Brooklyn Nets NBA schedule release: 3 toughest road trips

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PORTLAND, OR – NOVEMBER 10: Ed Davis #17 of the Portland Trail Blazers goes for a lay up against the Brooklyn Nets on November 10, 2017 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images) /

March 13-28

This 15-day road trip is the longest road trip the Brooklyn Nets will face during the 2018-19 season. Not only will this be the longest road trip, but this will be the toughest road trip the Nets will face. Over the 15-day road trip, the Nets will have seven games:

March 13 at Oklahoma City Thunder
March 16 at Utah Jazz
March 17 at Los Angeles Clippers
March 19 at Sacramento Kings
March 22 at Los Angeles Lakers
March 25 at Portland Trail Blazers
March 28 at Philadelphia 76ers

It is important for the Brooklyn Nets to pick up a couple wins during this road trip. With Brooklyn’s 2018-19 regular season coming to a close on April 10 in a matchup against the Miami Heat, this road trip can have a huge impact on their playoff chances.

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This road trip can likely make or break their playoff hopes.

This 15-day road trip consists of seven teams that will make Brooklyn really work for wins. The Nets should aim to win at least four out of the seven games. The four games that Brooklyn have the best chances of winning are against the Trail Blazers, Jazz, Clippers and Kings.

The Trail Blazers have struggled to win against the Brooklyn Nets in recent years. With the Nets stealing two key assets from the Trail Blazers roster this season, Ed Davis and Shabazz Napier; Brooklyn has a good chance of winning.

The Nets will have to control Portland’s dominant back-court of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. If Brooklyn can successfully lock down the two guards, the Nets have a good chance of stealing the road win in Portland.

Brooklyn’s 101-97 win at the Moda Center last Nov. 10 marked the Nets’ only road win against a Western Conference playoff team last season and snapped a four-game losing streak in Portland.

On March 16, the Nets face the Utah Jazz. The Brooklyn Nets can win this game and have a good chance of pulling off the upset. The Nets will have to lock down on Donovan Mitchell and restrict his ball movement.

If Mitchell struggles to distribute the ball, the Jazz’s offense will have trouble functioning.

The Nets have lost their last two visits to Salt Lake City, with their last win coming on Feb. 27, 2016.

The Nets will face the Los Angeles Clippers one day later. The Nets have a good chance of beating the Clippers, but will have two tasks in order to secure the win: play consistent offense and play great mid-range defense.

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The Nets must have consistent offensive production throughout the game in order to win. Brooklyn must have a good shooting night and spread the floor against the Clippers using all areas of the floor.

The Clippers’ mid-range offense is arguably their best offensive area. Los Angeles is filled with mid-range capable players who like to drive the ball and shoot. The Nets must restrict Los Angeles from spacing their mid-range offense and have them shoot contested shots.

This will lead to the Clippers not only struggling to score, but avoid scoring runs.

Brooklyn hasn’t won against the Clippers in Los Angeles since Nov. 15, 2010 (the pre-Chris Paul days), and have lost seven straight at Staples Center to the building’s “other” tenant.

Two days after the Nets face the Clippers, they will have to go up against the young, talented Sacramento Kings team. The Kings are filled with young talent that has a lot to prove.

Sacramento found its DeMarcus Cousins replacement in Marvin Bagley, who was drafted with the second overall pick.

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The Nets will have to lock down De’Aaron Fox and Bagley in order to win. These two Kings can not only light up the scoreboard, but will be the Kings’ top two scoring options on the offensive end. Brooklyn should have Fox push driving the ball and limit his shot attempts.

The young guard struggles driving the ball through contact.

Bagley is not a top shooting big man. Brooklyn should space Bagley out of the paint on the offensive end and force Bagley to shoot some mid-range jumpers. He is not a consistent shooter and having Bagley go out of his comfort zone can really make an impact.

The Nets lost their last visit to Sacramento last March 1, falling in overtime, after winning on the same date in 2017.

As for their recent work against their other opponents on the trip, the Nets have lost three straight to the Thunder in Oklahoma City, with their last win coming Nov. 21, 2014. Brooklyn hasn’t beaten the Lakers at Staples Center since Feb. 20, 2015, and have lost three in a row there.

Brooklyn lost both games at Philadelphia last season after winning there on April 4, 2017.

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If Brooklyn can pull off four wins out of this seven game road trip, it will be a huge boost in their playoff hopes. Clearly, the amount of wins needed will be dependent of their record at the time, but if Brooklyn can win four of these seven games, it will be a successful road trip.