Brooklyn Nets: Player grades from 107-102 loss to Knicks

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BROOKLYN, NY – SEPTEMBER 27: Assistant Coach Jacque Vaughn and Jared Dudley #6 of the Brooklyn Nets are seen during practice on September 27, 2018 at HSS Training Center in Brooklyn, New York. 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 2018 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) /

B+. 15 MIN, 5 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 1 TOV, +5. PF. Brooklyn Nets. JARED DUDLEY

It was a much slimmed-down Jared Dudley who took the court in Brooklyn Wednesday night from the one we last saw on an NBA hardwood last spring with the Phoenix Suns.

Dudley dropped 20 pounds this offseason, per Brian Lewis of the New York Post, and it showed with some renewed quickness and a very effective unofficial Nets debut.

Look, Dudley doesn’t have the body type to ever look cut, ripped, defined or however else you want to describe it.

But he was solid against the Knicks, hitting one of his two attempts from 3-point range, moving the ball crisply and holding his own on the glass despite being undersized at the 4.

Dudley started the sequence in the second quarter that ended with Joe Harris’ corner 3, driving baseline and kicking the ball back out when he realized he was looking at a difficult shot.

That’s a veteran move, no question, and one you would expect from the guy who is now the oldest Brooklyn Net at age 33.

Dudley is facing an uphill battle to get regular minutes in the rotation, but if Wednesday night is any indication, coach Kenny Atkinson may find it difficult to keep him saddled to the bench.