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The Elating Highs and Deflating Lows of Kenny Atkinson’s First Season

By Zach Cronin

Mar 26, 2017; Atlanta, GA, USA; Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson coaches against the Atlanta Hawks in the third quarter at Philips Arena. The Nets defeated the Hawks 107-92. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 26, 2017; Atlanta, GA, USA; Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson coaches against the Atlanta Hawks in the third quarter at Philips Arena. The Nets defeated the Hawks 107-92. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 2, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson gestures to a referee during the first quarter against Utah Jazz at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Nicole Sweet-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson gestures to a referee during the first quarter against Utah Jazz at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Nicole Sweet-USA TODAY Sports /

A Recurring Theme

The Nets weren’t going to be good this year no matter what. However, I didn’t think that being the worst team in the league was going to happen. Brooklyn has some talented players on their team, but injuries make everything that much tougher. It’s not the reason they’re 19-60 at the time of this writing, but it plays into it — especially when the biggest offseason signing has missed more than 40 games.

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Lin’s ongoing issue with his hamstring has subsided, and he’s finally healthy again, but his absence was incredibly detrimental to the Nets and their success. If he played, they undoubtedly would’ve had a couple more wins, and their midseason issues wouldn’t have been so outrageously maddening.

That’s the most notable injury.

Caris LeVert is another guy who missed a nice chunk of time, but he was still recovering from offseason foot surgery, and the Nets have been fortunate to get the production they’ve gotten. LeVert looks phenomenal and hasn’t suffered any setbacks. Trevor Booker and Isaiah Whitehead have also missed games here and there, eight and nine, respectively, but nothing that’s been as severe as Lin or LeVert.

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Joining the list is Sean Kilpatrick, who’s only missed nine games thus far, but has been dealing with a sore hammy over the last couple of days. Lastly, we have Joe Harris. He’s had the only other lengthy injury on the roster, and the team decided it was best to shut him down in mid-March.

All of these injuries are taxing on the team’s chemistry and performance, and it’s hard for guys to get a feel for one another when they’re always missing time and forcing the coaching staff to invent new lineups.