Brooklyn Nets: Player grades from loss at Milwaukee to close out 2018

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B. 35 MIN, 18 PTS, 6-for-12 (4-for-7), 2-for-3 FT, 5 REB, 4 AST, 1 PF, 1 TO, -12. SF. Brooklyn Nets. DEMARRE CARROLL

DeMarre Carroll put together another strong performance Saturday on the back of a solid effort in the loss at Charlotte on Friday, an encouraging sign in a season marked by inconsistency since Carroll returned from missing the first 11 games after surgery on his right ankle.

Carroll matched his season-high with his four made 3-pointers and was aggressive looking to find his shot (and looking to find shooting fouls, even if it didn’t always work out for him).

Defensively, however, Carroll had some problems when the Nets went man, as both Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo had big nights, combining to his 24-of-32 from the floor.

SHABAZZ NAPIER. A-. 33 MIN, 32 PTS, 9-for-15 (4-for-7), 10-for-12 FT, 4 REB (1 ORB), 7 AST, 1 PF, 1 STL, 1 TO, -10. PG. Brooklyn Nets

Shabazz Napier produced in an opportunity to play Friday night in Charlotte and he just exploded on Saturday, matching his career-high with 32 points to go with a season-high seven assists.

Napier was the driving force behind Brooklyn’s late push to make the game competitive after the Bucks opened up a 26-point lead in the third quarter, scoring 18 points in the second half and 11 in the fourth quarter, when the Nets got that gigantic deficit down to seven points.

He had been pulled out of the rotation in early December and had played in just five of the Nets’ previous 12 games for a total of 28 minutes before getting a season-high 33 on Saturday.

Napier kept himself ready and produced big results when he got an opportunity against the Bucks. You can’t ask for much more professional comportment than that.