Most teams that head to China during the preseason suffer a hangover to start the regular season. And the Nets definitely looked three sheets to the wind in their final tune-up.
After sweeping LeBron James and the Lakers in a pair of preseason games in Shanghai and Shenzhen, the Nets came back to Brooklyn and got drilled 123-107 by the defending champion Raptors on Friday night.
The game essentially marked Kyrie Irving’s Nets debut, with the All-NBA guard coming back from a facial injury suffered at the start of the first game in China to score a game-high 19 points in a team-high 25 minutes, trying to jump-start some cohesion. But the Nets trailed by as many as 22 points and clearly have some work to do getting in sync before the games start counting Wednesday versus the Timberwolves.
“In a perfect world, no, I would love for it to just snap together like that,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “But it’s a little bad luck with Ky [Irving] getting knocked in the face. Just bad luck. There’s nothing you can do about it, and that’s part of it. We’re going to have to use some real games to figure out permanent rotations. So, sure, I think it’ll take some time.”
That looked the case. The Nets shot just 38.8 percent and 13-of-40 from 3-point range, while they let the Raptors make a scalding 24-of-47 from deep. Irving hit just 7-of-17 with four assists, while Joe Harris had a quiet four points and missed all three of his 3-point attempts.
The Nets finished 3-1 in the preseason, in which results mean little. And frankly, this defeat probably shouldn’t be all that shocking, considering the jet lag from a 15-hour flight back over the North Pole and most of the Nets having to get used to new teammates.
There are only seven holdovers from last season, and Irving has had essentially no time on the court to get ready for the regular season.
After a facial fracture cost him part of training camp and the preseason opener, Irving lasted just a single minute in the Shanghai victory before getting hit in the face by Rajon Rondo. He didn’t return in that game and missed the Shenzhen win altogether.
But Irving —who grew up in West Orange, N.J., going to Nets games at the Meadowlands — made his Barclays Center debut with the team Friday.
“Great for him to get rhythm, great for him to get out there in front of the crowd. Obviously build chemistry with our guys. So important,” Atkinson said.
“[This was] a dress rehearsal a little bit. We’ve been building towards this game. Obviously with Kyrie coming back, we get more feedback and see where we are. He’s got to get some sweat with the guys and get on the same page in a game situation.”
The game’s first basket was also Irving’s first as a Net. He spun away from Fred VanVleet (16 points) and into the lane, hitting a pull-up jumper from the top of the key just 14 seconds in. But this wasn’t a banner night for the Nets.
Trailing just 40-39 after Rodions Kurucs’ 3-pointer, the Nets coughed up a 13-2 run and never challenged again.
The run started with a 3-pointer from Kyle Lowry and ended with another by VanVleet. The shot by VanVleet left Brooklyn in a 53-41 hole with 4:20 to play in the first half, and things just got worse from there.
The Nets fell behind by 18 with 1 ½ to go in the second quarter, and by 101-79 on Norman Powell’s free throw with 1:58 in the third.
OG Anunoby led the Raptors with 18 points.
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