The Brooklyn Nets finally broke through on Monday night, beating the Bulls and snapping an eight game losing streak. Their 104-87 win was the team’s 20th of the season, matching last year’s total.
Kenny Atkinson’s squad faces a quick turnaround, and a tough back-to-back match up in Cleveland against Lebron James and the Cavaliers.
The Cavs look like a completely different team after the trade deadline saw them overhaul their roster completely. Through a series of deals they acquired George Hill, Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson, and Larry Nance Jr.
The results have been mixed as the new players adjust. The Cavs have three wins in five games since the deadline. Lebron looked re-energized with the new squad around him, but was frustrated as recently as Sunday in a loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
For the Nets, they will look to string together back to back wins for the first time since January 21st. Allen Crabbe will try and continue his recent hot streak. He’s scored 20 or more points in four out of his last six games. As we’ve seen this year, if he catches fire he can carry the Nets for stretches.
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Caris Levert and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson saw their first action in weeks against Chicago. Both are coming off injuries, and the Nets tend to be very conservative in these situations. Playing 21 and 22 minutes respectively, look for them to play even less if at all
Player to Watch
Brooklyn Nets rookie Jarrett Allen continues to impress, and his dunks are making noise around the league. The Cavs had major problems down low before their plethora of trades. They added Nance, but appear to still be vulnerable. Allen will need to be aware however, because Lebron can come out of nowhere and catch up quick defensively.
Prediction
It would be a great story for the Nets to begin a streak of wins here against an improved Cleveland team. Unfortunately Brooklyn hasn’t shown hat type of consistency this year, and until they do, we pick against them facing the defending Eastern Conference champs. Cleveland, being well rested, takes care of the Nets 114-108.