The Nets were dealt another loss last night at the hands of OKC. Kevin Durant gave an Iceman-esque performance, stealthily putting up 40 smooth ones. That’s four games in a row with 30+ points. The Thunder are on pace to add 20 wins to last year’s total and are clearly a young, talented team that is developing into a contender. On the court they’re a confident crew that plays an athletic brand of basketball, and they’re developing winning habits under Coach Scott Brooks.
On the other side the losing is taking a toll on the Nets. One player in particular is their sophomore Center Brook Lopez. He has struggled in his last few games, not due to a lack of effort, but because he’s a passionate player who is frustrated by the mounting losses and the way defenses have adjusted to take him off his game. As a result he hasn’t been able to score and contribute the way he was doing earlier in the season.
To get back on track Lopez too must make adjustments and find other ways to score so that he won’t be forced to operate against the opposing team’s set defense. Running the floor hard to get easy baskets in transition, hitting the offensive boards to get easy points off follow-ups and tip-ins, and creating opportunities to get to the free throw line will help Lopez produce better numbers and contribute to his team’s success.
Brook is still very young and this is part of the maturation process for him. With players returning from injury Lopez doesn’t need to carry the team. As Brook and the Nets discover the right formula and the right points distribution, we will see Brook return to All-Star form and the Nets get back to their winning ways.
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