Brooklyn Nets: 2-way players, Dzanan Musa stand out in Long Island opener

Alan Williams, on a 2-two way contact with the Brooklyn Nets, led the G League’s Long Island Nets to a 113-105 win over the Westchester Knicks Saturday.

Alan Williams waited a long time to play in a game this season after missing all of the Brooklyn Nets preseason with an injured right ankle.

He finally got his chance Saturday night at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale and went off for 27 points and 21 rebounds to lead the G League’s Long Island Nets to a 113-105 win over the Westchester Knicks in their season opener.

Williams, a 6-foot-8, 260-pound big man signed by the Brooklyn Nets to a two-way contract in late September, played up to his “Beast Warrior” nickname, to be sure.

The 27 points and 21 rebounds set new G League career highs for Williams, who was playing in just his fifth game in the circuit after being assigned there by the Phoenix Suns sporadically over the last two seasons.

Dzanan Musa, the Brooklyn Nets’ first-round pick in June’s NBA Draft, got his first extended minutes since joining the club.

Placed with Long Island on assignment, Musa played 37 minutes and finished with 23 points on 10-of-22 shooting, going 3-for-7 from 3-point range, with five rebounds.

Like Williams, Musa spent much of the preseason dealing with an ankle injury after he was hurt playing for the Bosnian national team in FIBA World Cup European qualifying play in September. Musa had played in three of Brooklyn’s first nine games, getting a total of 15 minutes.

Rodions Kurucs, another rookie on assignment to Long Island, also started the game and played 19 minutes. Kurucs hadn’t seen game action since spraining his left ankle on Oct. 20 and showed some rust, finishing with six points on 2-of-9 shooting and going 0-for-4 from long range.

He did have seven boards and four assists to go with two steals.

Brooklyn’s other two-way player, undrafted rookie Theo Pinson, also had a solid night for a guy who hadn’t gotten much burn lately. Pinson, who got into two games for Brooklyn earlier this year, started at shooting guard for Long Island Saturday and finished with 22 points.

Pinson was just 6-for-16 from the floor and 2-for-6 from deep, but got into the lane often and hit 8-of-9 from the foul line to go with seven rebounds and five assists. On the downside, Pinson had five of Long Island’s 19 turnovers on the night.

Veteran Drew Gordon, who was allocated to Long Island after being briefly signed by the Brooklyn Nets in the preseason, came off the bench for 12 points in 15 minutes.

G League veteran Shannon Scott, one of the returnees to Long Island, had five assists, as did undrafted rookie Jordan McLaughlin, who spent the preseason with Brooklyn.

Saturday’s game is still available on Facebook Live.

Long Island (1-0) is now idle until Thursday, when they host the Capital City Go-Go, the Washington Wizards affiliate club, at Nassau Coliseum. The 7 p.m. Eastern game will be carried in YES Network.