The Nets 20-year-old two-way went down hard in the fourth quarter and had to be carried off the court in a stretcher.
The Long Island Nets met the Toronto Raptors 905 on Sunday afternoon to try and get their record back to .500 but by the end of the game, a 130-115 loss, the story was less about the result and more about the severity of a right knee injury suffered by Brooklyn Nets two-way forward Jaylen Martin late in the game.
The 20-year-old went down in the fourth quarter. Writhing in pain as he held his knee, Martin didn’t even attempt to get up and his teammates quickly formed a shroud of towels around him to shield him from view. After trainers and physicians attended him, they called for a stretcher and he was carried off the court. At least one teammate appeared to be in tears as he watched. There was no word at press time as to his condition.
Aside from the injury and loss, Sunday afternoon was big for Dariq Whitehead’s career . He had an outstanding performance, finishing with 26 points in 36 minutes on 9-of-18 shooting, including 6-of-12 from deep. He also recorded four rebounds, and one assist. It was easily his best performance since being drafted in 2023. Indeed, his points, 3-pointers and minutes played were the most he’s recorded since he was the 2022 high school player of the year at Montverde in Florida.
Two nights ago, against the same Raptors 905, Whitehead had scored seven points on 3-of-13 shooting and only 1-of-6 from beyond the arc. But his seven rebounds and assists in that game are also his highest one-game total since high school.
Killian Hayes, who was cut by the Detroit Pistons last February in part because of deep shooting woes, looked like he was heating up. hitting 2-of-5 from three … after going 3-of-5 two days ago. Hayes finished with 12 points, six rebounds and five assists (but five turnovers as well.)
It’s interesting to wonder how the game would have gone had AJ Lawson been able to play. Lawson, a Toronto native, was a last-minute scratch because he hit his knee during Friday’s contest and didn’t feel right. Team officials said the decision to hold him out was precautionary.
The first quarter was explosive offensively for both teams but Long Island shot themselves in the foot multiple times with turnovers and ended the first trailing by six. The second quarter was a little bit better play from Long Island but they still trailed by nine going into the half. Long Island had 10 turnovers by halftime.
In the last game, the third quarter was where it all turned around for Long Island. The same would not be the case today. Arguably, Toronto’s affiliate played its strongest quarter in the third and was able to get around Long Island’s biggest player, Patrick Gardner, with ease.
Whitehead is certainly looking for his next big shot in the NBA as he tries to get beyond his three surgeries since August 2022, the most recent last January 29 on his left shin. Coach Mfon Udofia who has a well recognized eye for development, told reporters on Media Day that he hoped he could develop Whitehead as he did Noah Clowney last season.
Whitehead’s childhood friend in New Jersey, 6’2” former Villanova point guard Mark Armstrong, also was a big positive for Long Island in this game. Off the bench, Armstrong dropped 23 points and picked up six rebounds and four assists. This was easily his best showing of the season as well.
Jacky Cui, one of the Nets two-way players, had another quiet game, his second in the G League. However, it was a better game for him than Friday which is a plus. Cui finished with six points, four from the free throw line, and two in the paint. He also picked up one rebound and one assist, turning the ball over twice.
Another of Long Island’s NBA veterans, former Pacers wing Kendall Brown had his second straight game of double figures, putting up 18 points on 9-of-12 shooting, following Friday’s 21 point effort. In the two games, Brown, 21, has shot 16-of-24, including 4-6 from deep,
Long Island was their own worst enemy in this game. They turned the ball over 20 times, and this led to a lot of points for Toronto. Toronto was not flawless in this aspect of the game either, but certainly had fewer turnovers than Long Island did. Simply put, when you turn the ball over 20 times, you won’t win the game.
Next Up
After starting the season 2-4, Long Island looks to get back on track as they travel to Georgia to take on the College Park Skyhawks on Tuesday night, November 26. The game can be watched on ESPN+ starting at 7:00 p.m. ET.