Brooklyn Nets: Player grades from uneven showing against Timberwolves

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JOE HARRIS. B. 34 MIN, 18 PTS, 5-for-13 (4-for-10), 6 REB (2 ORB), 4 AST, 3 PF, 2 TO, -11. SF/PF. Brooklyn Nets

Joe Harris shot the ball better from long range than he has for a couple of weeks, hitting 4-of-10, and did some solid work on the glass, while helping to keep Andrew Wiggins from getting going for the Timberwolves.

Harris moved the ball well for the most part, with both of his turnovers coming off passes where the intended target didn’t make the same read. With Minnesota doing a solid job of keeping the middle congested, there weren’t a lot of driving opportunities for Harris or the Nets.

ALLEN CRABBE. C+. 30 MIN, 11 PTS, 4-for-10 (3-for-9), 5 REB, 1 AST, 1 PF, 1 TO, 1 BLK, -9. SG/SF. Brooklyn Nets

So the hot shooting thing didn’t turn into a streak for Crabbe, who was just 3-for-9 from long range after hitting 7-of-11 against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday.

Crabbe did hit the glass on the defensive window well and limited opportunities against Robert Covington (granted, not a priority option for the Wolves offensively) at the defensive end.

He did, however, force some ill-advised shots that were well-covered. Part of that stemmed from the issues Brooklyn had getting the ball moving at times.

The pace-and-space offense run by the Nets, particularly since implementing so much 5-out action this season, works best when the ball moves side-to-side and gets the defense moving to compensate.

When the ball sticks to one side of the floor, as it did often Friday, open shots are much harder to come by.