Nothin' But Nets
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The Nets Are Better Than Their Record Suggests

By Charles Daye

Nov 23, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets point guard Isaiah Whitehead (15) talks to point guard Jeremy Lin (7) during the first quarter against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 23, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets point guard Isaiah Whitehead (15) talks to point guard Jeremy Lin (7) during the first quarter against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Brooklyn Nets are currently 8-25, have a zero percent chance of making the playoffs, and have the worst draft pick situation in the NBA. However, a great Net once said “it’s not that bad here” and Brooklyn is laying the foundation of a winning culture.

Much hype has been made of the dreadful draft pick situation the Brooklyn Nets currently find themselves in. There isn’t much more that can be said other than they might be giving the Boston Celtics the number one overall pick in the 2017 draft if the lottery balls drop the right way. However, unlike last season, the Nets have hope.

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The black cloud that felt like it was hovering over the Nets last season between the buyouts, coaching drama and complete lack of direction, seems to be a thing of the past since Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson started running the show. The team finally has a sense of pride that feels organic, and the Brooklyn Grit mentality has manifested itself on the court.

Neil Greenburg of the Washington Post wrote that the Brooklyn Nets are actually playing like a playoff team. Greenburg noted that the Nets rank first in pace, second in drives per game and sixth in free throw attempts. The Nets were in the bottom third of the league last season for those same categories.

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The Nets are doing this, for the most part, with rookie Isaiah Whitehead running the offense. Whitehead currently occupies the sixth spot in the NBA Rookie Ladder. The Brooklyn native is third in assists, fourth in blocks, seventh in minutes, ninth in scoring, ninth in steals and 12th in shooting.

The second-round was originally going to be regulated to the NBA D-League but due to injuries at point guard, the Nets had to rely on the rookie from Coney Island. Atkinson recently told the New York Post that he is “thrilled” with Whitehead’s progress and that the Nets are “comfortable” with him at point guard.

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Whitehead’s rookie success is a result of opportunity, something Atkinson views as a positive for many of the Nets players.

It is possible that the competitive nature of the team is less about pride in laying the foundation of a winning culture and more about this being their last chance at an NBA career. More often than not when a player goes into business for themselves, it ends with bickering among teammates. However, Atkinson has expressed he would rather hear bickering and see emotion than hear nothing in the locker room.

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Out of the Nets’ 25 losses, ten have came by ten points or less and hinged on one terrible third or fourth quarter that put them in a hole. Competitive nature aside, a loss is a loss. But in these losses, the Nets are building something more important than an eighth-seed playoff berth.

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