The shorthanded Brooklyn Nets fell 124-114 to the league-leading Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on Saturday, snapping a three-game winning streak. Down three starters with Ben Simmons, Cam Johnson and Nic Claxton out, Brooklyn made it a game in the fourth quarter before the Celtics closed on a 25-17 run to pull away late.
Here are three key takeaways from the Nets' third loss of the season.
Nets hang tough in rebounding game with small-ball lineup
Brooklyn's improved rebounding has been among the top storylines of the young 2023-24 season. Through five games, the Nets rank fourth in defensive rebounding percentage after posting the NBA's third-worst mark in 2022-23.
Those improvements were on display with Brooklyn down two near seven-footers in the starting lineup against Boston. Despite using a small-ball lineup with Dorian Finney-Smith at center for most of the game, the Nets matched the Celtics with 10 offensive rebounds and only lost the overall rebounding battle 40-32. That eight-rebound disparity was largely a product of Brooklyn attempting 10 more shots than Boston, a result of them forcing the Celtics into 11 turnovers compared to just six of their own.
Following the loss, head coach Jacque Vaughn attributed his small-ball unit's effort on the boards to a shift in mindset.
“It really has been an emphasis since day one,” Vaughn said. “We got together as a group and I shared with them how bad we were last year at rebounding the basketball. For us to be a successful team, it just can't happen. It's just an uphill battle with the shot margin if you put yourself in a position where you're giving up offensive rebounds.
“So it's been a concentrated effort from our group. I give them a lot of credit for hitting people, wanting to come back and rebound at all positions, rebounding out of their area. So it's just a mindset for our guys. They've taken on the challenge and we've been rewarded for the most part.”
Nets fastbreak, 3-point regression hits
Vaughn has made it clear from the start this season: he wants his team to run and let the three-ball fly. Through four games, that strategy had vaulted a Nets offense many projected to be below-average to one of the most potent units in the league. Entering Saturday's game, Brooklyn's up-tempo offense ranked 1st in the NBA in fastbreak points at 23.4 per game while attempting 36.8 threes per game (8th) and converting at a 41.3 percent clip (2nd).
With a glaring size advantage while shorthanded Saturday, Brooklyn attempted 52 threes, their highest number of the season. However, they shot just 32.7 percent, their lowest mark of the year. Without Simmons pushing the ball in transition, they mustered seven fastbreak points to Boston's 16.
Despite Brooklyn's cold shooting night, Vaughn was encouraged by his team's three-point volume.
“The ability for us to still shoot 5o threes without Ben was interesting,” he said. “So if we can combine it when Ben is in to shoot 50 and have pace and fastbreak points, that's the holy grail for us. But we definitely miss Ben. His ability to push the basketball is elite and it makes us a different team.
Mikal Bridges struggles to find shooting stroke
Expectations were high for Bridges following his All-Star-level stretch with Brooklyn to close last season. However, the 27-year-old has struggled to regain that production early this year. That regression continued against Boston.
Bridges scored two points on 1-of-8 shooting in the first half. He was able to somewhat salvage the night with an aggressive second half, finishing with 19 points on 7-of-20 shooting from the field and 4-of-11 from three.
Outside of a 10-for-13 performance during a loss at Dallas, Bridges has struggled to find his stroke this year, shooting just 41.5 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three. Despite this, he was able to lift Brooklyn to victories with strong performances in the final minutes against Miami and Chicago. That late-game magic was nowhere to be found against a Celtics defense that ranks fourth in the league early this season.
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