PNR D overall is poor
It’s not just pick-and-roll plays in the middle of the floor that have been giving the Nets trouble on defense. The team has been unable to keep teams from getting the shot they want out of the pick-and-roll no matter where the play was initiated. This showed up huge in their loss to the New York Knicks on Wednesday night. During a stretch that saw Porzingis score eight points in two minutes in the fourth quarter — a stretch that ultimately sealed the game for the Knicks.
With Brooklyn lacking an elite rim protector, any team that is able to get into the paint has an advantage on the Nets. The Nets defense has to help and scramble around the floor in order to try and keep the opposing team from getting dunks or layups. As you’ll see below, Brandon Jennings was able to pick apart the Nets’ rotations whenever he broke the free throw line with the ball in his hands. The Nets are going to need to scheme ways to make players like Brook Lopez and Luis Scola more effective at denying opponents at the rim. Neither players offers much in the way of athleticism, but they should be able to find a way to make it more difficult to finish in the interior than it’s been so far. Whether, that means adapting the ICE principals or asking for more pressure from on-ball defenders each possession, there must be an adjustment from the coaching staff.