Brooklyn Nets: Are Nets emulating culture of San Antonio Spurs?

The Brooklyn Nets have many ties to the San Antonio Spurs in their front office and coaching staff and picked up a significant win over the Spurs Monday.

It has been a long time since the Brooklyn Nets got a win against the San Antonio Spurs and opening as 1.5-point favorites against San Antonio had me nervous.

In the end, the Nets came out on top, 101-85, by capitalizing on 3-point shooting and San Antonio’s second night of a back-to-back and eighth straight game on the road.

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On Twitter after the win, a few commenters attributed the win to a weary Spurs team, but nevertheless this was a huge win for the Nets organization.

It was huge for Brooklyn not only to stay ahead in the playoff race, but also as a sign of how far the Nets have come as a whole.

The Nets’ season has been all about being the “next man up” throughout dealing with injuries, slumps and lineup changes this season. No team has represented this kind of culture than the Spurs and Gregg Popovich.

The San Antonio Spurs do things the right way. Despite recent struggles, Gregg Popovich knows how to build a great team, and more importantly, a sound organization. Pop and the Spurs have created a great culture and one that the Nets have been working on for a long time.

After the game, Pop told reporters, per Anthony Puccio of Nets Daily:

"“The Brooklyn Nets have done a great job this year. They’re just getting better and better.”"

I know this comment is bland and as simple as they come, but this is high praise from Gregg Popovich. Coach Kenny Atkinson and general manager Sean Marks have spent their time in Brooklyn trying to emulate everything the Spurs have done in creating a great organization.

Aside from all of the significance this win had off the floor for the Nets, their performance on the court was just as impressive.

San Antonio came into Brooklyn shooting an NBA best 40.4 percent from 3-point range. They ended up shooting just 17 percent from 3, while the Nets shot 38 percent.

This stat not only was huge in terms of getting a lopsided win, but it showed that the Nets are on track to building a Spurs type organization.

The Nets trailed only once and found significant offensive production from D’Angelo Russell, Caris LeVert and Joe Harris.

Alongside this offensive production, DeMarre Carroll, Ed Davis and Jarrett Allen dominated the boards and kept San Antonio from getting second-chance offensive opportunities.

This game was one where I kept waiting for it to get neck and neck. It is impossible to count the Spurs out of any game when Pop is coaching.

As the Nets continued to hit shots and find offensive production, I realized how great of a job Kenny Atkinson has done in creating a special system in Brooklyn.

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Monday night was yet another reminder that the Nets are building something special in Brooklyn and on the way to creating a San Antonio Spurs culture.