Jordi Fernandez couldn’t complain in regards to the Nets’ battle Friday night time.
In reality, he liked it. Think about his message obtained.
Two nights after the Nets’ new coach tore into his gamers for his or her effort in an unsightly loss to the reigning champion Celtics, they responded with a gritty efficiency.
Enjoying with out beginning middle Nic Claxton, who shall be out for at the very least every week with a decrease again pressure, the Nets got here all the best way again from a 21-point, third-quarter deficit of their first of 4 conferences with the rival Knicks on the Backyard.
Finally, the comeback fell brief as a result of Knicks star Jalen Brunson hit a game-winning 3-pointer with six seconds to go and former Internet Mikal Bridges blocked Dennis Schroder’s driving layup on the horn.
However it didn’t affect how Fernandez felt about his staff after this heartbreaking 124-122 setback to the Knicks in an NBA Cup sport.
“Losing hurts and it hurts all of us. But right there we showed our identity and nobody can take that away from us — nobody,” Fernandez mentioned after the Nets misplaced for the fourth time in 5 video games. “The battle that we simply put collectively, that’s one thing that we’ve got to understand. Now shedding the sport, you go into the locker room, and no person is joyful for shedding a sport, and I’m the primary one. I wish to win each sport and we’re going to battle to win.
“But at the same time, if you see how we’re working every day and what we’re trying to build and how, today I’m proud of my guys. The other day I wasn’t all the way through.”
There have been loads of positives in the best way the Nets (5-8) rallied after it regarded like they’d get blown out a second straight time.
The Nets outscored the Knicks, 40-24, within the remaining quarter and had been even on the glass within the second half after getting damage on the backboards within the first two stanzas.
Dorian Finney-Smith returned from an ankle harm and had 15 factors.
Cam Thomas poured in 43 factors and hit seven 3-pointers, his second 40-point efficiency at MSG and ninth of his profession, after making his first eight photographs from the sphere.
Thomas performed down the importance of his penchant for lighting it up on this constructing, although there was one fan on celeb row, seven-time Tremendous Bowl champion Tom Brady, who caught his consideration.
“Today was kind of dope though, seeing Tom Brady,” Thomas mentioned. “I used to be an enormous Tom Brady fan rising up. He gave me slightly look after I hit a 3, too. That basically was a very good second for me, for certain.
It was 98-77 within the remaining minute of the third quarter when the Nets flipped a swap.
They reeled off 21 of the sport’s subsequent 27 factors to get inside six.
The Knicks responded by pushing the lead again into double figures, however the Nets stored coming.
They went forward on Schroder’s 3-pointer with 12 seconds to go, setting the stage for the frantic remaining two possessions.
“I thought we did a great job of not giving up, still sticking to the game plan and the [tide] was turning,” Thomas mentioned. “We had been up one with a couple of seconds left and [Brunson] hit a troublesome shot you bought to reside with over our greatest defender. I feel we did all the best issues, we performed the best manner.
“I think we scored like 40 points in the fourth. That’s crazy. We just got to look at what we did in the fourth and try to carry that over to Sunday as much as we can.”
