The Brooklyn Nets’ season has fallen to a new low in a 125-116 home loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday (all times AEDT).
It saw Brooklyn drop to 1-5 – the franchise’s worst start since 2015 – with its defence again a massive issue – going into the game ranked 29th in the league (120.2).
It included Indiana drilling 23 three-pointers from a hyper efficient 50 per shooting from deep led by a 32-point explosion from rookie Bennedict Mathurin, while Tyrese Haliburton added 26 points and six threes to go with eight assists.
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Moreso than anything, there was a lack of defensive intensity from the Nets that saw then give up 52 rebounds to the Pacers including 16 offensive boards to give the visitors ample second-chance opportunities.
Perhaps most alarmingly, it came on the second end of a back-to-back for the Pacers as they improved to 3-4.
Kyrie Irving posted a game-high 35 points, Kevin Durant added 26 points with five blocks and Ben Simmons had nine points, eight rebounds and nine assists, but it wasn’t enough in the end.
Durant looked visibly frustrated throughout stages of the fourth quarter including slamming the scorer’s table with around four minutes left in the game before immediately departing to the locker room post-match.
Simmons revealed post-match that the Nets held a players only “honest” meeting, and was confident they could yet bounce back and be the best team in the league.
