The Brooklyn Nets are at a far different point than they were before the start of the year after trading star players Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving before the deadline. This was evident by an extremely pathetic performance on Friday night against the Chicago Bulls.
While struggles were obviously expected with their huge losses, Friday’s performance may indicate that the Nets may fall out of the playoff picture altogether.
The game was pretty much over by the first half for Brooklyn in a truly embarrassing effort on the offensive side of the ball. They went into halftime trailing Chicago 63-29, which marked one of the worst offensive performances at the half in recent memory for the Nets organization.
The broadcast at halftime from YES Network detailed that this marks the first time since 2012 that the Nets have scored less than 30 points in the first half.
No KD? No Kyire? Apparently, no offense. pic.twitter.com/eY5QKJgFNr
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) February 25, 2023
Things didn’t get much better for the Nets in the second half. While they did pick things up offensively, they ultimately lost in a 44-point beatdown in a game that wasn’t competitive from the start.
The NBA world certainly took notice of this game and ripped Brooklyn for this awful performance.
The new-look Nets really making a statement. 😅
✅ CHI -125
✅ U 222.5 pic.twitter.com/6T1Od8WvMp— theScore Bet (@theScoreBet) February 25, 2023
The Nets lost by 44 points tonight the Bulls tonight.
It's Brooklyn's 2nd 40+ point loss of the month, having lost by 43 to the Celtics back on February 1. pic.twitter.com/HOLhEp39Z3
— Nets Videos (@SNYNets) February 25, 2023
New York, New York …
Julius Randle tonight: 46 points in 36 minutes
Brooklyn Nets tonight: 46 points in 35 minutes— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) February 25, 2023
The Nets scored just 29 points in the first half tonight.
It's their lowest first half point total in any game since their move to Brooklyn.#NBA | #Nets https://t.co/ZSr11DmgTr
— Basketball Reference (@bball_ref) February 25, 2023
ARE THE BROOKLYN NETS USING A 24 SECOND SHOT CLOCK?
— Dart_Adams (@Dart_Adams) February 25, 2023
This first-half performance for Brooklyn ties the season low in the NBA this season in a half. Ironically, they were on the other side of that game back in November against the Washington Wizards.
Brooklyn’s 29 points tied the low for any team in a half this season. Ironically, they held the #Wizards to just 29 in the second half on Nov. 4, 2022. The last time a team was held to 29 at halftime was the Clippers on Jan. 11, 2022, per Elias. #Nets
— Brian Lewis (@NYPost_Lewis) February 25, 2023
Blowout losses have been a troubling trend for the Nets as of late. This is actually the second time in February that they have lost by more than 40 points, losing by 43 to the Boston Celtics.
The Nets currently have the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference, but this loss may be a sign of things to come for the remainder of the season in Brooklyn.