The Brooklyn Nets picked up their fifth victory of the season on Sunday afternoon, defeating the Washington Wizards 102-94 at the Barclays Center. Mikal Bridges led the way for Brooklyn, who was wearing their famous NBA City Edition jerseys, scoring 27 points in the victory, but made just 11 of his 29 shots. Bridges shot two of 14 from behind the three-point arc and is now shooting a career-low 30.2% from downtown.
The biggest news of the day for Brooklyn was the return of Nic Claxton. Claxton suffered a sprained ankle during the Nets season-opening loss to the Cavs on October 25th and returned to action just 17 days later, despite many estimates putting Claxton’s absence somewhere between four and six weeks.
Claxton, the lynchpin of Brooklyn’s defense, had a double-double Sunday, posting 10 points with 13 rebounds. He also added four key blocks.
REJECTED by Nic Claxton 😤 pic.twitter.com/B8b88iEVYH
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) November 12, 2023
Brooklyn has struggled with interior defense this season, but that should all change with a DPOY candidate back in the fold.
Brooklyn Nets Injury Updates
Lonnie Walker IV has become Brooklyn’s key scorer since Cam Thomas went down with a left ankle sprain on Tuesday night but re-aggravated a knee injury he suffered in Brooklyn’s loss to Dallas early this season. Luckily for Brooklyn, it seems they avoided the worst.
Lonnie Walker said he's been playing through significant knee pain since Brooklyn's 2nd game and reaggravated it today:
— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) November 12, 2023
“My knee has just been sore since game two and in a lot of pain. Just been playing through it for the most part, damn near playing on one leg. Kind of just… pic.twitter.com/B0ySoq9y7V
Despite playing just 21.3 minutes per game, Walker averages 15.4 points on 51.5% shooting, including 45.5% from three. The Nets are averaging 103 points over their last three games and badly need more scoring. They can ill-afford a long-term absence by Walker, especially with Thomas out.
Ben Simmons has been dealing with a hip issue over the last week. The injury has been officially ruled as a hip contusion. Simmons, who has missed Brooklyn’s last three games, is listed as day-to-day.
Simmons is Brooklyn’s offensive playmaker, and it’s no coincidence their scoring is down over 10 per game without Simmons. He could be back as soon as Tuesday when the Nets host the Orlando Magic in their third in-season tournament group play game.
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