Joe Johnson’s seemingly lack of effort is glaring. The second highest NBA player ends with six points and six rebounds and assists

The 10-16 Minnesota Timberwolves came into the Barclays Center on Sunday afternoon (a rare 1:00 p.m. game) needing a road win after losing eight of their last 10 games; and the 7-19 Brooklyn Nets laid out the welcome mat and said, no problem.

The Nets allowed the athletic ‘Wolves to get off to a great start, as they dominated the first quarter. Although Brooklyn tied Minnesota five times during the first stanza, the Timberwolves overpowered the Nets with 47.6 percent field goal shooting compared to the Nets lethargic 28.6 percent, ending the quarter 26-16. For the Nets, Brook Lopez led the charge. Even though Lopez seemingly attracted Timberwolves players every time he touched the ball, the Nets center managed to score half of the Nets first quarter points with eight.

The Nets battled back in the 2nd quarter, outscoring the ‘Wolves 27-26, but it wasn’t enough; Minnesota ended the half with an overall score 52-43. And, where was Joe Johnson? We’re all still waiting for Johnson to show up. The Nets shooting guard ended the half with zero points on 0 of 2 shooting. But, to his credit (tongue in cheek), Johnson did have two assists and one offensive rebound. And, when it was all said and done, Johnson’s tally was triple sixes: six points, six rebounds, and six assists. Not a good showing for the second highest paid NBA player.

Johnson wasn’t the on Nets starter having a bad day. During the third quarter, the fans were so upset with the Nets performance that when Kevin Garnett, former Nets player and now back with the Timberwolves, stole the ball from Jarrett Jack, they started to “boo,” but Ally Love and the Nets entertainment team promptly interrupted and overpowered the disenchanted fans with sheer volume and a T-shirt toss.

“We didn’t play hard, Jack said after the game. “We didn’t show any resistance. The score is very indicative of that.”

At game’s end, Brooklyn Nets superman, Brook Lopez, had 20 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and one steal.

“Yeah, we haven’t had a complete game in a while and you can see that,” Lopez said responding to whether the Nets energy and effort is worrisome at this point. “We absolutely have to. It takes every person who steps onto the court to set the attitude and we certainly need the bench to come in and you know, do the same or even pick it up.”

Other Nets starters in double digits were Bojan Bogdanovic with 13 points and Thaddeus Young with 12 points. Nets reserve players scoring in double digits were Andrea Bargnani with 11 and Wayne Ellington with 10.

Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns led all scorers with 24 points and 10 rebounds and Gorgui Dieng put up 20 points and 10 boards off the bench. In fact, Minnesota’s bench consisting of Kevin Martin (16), Zach Levine (10), and Andre Miller (2) contributed nearly 50 percent of the team’s total score with 48 points. Andrew Wiggins, a starting guard for Minnesota, chipped in 16 points.

With the loss against Minnesota, Brooklyn dropped its fifth straight.

Next stop for the Nets; Chicago on Monday night.

Andrea Bargnani led all scorers with a season-high 23 points

In a must win game, the Brooklyn Nets beat the Philadelphia 76ers 100-91 on Thursday night. Although the Nets were a little shaky in the 3rd Quarter, with the 76ers record of 1-21, it would not have been a good look had the Nets lost.

The Nets set the tone early by allowing only 13 points in the first quarter, the fewest they’ve given up in any period this season.

Brooklyn Nets F/C Andrea Bargnani led all scorers with a season-high 23 points, while forward Thaddeus Young added 18 points and 11 rebounds.

''It was a good win because in our situation we take every win,'' Bargnani said. ''At the end we got the 'W' and that's all that matters at the end of the day.''

Also in double digits for the Nets were Shane Larkin with 14 points, six assists, and four rebounds; and Bojan Bogdanovic chipped in 10 points, three assists and rebounds respectively for the Nets.

''(I'm) just playing with confidence,'' Larkin said. ''My coaches and teammates instill all the confidence in me and tell me to take the shots and make the plays for us. They've put me in a position to be successful and I couldn't be happier that everybody believes in me the way they do and I just want go out there and do well for them so they keep believing in me.''

Jahlil Okafor, who was making his second appearance since his two-game suspension for off-the-court antics, had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and T.J. McConnell scored 17 points for the 76ers. Richaun Holmes came off the bench and contributed 14 points for Philadelphia.

''Just trying to get my rhythm back,'' Okafor said. ''I'm trying to play more games and just getting (my) flow back. Tonight that was the case. I'm going to try to keep getting better and play every game.''

Joe Johnson gets fired up on bobble-head night in his honor

After a stunning loss to the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, on Tuesday, the Brooklyn Nets found a way to beat the Houston Rockets 110-105.

With this win, the Nets sweep the season series for the first time in 14 years.

The Nets scored 31 points in the first quarter and 57 in the half, giving them an 11-point lead by the end of the half. A lead that they would need down the stretch because Houston won the 3rd and 4th quarters by three points each.

Brook Lopez scored 24 points and Joe Johnson had 22 points, which ties his season-high points on a night that was the promotional Joe Johnson bobble-head night. Thaddeus Young finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Nets. Bojan Bogdanovic, in for the injured Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, scored 19 points. Jarrett Jack rounding out the the starting line-up, chipped in 10 points, nine assists and five rebounds.

Additionally, Brooklyn set season highs for assists (27) and field goal percentage (55.6).

It was a good night for Johnson. He had 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting in the fourth quarter.

"That's what Joe does," Lopez said. "There's a reason his bobble-head looks the way it does. We know we can go to him time and time again in the crunch time. He's going to deliver."

Too bad it wasn’t Joe Johnson bobble-head night when the Golden State Warriors were in town. Although Johnson had five rebounds and three assists against Golden State, he only registered nine points for the evening.

Houston guard James Harden, who was in contention for an MVP last season, was 2 for 9 for 10 points, and also finished with nine assists and seven turnovers. Howard, who had 22 points and 18 rebounds Saturday in a victory over Sacramento, took just five shots and finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

"We should've come out with a better effort. We didn't and we paid the price for it," Howard said. "Our effort was better in the third and fourth quarter, but we can't hand teams good leads and expect to come back."

What’s next for the Nets?

Brooklyn (6-15) will host the Philadelphia 76ers (1-21) at the Barclays Center, tomorrow, Thursday.

The Golden State Warriors came into the Barclays Center undefeated and left the same way with a 114-98 win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Stephen Curry scored 11 of his 28 points in the final 2:10 of the third quarter, capping his points tally with five rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Draymond Green added 22 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists; while Klay Thompson chipped in 21 points and three rebounds and assists respectively.

For the Nets, Thaddeus Young scored 25 points and 14 rebounds; while Brook Lopez added 18 points and eight rebounds. The Warriors shot 51.2 percent from the field compared to the Nets 43.8 percent.

“We didn’t close the quarter very well,” head coach Lionel Hollins said. “We took a couple of untimely tough shots, they came down and made 3’s. We turned the ball over a couple of times during that stretch as well. They got some energy.”

This win over the Nets gives the Warriors its 26th consecutive regular-season game win dating to April 9 and they improved to 12-0 on the road.

And, to the victors go the spoils. In this case, throngs of people were following Curry’s every move. While Curry was doing his pregame warmup, people came out of the woodwork to capture photos of Curry. With security detail at his side, Curry signed autographs for fans.

And, of course, Curry received the raucous cheers that superstars receive from the time his name was called during the pregame announcements and when shots were made.

This game was the first sellout of the season, bringing in 17,732 people.

Although the Nets lost this game, they have two consolation prizes. Thus far, they are the only team to force the Warriors into overtime, which the Nets did on November 14.

Also, with a sellout crowd, Nets and Barclays Center management can hear ca-ching!

Nets earn a 4th straight home victory with a 94-91 win over the Suns

In another close victory at home, Tuesday night, the Brooklyn Nets beat the Phoenix Suns 94-91 for their fourth consecutive home victory.

In an unusual scheduling, thus far, the Nets have played just seven home games, but will play a combined 20 times at home in December and January, the most in the NBA.

Brook Lopez was a force down low, finishing with 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting. Lopez also added six rebounds. Three other players scored in double digits, ironically, scoring 11 points each. Jarrett Jack, the only other starter in double digits totaled 11 points and eight assists; Wayne Ellington and Shane Larkin both came off the bench scoring 11 points each, and Larkin, like Jack, added eight assists.

It was a solid first half for the Nets. They led by nine at half, and shot 56 percent and scored 36 points in the paint.

The third quarter is proving to be the Nets Achilles heel. In the third quarter, Brandon Knight led the Suns on a 16-2 run giving the Suns a 62-56 advantage. Eric Bledsoe beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer to send Phoenix into the fourth with a 73-70 lead.

Larkin broke an 85-all tie with a drive to the basket with 4:08 left, Ellington added a layup in transition and Lopez made a free throw for a 90-85 advantage. Phoenix’s Alex Len missed from close range with the Suns down three, and after they got the ball back a final time, it was no cigar! Phoenix couldn't even get a shot off after inbounding in the frontcourt.

These two teams battled it out to the end.

“I’ll take the win,” stated Lionel Hollins, Brooklyn Nets Head Coach.

As for the current winning streak at home, can the Nets keep the winning streak alive?

"We're just starting to put some things together," Jack said.

"Win a bunch of those games, just keep playing hard, take it one game at a time and just see what we can do," Larkin added.

And, although Bojan Bogdanovic and Thomas Robinson didn’t score in double digits, every point counts. Bogdanovic turned in a 3-for-5 performance with seven rebounds and Robinson chipped in six points and three rebounds.

What’s next?

The Nets are back on the road. They will cross the river to play the New York Knicks on Friday and back home on Sunday to challenge the Golden State Warriors.

Thaddeus Young Hero of the Game

In a very close game with 10 lead changes, seven ties and even a lackluster start, the Brooklyn Nets eked out an 87-83 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday. The Nets win over the Pistons was the third straight win at home, bringing their record to 4-13.

“It’s really interesting how the league (NBA) is,” said Nets head coach Lionel Hollins. “Last night, we played great and we lost. Tonight, we were very inconsistent and we had maybe an eight- or nine-minute stretch playing well and we come away with a win.”

Brooklyn Nets forward Thaddeus Young led Brooklyn Nets scorers with 19 points and 10 rebounds; Brook Lopez scored 15 points, set his season-high blocks at 6 and tied his career-high steals at four. Joe Johnson put up 13 points, five rebounds, and one assist;
Wayne Ellington was a spark coming off the Nets bench and put up a season-high 12 points. And, not to be outdone, Jarrett Jack chipped in 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, and one steal.

“I thought that we had no real push early on, but Joe jump-started us and Thad kept us going when he came back into the game even though he had two fouls. Wayne made some big shots and Shane (Larkin) made big shots. As we were coming down the stretch in the fourth quarter, I was able to let Jarrett stay out to the end to rest and Jarrett hit a big shot. Brook got going when he went back in again and we were able to get enough stops and make enough free throws to close the game out,” Hollins added.

With pick-and-roll defense, the highest number of team defensive rebounds at 44, and holding Detroit to 33.7 percent shooting, the Nets allowed their fewest points of the season.

“We just played good defense at the end. We played hard, we played aggressive, we believed in ourselves and had a lot of confidence in the stuff we were doing,’’ Young said. “We executed down the stretch, and the defense really took over.’’

Nets win erases embarrassing loss to Celtics in Beantown on Friday

On Sunday, the Brooklyn Nets redeemed themselves with a 111-101 victory over the Boston Celtics for a split of a home-and-home series.

''I think we took what happened the other night personal,'' Nets guard Jarrett Jack said. ''Not necessarily per se toward that particular team, I think we took our performance personal.''

The Nets were coming off a 111-116 road loss to the Charlotte Hornets and an embarrassing 120-95 drubbing at the hands of the Boston Celtics in Boston.

Brook Lopez scored early and often ending with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Jack scored 13 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter. Joe Johnson added 17 points for the Nets.

''We got embarrassed in Boston, no doubt about that,'' Johnson said, ''and we wanted to come home and protect our house.''

Other double digit scorers for the Nets were reserve Andrea Bargnani with 12 points and Thaddeus Young with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

For the Celtics, guards Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas led all scorers with 27 points. Bradley was 7-for-14 from 3-point range and had 4 rebounds (3 of the 4 were defensive rebounds), one assist and two steals.

It wasn’t a walk in the park for the Nets, as the Celtics outscored the Nets 36-27 in the third quarter. Although the Celtics battled to take over, they never led. A pivotal point in the game came when late in the fourth, with Boston trailing by eight and breathing down the necks of the Nets, Jae Crowder raised up for a 3-pointer in the corner, drained the shot, but came into contact with Nets forward Thaddeus Young. Unfortunately for the Celtics, the official called an offensive foul on Crowder for kicking his legs out at Young. From that point on, the pendulum was on the side of the Nets, allowing Brooklyn to pull away and hoist up a W.

''I kind of felt like last game was an aberration and they proved me right tonight,'' Nets coach Lionel Hollins said.

The Nets have now won two consecutive home games. Next up, the Nets are on the road to play Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday and LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.

Good Luck!

The next Brooklyn Nets home game is Sunday, November 29.

Turnovers and a lackluster 2nd Quarter seal Brooklyn Nets loss to Lakers

It’s been tradition that when the Los Angeles Lakers come to town, there’s always a bit of that “show-time” excitement. And, even though the Lakers have a losing record (0-4), Lakers fans came to the Barclays Center Friday night in droves to see their favorite player, Kobe Bryant.

For both the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers, last night was the battle for the “W,” as neither team had a win so far this season.

Unfortunately for the Brooklyn Nets, a win would prove once again to be elusive, the Lakers defeated the Nets 104-98. As you can see from the score, it was not a blowout. In fact, the Nets led the Lakers at the end of the first quarter 27-18, but for the Nets, things went awry in the second.

“I thought we had our moments,” said Brooklyn Nets head coach Lionel Hollins. “We started off really well 27 - 18, but then we went into a slump in the second quarter, which really cost us the game. We played so well early, but we didn't do such a good job in the second quarter.”

The Nets tried to dig itself out of the proverbial hole it created for itself in the second quarter, by ending the third quarter 25-27 and then the fourth quarter 26-25. But, the deficit created in the second quarter when the Lakers outscored the Nets 34-20 was too much to overcome.

“In the end we got down, we battled back, and we had our chances,” Coach Hollins continued. “We had an open look for that 3:40 that would have made it 100 - 98 and it just didn't go down. But our team is playing harder and trying to play more together. We just have to cut down the turnovers. We had 12 at halftime and we only had four in the second half which allowed us to play better.”

When a prideful team is chasing a win with a 0-5 record, and then loses, it does take its toll on the players.

“We need everyone at this point, you know, so it’s tough, Brook Lopez said regarding the disappointing loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. “We came out so strong, and we just stalled many times. You know, you can see what it’s like. Obviously they were fighting just as hard to get their first win. It’s tough.”

“We allowed them back into the game,” Nets point guard Jarrett Jack said. “We didn’t take care of the basketball, as well as we did in the first half and allowed them to get some momentum. They took the lead at halftime, and you know, they kind of just carried on from there.”

As for Kobe Bryant, he led all Lakers scorers with 18 points, followed by Jordan Clarkson and D’Angelo Russell with 16 points apiece. Roy Hibbert only put up two points for the Lakers, but he did come through with seven rebounds and one assist.

Unlike the performance against the Bulls, the Nets reserves were not clicking on all cylinders. Metta World Peace and the rest of the Lakers bench outscored the Nets reserves 38-16.

If the loss wasn’t bad enough on Nets players, they had to put up with loud cheers from Lakers fans.

“...We understand what it is. It’s a guy who’s a first ballot hall of famer. We understand what it is,” Jarrett Jack said regarding the cheers for Kobe Bryant.

At the end of the day, Kobe Bryant’s fans and their cheers are butts in the seats and ca-ching for the Nets and the Barclays Center.

Lopez led all Nets scorers with 26 points; Nets’ first and third quarter performance were key to 115-100 loss

Wednesday was the first game of the Brooklyn Nets’ 2015 NBA regular season. The first game is generally an extension of the preseason, as teams are working out the kinks and trying different schemes all while trying to outwit their opponent. Now, that’s not to say that teams are okay with losing because that is hardly the case because you always want to start off on a good note even when you are hosting the Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls finished last season 50-32 compared to the Nets’ win-loss of 38-44. The Bulls also have a team with four All-Stars: Derrick Rose; Joachim Noah; Pau Gasol; and Jimmy Butler. In fact, Rose was a perennial NBA All-Star when he was healthy in 2010 -12; he was also an NBA Rookie of the Year in 2009 and NBA MVP in 2011.

By contrast, the Brooklyn Nets only NBA All-Stars are Brook Lopez (2013) and Joe Johnson (2014).

During the first quarter last night, the Bulls played the Brooklyn Nets like the wind blows in Chicago during winter, ending the first quarter with 30 points compared to the Nets 19.

By the end of the second quarter, things looked promising for the Brooklyn Nets, as both teams finished the half shooting 56 percent. The score at the end of the second quarter was 58-55 in favor of the Bulls. However, the Nets were virtually even in points in the paint 28 vs. the Bulls’ 24; both teams had four second chance points and the Nets led the Bulls 6-4 at the half with fast break points. Nevertheless, it was the first and third quarters where the Nets just fell apart, scoring only 19 and 16 points respectively compared to the Bulls 30 and 28 points.

Brooklyn Nets center and team captain, Brook Lopez who led all Nets scorers with 26 points, seven rebounds and two assists, gave his assessment of the third quarter.

“I think it was shot selection,” Lopez said. “I rushed a few. We could have definitely made a few more swings to turn good looks into great looks.”

Lopez also praised the Nets reserves for keeping the team in the game.

“The second unit was great for us,” Lopez continued. “They came in twice and saved the game for us with their energy and effort. I’m very disappointed in myself in the first and third quarter. I don’t feel like I played well, and it hurt us.”

The Nets made an effort to finish strong tying the Bulls 29 points in the fourth quarter, it was just not enough and the Nets lost to the Bulls 115-100.

In addition to Lopez, the Nets other double-digit points leaders were Andrea Bargnani (17); Thaddeus Young (12); and Joe Johnson (10). In fact, Johnson hit a double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Nets Head Coach Lionel Hollins weighs in on loss

“You have to make shots, you have to make lay-ups, you have to make mid-range shots, you have to make shots in the paint; 39 for 93, we didn’t make them anyway” said an exasperated Coach Hollins.

VIDEO DISCUSSION: Maria Sharapova drops out of US OPEN 2015

The US OPEN for tennis is on and poppin’.

Most are expecting that Serena Williams will add another grand slam to her tally. However, it will be without going through Maria Sharapova, as the Russian tennis star pulled out of the US OPEN because of a thigh injury. Some are saying Maria Sharapova did not want to face Serena Williams.

Do you think Maria Sharapova's injury is real?

Do you think Maria Sharapova's presence would affect Serena Williams performance at the US OPEN?