Maybe Jordi Fernandez isn’t receiving enough Coach of the Year noise. The Brooklyn Nets were thought to be a team looking to tank entering the season. According to Basketball Reference, the Nets had the lowest O/U win total in the preseason. It was at just 19.5, one less than the Washington Wizards and two less than the Portland Trail Blazers. As we now sit at the All-Star break, it’s quite remarkable that Brooklyn is right there in the Play-In Tournament hunt.
Can the Nets actually reach the Play-In Tournament come April?
The Projected Worst Team In Preseason Still Has Play-In Hopes
Nets Still In Play-In Tournament Hunt
At the All-Star break, the Nets are not currently residing in one of the Play-In Tournament positions. They aren’t far behind though. Brooklyn won their last three games prior to the break, improving their record to 20-34. While that certainly isn’t very good, it’s almost good enough to be in 10th place in the Eastern Conference.
Their record is tied with the Philadelphia 76ers for 11th-best in the East. It also puts Brooklyn just 1.5 games behind the 10th-seeded Chicago Bulls who are 22-33. While the Nets ended by winning games before the break, Philadelphia and Chicago did the opposite. The Bulls have lost four straight, and the 76ers have lost five in a row. Chicago traded Zach LaVine to start February and seemingly have a worse roster after doing so. Philadelphia has been losing of late even when Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey are in the lineup.
While the Nets made moves prior to the trade deadline (dealing Dorian Finney-Smith and Dennis Schroder, also dealt Mikal Bridges in the offseason), they continue to play hard as they have all season. They also added D’Angelo Russell in the Finney-Smith trade. While Russell was highly scrutinized while with the Lakers, he is still more than capable of helping Brooklyn win games. They are 8-8 with the 6-foot-3 point guard in their lineup.
With 28 games remaining in their regular season, very few (if any) expected the Nets to have meaningful outings left to play (other than being meaningful for ping pong ball purposes).
Remaining Schedule Has Tough Opponents
According to Tankathon, the Nets remaining schedule is middle of the pack in terms of difficulty. Their remaining opponents have a .503 winning percentage, the 15th-highest in the league. Just behind them in 16th are the Bulls at .502. The 76ers have one of the easiest as their .474 remaining opponent win percentage is the 27th-hardest. Brooklyn still has five games left against the teams with the three-best records (Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Boston Celtics). Sixteen of their 28 remaining games are at home though.
The Nets have also been without leading scorer Cam Thomas since January 2. He strained his left hamstring, and the most recent update has the 23-year-old returning soon after the All-Star break. The 6-foot-4 guard is averaging 24.7 points this season, albeit in just 19 outings.
While most probably still wouldn’t predict the Nets to reach the Play-In Tournament, they also didn’t expect them to remain in the hunt this long. Their 20 wins already surpass the 19.5 o/u win total from the preseason. They will attempt to go for win #21 on Thursday against the East-leading Cavaliers.
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