From the desk of: THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH
MONDAY
Nets 108
Cavaliers 106
FINAL
JARRETT ALLEN AND SPENCER DINWIDDIE CARRY FLATBUSH TO FOURTH STRAIGHT VICTORY.
After a well deserved and needed rest, Spencer Dinwiddie re-enters the game at 7:48 of the fourth quarter. Playing in the final minutes of back-to-back games, the Nets appear noticeably tired. Case in point Dinwiddie down the stretch fails to convert three of four layup attempts and misses a mid-range jumper. With 21.5 left on the clock Dinwiddie fouls Collin Sexton whom with one of two conversions from the stripe ties the score (at 106-106). But Brooklyn steps up their defense with a pair of blocked shots by Jarrett Allen and Dinwiddie respectively, thwarting two Cavaliers offensive rebounds, whom then turn over the ball on a shot clock violation. With 6.2 left in regulation Coach Atkinson calls for time. With 1.6 second left on the clock, Spencer Dinwiddie nails a mid-range jumper for a 108-106 road victory over Cleveland.
Spencer Dinwiddie, whom earlier in the day was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week, ties for game high with 23 points and leads the floor with nine assists in 33 minutes. Brooklyn, however, does not maneuver into position for Dinwiddie's game winning shot unless Jarrett Allen places the team's injured and tired on his back and carries them there. Playing minus his partner in the paint DeAndre Jordan (day-to-day injury), Allen puts forth his fifth double-double in his last seven games. Easily his best game of the season, Allen ties his season high of 22 points, while securing a season high 21 rebounds, to go along with three steals and two blocks. He shoots 9/10 from the field and is 4/5 from the line.
Chalk up another solid game for Taurean Prince, who adds 18 points, six rebounds, and four assists, in 33 minutes. He leads the Nets with a +9 and is 4/6 from beyond the arc. Joe Harris scores 19 and secures six defensive rebounds.
The Nets are now winners of four in a row, and a game back over par. With a 9-8 record they continue occupying seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings, 2.5 games ahead of Orlando. Not too long ago they were allowing opponents upwards of 119 ppg, but have since reduced that by nearly five less points per game.
Last Wednesday,
I said ...
You can't a clinch playoff berth in November, but you sure can sabotage your chances. Thus opportunity is presenting itself. By defeating the Hornets, Flatbush leapfrogs into seventh place of the conference standings. It would now behoove them to seize the moment against some lesser competition on their upcoming schedule: Sacramento at home, the Knicks at the Garden, and the Cavs at Cleveland. Injuries be damned, there's enough available talent to get through these next few games. Take advantage now before their showdown versus Boston, then come March there will be less ruing games lost in November.
Mission accomplished, and a job well done. They've gotten through the three aforementioned contests minus the services of Kyrie Irving, CarisLeVert, and DeAndre Jordan on Monday.
Wednesday they face the Celtics at Boston.
Let's get it on!
CHEMISTRY 101: ON THE MEND LOOKING IN
If nothing else, Monday's game should serve as a reminder to Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant insofar as what they thought they were getting themselves into by signing with the Brooklyn Nets. Still out with a shoulder injury Kyrie Irving last played on Nov. 14 at Denver. He was averaging 22.9 shots per game through his first eleven games. With Irving and Caris LeVert (averaging 15.5 shots through nine games) still in the lineup, Spencer Dinwiddie was averaging 13.4 shots a game primarily off the bench. Jarrett Allen was averaging just 5.7 shots through the team's first eleven games. Thrust into a starting role Spencer Dinwiddie is presently averaging 17.6 shots over his last six games. Allen is likewise experiencing more touches, now averaging 9.8 shots over his last six games. Which is to suggest there exists more shot diversity when Dinwiddie and Allen are sharing the floor, and the ball. Therefore at issue is a growing number of Kyrie Irving's naysayers warning of the threat he still potentially poses to everything Sean Marks, Kenny Atkinson, and last season's returning Nets players hold dear. I personally am not buying into the scuttlebutt, but Irving's eventual reintegration into the lineup will indeed become an intriguing development worthy of observation. In the meantime, Flatbush is 5-1 in their last six games without Irving.
Just saying ...
