It’s going to be weeks until the Nets play at Barclays Center again, but at least they gave the home crowd a show.
The Nets knew Atlanta was going to be a tough test, but they aced it. A Kevin Durant-led third-quarter run turned the game and let them cruise to a 117-108 win before a crowd of 17,323.
It marked a third straight win for the Nets (5-3), who closed a six-game homestand and now head on a six-game road trip with momentum.
“We’re improving on both ends. More understanding defensively how we want to play, and offensively we’re becoming more willing to get to second actions and then trust and move it and not play against a loaded defense,” coach Steve Nash said. “We’re improving. We’re getting a feel for one another. But it’s got to be a process that we never let go of.”
Durant poured in a game-high 32 points, including 12 in a game-changing 26-7 run to close the third. It flipped a 72-69 deficit into a 16-point cushion, as he was showered with chants of, “MVP! MVP!”
And who was to argue? Certainly not the Hawks, who never slowed him.
“I just felt like the lane was open. I felt like I can get to wherever I want on the floor, and it’s just about me knocking down shots,” said Durant, who added seven rebounds and five assists. “And I was aggressive all night, I felt my teammates were looking for me.”
As well they should have.
Joe Harris continued to snap his early malaise with his best outing of the short season, scoring 18 points on 6 of 8 from deep. James Harden bounced back from a poor defensive first half to finish with 16 points and 11 assists.
Patty Mills (14 points) and LaMarcus Aldridge (10 points) had 24 of the Nets’ 34 points off the bench, and Brooklyn finished with six players in double figures.
After having lost every time they had been outrebounded, this time the Nets got beat 52-42 on the glass but found a way to win. Or should we say shot themselves to victory?
The Nets went a season-high 22 of 48 from 3-point range. And they did just enough to hold Trae Young down, limiting him to 6 of 22 shooting.
“I thought we stuck with it,” Nash said. “They cause a lot of problems. They’ve got a lot of shooters and they’ve got two really good rollers. With his vision and playmaking ability they can cause a lot of problems but it’s not going to be perfect and you can’t hang your head when they score and I thought our guys mentally and physically were very tough tonight.”
De’Andre Hunter led Atlanta with 26 points, while Young had 21, 10 assists and nine boards. But in the end, the Nets had Durant, and just enough defense.
The Nets were trailing 72-69 with 7:17 left in the third on a pull-up by Young before they turned the tide. Durant scored the final seven points in 13-3 spurt to take an 82-75 edge with 3:37 left in the quarter.
Clinging to an 83-79 edge, the Nets reeled off the final 12 points of the third. After they forced a Lou Williams airball with five seconds remaining in the third, Mills pushed the ball up at breakneck pace. He got it to Durant, who beat the buzzer with a 3.
That made it 95-79, and the Nets were never challenged again.
“I think we did a good job fighting over screens. Trae Young is dangerous in that pick-and-roll but I thought we did a solid job of playing him tough all night and making him shoot over guys, 6-for-22,” Durant said. “Almost had a triple-double but 6-for-22, when you take a lot of shots, that is really what we want … 22 points to get 21 shots, for their best player, we can live with that.”
And win with that.