Deron Williams throws a bad pass to Joe Johnson, and Paul Pierce is not happy; Kevin Garnett plays mediator

Jason Kidd pointed out that mistakes happen all the time when asked about Williams' turnover that caused the Brooklyn Nets team to walk back to their locker rooms somber and blue.

Okay. So back-pedal to the last 20 seconds of the game. Williams had just taken an offensive charge after Kyle Lowry went up for a hard layup. Brooklyn was already up 101-100. After a timeout was called, Williams attempted to throw the ball inbound. He had two choices--throw it to Paul Pierce or force a pass to Joe Johnson. Williams chose to toss it to Johnson, and Patrick Patterson stole the ball and scored.

So there you have it---the seasoned veteran (and choke artist) blew the game.

After the game, a disappointed Williams, who committed two turnovers in the final 22 seconds knew what he had done.

"I turned it over, didn't have any timeouts," Williams said. "I pretty much saw everybody was covered on the first couple of options, kind of saw Joe (Johnson) open but just made a bad pass."

"It's tough. It definitely hurts, but we got three days (before our next game) to think about it, that makes it worse. Nothing I can do now, can't take it back. It's not the first time turning the ball over to lose the game and it probably won't be my last," Williams continued.

Fans on Twitter bashed Williams for making a rookie move.

"Horrible end of the game turnover by Deron Williams....I remember when he could be mentioned with CP3....no more!"

"Kyle Lowry is a better player than Deron Williams. Turnover, or not, I hope this game proved that to everybody."

The Nets' loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Nets who now fall to 10-2 in 2014, thanks to two losses against the Raptors.

Despite the loss, the team is prepared to move on and will support Williams.

"We as players and as teammates, we want to make sure that the confidence is high around here, and you just don't get that sitting in your locker by yourself," Kevin Garnett said. "We talk about the game. We talk about what each other saw, and the perspectives, and next time we're in that position, what can we do to get better? And it was a positive conversation. With Deron, we as teammates are going to support each other, and tonight was no different from that."

Nets Couldn't Handle Charging of Bulls in 2nd Playoff Game

In a dramatic turn of events, the Chicago Bulls has evened the first round of its playoff run against the Brooklyn Nets 1-1, as they dominated the Nets, 90-82 Monday night.

Bulls head-coach Tom Thibodeau said in a pregame press conference that Joakim Noah would be playing limited minutes, but that did not stop the Bulls from giving the Nets a beat down on its home court.

Brooklyn's fans were loud and proud, chanting "Brooooklllyn," the entire game, but the Nets did not match up to the momentum that their loyal fans displayed.

All-Star Deron Williams shot 1-9 and finished with eight points, the same amount of points as Kris Humphries. Williams had 10 assists.

"We didn't get stops, which was the key for us because then we couldn't get out and run like we wanted to," Williams said. "We have to do a better job defensively next game. I've got to do a better job of everything really. This was a bad one for me."

Joe Johnson, who also seemed quiet on the floor went 6-for-18 and finished with 17 points.

Brook Lopez who played 35 minutes scored 21 points.

Nets coach P.J. Carlesimo who seemed at ease and jittery during pregame interviews said before the game that his team had the bigger advantage on Saturday, when they beat Bulls 106-89.

"We weren't playing against the normal Chicago defense," he said.

Carlesimo was right. This time around, Chicago tightened up its defense and the Nets suffered from careless turnovers and couldn't stabilize a steady shooting rhythm.

Although Brooklyn didn't come out with the win, fans were excited to see Bulls' point guard Derrick Rose shooting around on the court moments before the game. Rose, who injured his left knee, which resulted in a torn ACL on April 28, 2012 in the first game of last season's playoffs, has not played at all this season.

Thibodeau said that Rose would most likely be sitting on the bench for the entire postseason.

The Nets will travel to Chicago for the third game of the playoffs on Thursday.

Noel Nerlens Falls to #6 & Gets Traded to Philly

The calm before the storm settled in at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY Thursday night as the NBA draft prospects sat with their families and mingled with reporters, teammates and agents. The draft picks groomed to a "T" and dressed in their Sunday's best, awaited David Stern to mark the podium for the first announcement. The "Green Room," designated for the draft prospects and their guests only looked like a first-grade class-- all attendees with their chins up, heads forward, hands on the table and all eyes on the teacher (Stern.) Nerlens Noel and Alex Len, two of the top prospects thought to be most likely to go 1 and 2, looked attentively, listening to Stern's announcement.

Boos belted out from the crowd, as Stern took the stage.

"With the 1st pick of the NBA 2013 draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers select (PAUSE) Anthony Bennett of Toronto Canada."

The crowd shocked, exploding with semi-excitement for the guy who sports analysts projected to go 4th or 5th.

Bennett, the 6-foot-8 forward and his family jumped to their feet.

The 20-year-old, who started playing basketball seven years ago told reporters that he was "just surprised as everybody else" for being picked No. 1.

"I didn't really have any idea who's going No. 1 or who was going No. 2. I heard everything was up for grabs. But I'm just real happy, glad that I have this opportunity, and I just got to thank God for the opportunity," he said.

After only one year at UNLV, Bennett becomes the second player at the university to be selected the top overall pick, joining Larry Johnson, who was drafted in 1991.

Bennett also becomes the first Canadian to get drafted as a No. 1 pick.

Too much surprise, Noel wasn't called No. 2, but Victor Oladipo is a guy Orlando fans are sure to fall in love with. Besides feeling delighted for being the second pick of the draft, the former Indiana guard said he's not sure if his family still knows "what's going on."

The Nigerian player also has a great singing voice, maybe he'll sing the National Anthem at one of the games.

After five picks in Thursday night's NBA draft, Nerlens finally heard his name called when the New Orleans Pelicans selected him with the sixth pick. He barely showed excitement, likely disappointed that five other picks were selected before him.

"I'm excited getting started with Anthony," Noel said after hearing his name called.

His stint with the Pelicans only lasted for about 30 minutes, after reports swirled that he'd been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for Jrue Holiday and the NBA's 42nd pick.

Other fan favorites like Trey Burke, Otto Porter Jr, Cody Zeller and Michael-Carter Williams also nabbed NBA picks.

Basketball junkies at Barclays consisted of mostly Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks fans, with Knicks guru Spike Lee in the audience. While the Nets selected Mason Plumlee of Duke, other fans seemed enthusiastic as the Knicks drafted Tim Hardaway Jr. (Not sure about how Tim Hardaway Sr. feels about the pick, knowing the former NBA player hates the Knicks, but I'm sure he's happy for his son nonetheless.)

On social media, the Nets seemed to have been the talk of the night, with rumors swirling that Kevin Garnett waived his no-trade clause, making room for the Boston Big Three trade that could send him, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry to the Brooklyn Nets for the package of players and draft picks.

See a complete list of the NBA drafts picks below.

FIRST ROUND
=============
1. Cleveland Cavaliers: PF Anthony Bennett, UNLV
2. Orlando Magic: SG Victor Oladipo, Indiana
3. Washington Wizards: SF Otto Porter Jr., Georgetown
4. Charlotte Bobcats: C Cody Zeller, Indiana
5. Phoenix Suns: C Alex Len, Maryland
6. Philadelphia 76ers (via New Orleans Pelicans): C Nerlens Noel, Kentucky
7. Sacramento Kings: SG Ben McLemore, Kansas
8. Detroit Pistons: SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Georgia
9. Utah Jazz (via Minnesota Timberwolves): PG Trey Burke, Michigan
10. Portland Trail Blazers: SG C.J. McCollum, Lehigh
11. Philadelphia 76ers: PG Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
12. Oklahoma City Thunder: C Steven Adams, Pittsburgh
13. Boston Celtics (via Dallas Mavericks): C Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga
14. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Utah Jazz): SF Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA
15. Milwaukee Bucks: SF Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greece
16. Atlanta Hawks (via Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics): C Lucas Nogueira, Brazil
17. Atlanta Hawks: PG Dennis Schroeder, Germany
18. Dallas Mavericks (via Atlanta Hawks): PG Shane Larkin, Miami (Fla.)
19. Cleveland Cavaliers: SF Sergey Karasev, Russia
20. Chicago Bulls: SG Tony Snell, New Mexico
21. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Utah Jazz): C Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
22. Brooklyn Nets: C Mason Plumlee, Duke
23. Indiana Pacers: SF Solomon Hill, Arizona
24. New York Knicks: SG Tim Hardaway Jr., Michigan
25. Los Angeles Clippers: SF Reggie Bullock, North Carolina
26. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves): SF Andre Roberson, Colorado
27. Utah Jazz (via Denver Nuggets): C Rudy Gobert, France
28. San Antonio Spurs: SF Livio Jean-Charles, French Guiana
29. Phoenix Suns (via Golden State Warriors, Oklahoma City Thunder): SG Archie Goodwin, Kentucky
30. Golden State Warriors (via Phoenix Suns): PG Nemanja Nedovic, Serbia
=============
SECOND ROUND
=============
31. Portland Trail Blazers (via Cleveland Cavaliers): SG Allen Crabbe, California
32. Oklahoma City Thunder: SG Alex Abrines, Spain
33. Cleveland Cavaliers: SG Carrick Felix, Arizona State
34. Houston Rockets: PG Isaiah Canaan, Murray State
35. Washington Wizards (via Philadelphia 76ers): SF Glen Rice Jr., NBA Development League
36. Sacramento Kings: PG Ray McCallum, Detroit Mercy
37. Detroit Pistons: F Tony Mitchell, North Texas
38. Philadelphia 76ers (via Washington Wizards): PG Nate Wolters, South Dakota State
39. Portland Trail Blazers: C Jeff Withey, Kansas
40. Portland Trail Blazers: PF Grant Jerrett, Arizona
41. Memphis Grizzlies: SG Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State
42. New Orleans Pelicans (via Philadelphia 76ers): PG Pierre Jackson, Baylor
43. Milwaukee Bucks: SG Ricky Ledo, Providence
44. Atlanta Hawks (via Dallas Mavericks): C Mike Muscala, Bucknell
45. Portland Trail Blazers: PF Marko Todorovic, Montenegro
46. Denver Nuggets (via Utah Jazz): PG Erick Green, Virginia Tech
47. Atlanta Hawks: PG Raul Neto, Brazil
48. Los Angeles Lakers: PF Ryan Kelly, Duke
49. Chicago Bulls: PF Erik Murphy, Florida
50. Miami Heat (via Atlanta Hawks): SF James Ennis, Long Beach State
51. Orlando Magic: PF Romero Osby, Oklahoma
52. Minnesota Timberwolves: PG Lorenzo Brown, North Carolina State
53. Boston Celtics (via Indiana Pacers): C Colton Iverson, Colorado State
54. Philadelphia 76ers (via Washington Wizards): PF Arsalan Kazemi, Oregon
55. Denver Nuggets (via Memphis Grizzlies): PF Joffrey Lauvergne, France
56. Detroit Pistons: PG Peyton Siva, Louisville
57. Phoenix Suns: C Alex Oriakhi, Missouri
58. San Antonio Spurs: SF Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State
59. Minnesota Timberwolves: PF Bojan Dubljevic, Montenegro
60. Memphis Grizzlies: SF Janis Timma, Latvia

‘Weird’ feeling for Paul Pierce as Nets get victory in their first matchup since Celtics trade

It was evident that Paul Pierce faced some challenges when he went up against the Boston Celtics Tuesday night-- the team that birthed and raised his career for the past 15 years.

The 36-year-old admitted that it "was a little weird looking over and seeing all the green uniforms" since he was used to "lining up in the green and white for so long."

Even before tipoff, the uneasiness was still there as he stopped by the Celtics' locker room and walked into the shower room to greet Rajon Rondo, then made his rounds to the other players. During warm-ups, the two former teammates had another chat.

Before game time, Brooklyn Nets head coach Jason Kidd said he advised Pierce to treat the game like a scrimmage. But of course, that was easier said than done, as the veteran went scoreless for the first quarter and ended up with 4 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Unusual enough, Pierce was the first Nets starter announced when he was always the last one called in Boston.

Andray Blatche, who started in place of Kevin Garnett, picked up most of the slack with 14 points. Brook Lopez scored 20 points, but it was newbie Chris Johnson who put Brooklyn on top with the 82-80 victory.

Other new faces like Shaun Livingston, Mason Plumlee, Alan Anderson, Jorge Gutierrez and Brooklyn native and Benjamin Banneker alumni, Gary Forbes, banked in a few minutes.

Once a fan favorite at the Barclays—newly Celtic Kris Humphries was booed by the crowd in every moment possible, but he preserved and came out big, scoring 12 points in 28 minutes. There was some chatter on Twitter that Mr. Whammy, the Nets most-beloved fan yelled at fans for booing Humphries.

"He was a Net," Mr. Whammy reportedly said.

Meanwhile, the Nets played without Deron Williams, due to a sprained right ankle, and key reserves Andrei Kirilenko (back spasms) and Jason Terry (left knee), who was also part of that Boston trade.

For the first time in four years, the Brooklyn Nets (1-1) defeated the Miami Heat (1-2) Friday night, 101-100 at Barclays Center

It was a sweet home-opening win for Brooklyn, proving they are just as good as the NBA champs, something that Deron Williams has been preaching lately. And, with the W over Miami, Brooklyn gets a bonus--- a rivalry. Yes, a rivalry is brewing between these two East Coast teams with the back-and-forth chatter between Kevin Garnett and LeBron James.

With the three-way trade that sent Paul Pierce, Jason Terry, and Garnett to Brooklyn this past summer, James had plenty to say especially since he felt like Ray Allen was criticized for leaving Boston for Miami.

"I think the first thing I thought was, 'Wow, Ray got killed for leaving Boston, and now these guys are leaving Boston,'" James said a few weeks ago. "I think it's OK; I didn't mind it. But there were a couple guys who basically [expletive] on Ray for leaving, and now they're leaving."

Prior to Friday's night tip-off, James brushed off all Brooklyn rival talk by telling reporters that he didn't want to answer any questions about the Nets.

"KG told me to worry about my team," James said.

And James tried to do just that, with 26 points, but his team fell behind before they could catch up.

After the game, Garnett gave Brooklyn fans a big shout out and admitted that although the crowd in Boston is over-the-top, the feeling is different at his new home.

"Big ups to Brooklyn," Garnett said.

Pierce and Joe Johnson each scored 19 points, which helped the Nets break their 13-game ending streak. The last time the Nets beat Miami was back on March 20 2009, before James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh got on the roster.

"It was good that we got a taste of this type of atmosphere this early in the season to try to see where we're at," Pierce said. "Miami, whenever they come into town, they're a measuring stick for everybody, so it was good for us to come out and get the win."

Andrei Kirilenko, who missed five preseason games and Wednesday's opener against the Cleveland Cavs due to injuries, had a big night--with eight points in just 12 minutes.

Yeah, the Brooklyn Nets lost again Wednesday night to the Los Angeles Lakers; but it was Jason Kidd's intentional drink spill that made headlines.

Kidd bumped into Brooklyn reserve Tyshawn Taylor with 8.3 seconds left in the game causing his drink to spill on the court. What seemed as an accident at first, it was later confirmed a setup after a replay showed Kidd telling Taylor to "hit me," as the guard walked toward the bench.

Because of the spill, the Nets had time to draw up a play while the floor was being cleaned up, but still they still lost 99-94.

But not so fast, Kidd was later fined $50,000 Thursday by the NBA after they reviewed him telling Taylor to purposely bump him.

Paul Pierce took the last shot for the Nets on Wednesday--what Kidd described as a "great look."

But the only problem was, Pierce was only 4-17. Was he the most suitable player to take the last three-pointer that could've tied the game? Probably not.

Joe Johnson finished strong for the Nets with 18 points, along with Mirza Teletovic who had 17.

For the Lakers, Nick Young who didn't start led his team with 26, while Pau Gasol scored 21.

Injuries are still hurting the Nets, as Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Tornike Shenegelia and Jason Terry all watched from the sidelines.

The Lakers played without their star Kobe Bryant due to a torn Achilles and Steve Nash is still recovering from nerve damage in his back.

Before tip-off, Coach Mike D'Antoni told reporters that his team and the Nets have a lot in common. Besides trying to fill the void with Bryant out, D'Antoni said expectations with the Lakers have not been made yet, similar to Brooklyn since they got the three-way blockbuster trade over the summer.

"They're fighting for our lives like we are," D'Antoni said.

Update: And it seems as if it's only going to get worse for Brooklyn now 5-12 and 4th in the Atlantic Division as they will have to make way without Paul Pierce. The team announced Monday that he will miss two-four weeks due to a broken bone in his right hand. The Nets can't catch a break!

Days before the Knicks took on the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Thursday night, Knicks small forward, Carmelo Anthony, called his team the laughing stock of the NBA after plummeting to the bottom of the Atlantic Division and losing 9-straight games.

"We are the laughingstock of the league," Anthony said about the rivalry between the two New York teams. "I mean, it's nothing to hide. We are...that's why it's a big game for us."

But it seems as if the tables have turned on the Knicks after they blew out their former point guard Jason Kidd's team. More orange and blue fans filled the Brooklyn arena than black and white and when the Nets hit center court, it seemed as if the Knicks had home court advantage. Fans booed Brooklyn, but no one received a more unwelcome reception than Jason Kidd.

"Put Jason Kidd in," a Knicks fan yelled to the Nets.

Brooklyn played horribly and any true fan should be embarrassed. Thursday's 113-83 blowout loss was the second consecutive loss that Brooklyn fell short by more than 20 points on their home court.

Everything pretty much went wrong for the Nets. The Nets fell behind double digits in the first quarter and though they cut it by less than five in the second quarter, they were never able to regain a lead over the Knicks (4-13.)

But, hey both teams couldn't lose, right? And the better team out of the worst won.

Anthony had a huge night with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Iman Shumpert scored a season-high 17 points. Shump took to Twitter after the game to pop off to fans about jumping back on the Knicks bandwagon.

He retweeted this message: "Now everybody back on that @I_Am_Iman bandwagon again. Some of y'all kill me."

Meanwhile, Andrea Bargnani showed out and scored 16 points before he was ejected in the fourth quarter for taunting Kevin Garnett after they had a scuffle.

"I don't speak Italian," Garnett said after the game, when asked what Bargnani had said to him.

Brook Lopez ended the night with 24 points and nine rebounds, who again played without injured Paul Pierce and Deron Williams.

Nobody was laughing at the Knicks after Thursday night.

Paul Pierce's season-high 27 points were overshadowed in a disappointing 113-107 loss to the Washington Wizards Wednesday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Had the Nets played with more aggression and rebounded as well as Pierce scored, they could have taken home their fourth straight win.

"It is easy to sit here and talk to you guys about what kind of night I had but the bottom line is I really don't care," Pierce told reporters after the game. "We lost the game and that is pretty much all that matters. We come out here and try to win as a team, it is not about how Paul Pierce is feeling. Tonight we had the inability to rebound, defend the three and that is what cost us the game."

The Wizards (11-3) didn't particularly shoot the ball well, but they soared over Brooklyn with boards. The Nets welcomed back center Brook Lopez after missing two games due to a sprained ankle and though he played with little passion, he finished with 22 points.

"It was on me," Lopez said after finishing with only five rebounds. "The effort wasn't there."
(You think, Brook? You got the ball snatched right out of your hands in the third quarter!)

Joe Johnson was the leading rebounder for the Nets, who had seven and finished with 20 points.

"We scored enough points to win," head coach Jason Kidd said. "There were some rebounds that we couldn't come up with down the stretch. We are getting better but we just lost a game that we felt we could control."

Meanwhile, the Wizards snapped a four-game losing streak after beating the New York Knicks on Monday. Wednesday's game against Brooklyn was the 10th time in 24 games this season that Washington ended the game with more than 100 points.

"It was big for us," Trevor Booker said regarding the Wizards' win, who finished with 7 points. "It was working early, just pounding them on the glass and we stuck with it. And we came out, on top."

Nets Bojan Bogdanovic forces overtime, but Wizards pull off 114-110 win in OT

Another close game resulted in yet another loss for the Brooklyn Nets, as they fell short 114-110 in overtime to the Washington Wizards. In front of a packed crowd of 15,529 at the Barclays center, fans watched as their Nets failed to hold it together in the final minutes of the game.

The Wizards, led by John Wall (25 points) and Bradley Beal (18 points) handed the Nets their 11th straight loss.

The Nets played a decent first half, leading the Wizards 66-51 at halftime. They shot 56.5 from the field and only turned the ball over seven times before entering the third quarter.

But like the Nets’ normal routine, they struggled to maintain momentum, blowing a 15-point lead. The Wizards were able to snap a 28-8 run in the third quarter.

“Their aggressiveness got to us and we started playing a different game,” said Brook Lopez, who finished with 25 points. “Obviously between that run and the turnovers down the line, it hurt us. We were playing well, doing our thing. But obviously, the second half was inversely just as rough.”

By the fourth quarter, Brooklyn trailed by 12 points, while the Wizards gained an 84-72 lead. The Nets didn’t go down without a fight and tied the game up at 89 with 6:21 left in the game. Things got messy when Lopez fouled out the game with 1:20 left in the fourth. With 41.9 seconds left in the game, Bojan Bogdanovic kept hope alive for Brooklyn with a backboard shot to force the game into overtime at 100 points even.

The Nets tried. They fought again, but it wasn’t enough, losing in overtime.

After the game, Lopez reflected on the call that took him out of the game.

“To make that call at that juncture, I don’t agree with it,” said Lopez.

Nets coach Kenny Atkinson praised his guys for fighting until the end.

“We made some really unselfish defensive plays at the end — guys flying around, guys taking charges — so there were a lot of positives,” Atkinson said during a postgame presser.

The Nets are now 9-44 and are the worst team in the NBA. They are the only team in the league who has won less than 10 games. With 29 games left of the 2016-2017 season, they can now put their focus on how they can rebuild their team for next year.

The Nets put up a valiant effort, but in the end, they lost to the Warriors 117-101

The Brooklyn Nets danced with the stars, but blew a 16-point halftime lead, losing to the Golden State Warriors 117-101 on Thursday night at the Barclays Center.

Minutes before tip-off, Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters that he wanted the story to be that his team fought and played hard, hoping that the fans would see Brooklyn at their best and that they did everything to win.

“Give them a lot of credit. I thought they turned up their intensity,” Atkinson said. “They turned up their energy. They were really aggressive on the defensive end, and we have to do a better job of protecting the ball. Obviously, that was kind of the story there, and again I like to give them credit.”

Walking into Thursday’s night, Atkinson had high hopes for Brooklyn, but reality had already set in before the closure of the game.

The Nets held their own for a while: they kept up with the 2015 NBA Champions and looked as if they had a chance to contest. Brooklyn’s energy was on 100, and many wondered if they could keep the momentum up.

Brooklyn tried hard and performed a great first half as always: they soared 65-49 over the Warriors. Brook Lopez scored 23 points in just the first half, marking a Nets season-high for points in a first half. ESPN even noted that Lopez is the first player this season to score that many points against the Warriors in the first half.

But Lopez’s single-player prominent stat only went but so far. The Nets committed 18 of 26 turnovers in the third quarter. Lopez and Jeremy Lin combined for 11 overall turnovers together. Brooklyn choked under defensive pressure and blew their double-digit lead in the early minutes of the second-half.

“It is a young team,” Lopez said. “We did a good job trying to stick with it. But we became less aggressive, and they got a lot of easy stuff out of the turnovers.”

Lin finished 10 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds. Lin, who has returned to the Nets’ active roster from a hamstring injury has struggled to find his rhythm.

“They doubled Brook in the post and blitzed Jeremy in the pick-and-roll,” Atkinson said. “Those guys have to do a better job of kicking it out. It’s a work in progress, but we need to find more solutions.”

Atkinson and the Nets did not find a solution quick enough, as Brooklyn lost to the 2016 NBA Champions, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the very next day, 119-99. However, to Brooklyn's credit, it did pull off a 120-118 win against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday.