Upcoming Games
Tomorrow at Hawks: Coverage on YES and the YES App begins at 6:30 p.m.
Friday vs Wizards: Coverage on YES and the YES App begins at 6:30 p.m.
Monday at Kings: Coverage on YES and the YES App begins at 9:30 p.m.
Tipping Off
The Nets visit Atlanta for the second time Wednesday in the first of two games that were added to their schedule once Group Play of the NBA’s In-Season Tournament finished up. When they faced the Hawks on Nov. 22, Mikal Bridges tied his career high by scoring 45 points in an overtime loss. Brooklyn’s game against Washington was also a recent addition to the schedule. On Nov. 12, the Nets won their first meeting with the Wizards, who are tied with the Spurs at 3-16 for the second-worst record in the NBA -- ahead of only the 2-18 Pistons. Monday’s game in Sacramento will be the opener of a five-game Western Conference road trip that will also include visits to Kevin Durant and the Suns, the reigning NBA champion Nuggets, Golden State and Utah.
Nets Notes
In leading the Nets over the Magic on Saturday, Mikal Bridges scored 42 points for his fifth career 40-point game, all of which have come during his time with Brooklyn. He’s now the seventh player in franchise history to “flip a 40-burger” at least five times, putting him in a group that includes Cam Thomas, who has totaled 46 points over two games since returning from a nine-game absence caused by a sprained left ankle. Bridges scored 26 points in the first quarter alone versus Orlando, the highest total by a Net in the opening quarter of a game since tracking began in 1996-97. Dennis Smith Jr. returned from a lower back sprain Saturday and flirted with a triple-double after missing his previous six games, posting 10 points, 11 rebounds and six assists.
Know The Foes
Trae Young scored 43 points last month in the first meeting between the Nets and Hawks, including a jumper with 17.3 seconds left in overtime that gave Atlanta the lead for good. Leading scorer Kyle Kuzma has been a bright spot for the Wizards, averaging 23.6 PPG this season, although the Nets held him to 15 on just 4-of-16 field goal shooting when Brooklyn defeated Washington earlier this season. Sacramento’s dynamic point guard De’Aaron Fox is averaging 30.3 PPG, the fourth-highest total in the NBA, while Fox’s teammate Domantas Sabonis ranks third in rebounds with 11.9 per contest.
A Dazzling Fact
Brooklyn’s win over the Magic on Saturday ended a nine-game Orlando winning streak, which started right after the Magic lost to the Nets on Nov. 14. So when the Nets defeated Orlando this past weekend, they became just the fifth NBA team since the start of the 1981-82 season to end an opponent’s winning streak of at least nine games after they were also the last team to beat that same opponent before its streak began! This had not previously occurred since 2010-11 when the circumstance involved the teams that went on to meet in the NBA Finals that season. The Mavericks defeated the Heat on Nov. 27 and then Dallas toppled Miami again on Dec. 20 after the Heat won each of the 12 games they played between those losses. Stay with YES and the YES App to keep up with all the Nets’ accomplishments as they look to close out the 2023 calendar year strong!