebounds, and had totaled simply 18 factors since his final double-digit outing again on Oct. 27.
A scorching end to final season had raised hopes that Clowney may problem for a beginning ahead spot.
That didn’t occur, however when Dorian Finney-Smith was scratched Monday with an ankle sprain, Clowney stepped up.
“He was due for a great shooting game from behind the arc, because he’s been working. But at the end of the day, he’s got to embrace it, because he’s young,” Cam Thomas mentioned. “So all people’s happy with him stepping up, taking part in the backup 5, actually altering the sport for the opposite workforce’s schemes, as a result of they’ve bought to protect him on the market, and you may’t simply load up and let him shoot, as a result of with a recreation like this now he’s on all people’s radar.
“Hope he just knocks it down at a high level. So he’s got to keep it up. But very proud of him, that was a big-time game.”
Clowney had taken a DNP in Friday’s loss at Boston, however comes into Wednesday’s rematch off his finest recreation of the season with seven boards and a block.
“His winning plays on defense, his verticality, the way he protects the rim for us, switchability. He’s engaged. He competes at a high level,” Fernandez mentioned. “I’m not surprised. Maybe somebody else on the outside is, but I see it every day.”
Finney-Smith is questionable in opposition to Boston, whereas Bojan Bogdanovic, Day’Ron Sharpe and Trendon Watford are out.
The Celtics performed Tuesday in opposition to Atlanta, with Kristaps Porzingis (left posterior tibialis tendon) out, however with Jayson Tatum taking part in via an ankle sprain.
