3 Nets takeaways from 104-96 loss at Celtics

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The Brooklyn Nets (23-46) had to be feeling good about themselves following Sunday's win over Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks prior to going on a road trip to face two solid teams. In Tuesday's matchup at the Boston Celtics (50-19), Brooklyn had a solid chance of coming away with the upset thanks to the absence of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, but Boston's other players had other ideas.

The Nets lost at the Celtics104-96 in a game that was back-and-forth throughout thanks to another game with uneven halves for Brooklyn. D'Angelo Russell had 18 points and seven assists to lead the Nets, but he also shot just 6-for-18 from the field, including 4-of-13 from three-point land. Ziaire Williams had 15 points while Keon Johnson had 13 points.

Brooklyn looked to be somewhat in control of this game thanks to how well they were defending players like Derrick White and Jrue Holiday, but players like Kristaps Porzingis (25 points, 13 rebounds) and Baylor Scheierman (20 points) were not to be denied. Here are three Nets takeaways from Tuesday's loss at the Celtics:

D'Angelo Russell​

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Russell has been one of the best players on the Nets since coming to the team in a midseason trade from the Los Angeles Lakers, but he has also had some issues shooting the ball during his second stint in Brooklyn. Russell did lead Brooklyn in scoring (18 points) during this loss in Boston, but he did so while shooting just 6-of-18 from the field and 4-of-13 from three-point land.

The fourth quarter was especially rough for Russell as he shot 2-for-8 from the floor and 1-for-7 from deep, showing that he had the confidence to take the shots that the Nets needed to make, but just didn't have it going. Russell has had games where he has carried Brooklyn's offense so this is not to say that Russell can't be counted on down the stretch of tough games, but his performance in the fourth quarter left a lot to be desired offensively.

Here's what head coach Jordi Fernandez had to say when asked about his trust in his team in terms of shooting the ball consistently:

"I trust the guys. I want them to keep shooting and I want them to keep getting to the free throw line, keep getting to the rim, and keep finding catch-and-shoot threes. If they do that, we'll be okay."

Ziaire Williams​

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Williams has put together another solid game as he is quietly having the best month of the season after another performance in which he shot the ball well in addition to his solid perimeter defense. Due to Williams' aggressive nature of defending, he can have some games where he gets into foul trouble like he did in this game, but Fernandez will take that version of Williams over a more passive version.

In what is an interesting trend, Williams is having his worst month shooting the three, but it seems like he's getting more confident with his long-range shooting, especially with him seeing his highest volume from three-point land so far in March. Williams put up 15 points and four rebounds against the Celtics and was a key reason that players like Derrick White and Jrue Holiday ultimately struggled.

Lack of Scoring​

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The Nets have not been playing the way they needed to since coming out of the All-Star Break as they have won just three of their 15 games out of the Break. Granted, their schedule has been tougher than what they had going into the All-Star Break, but with them having their eyes set on possibly getting the last spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament, it seems like that goal has virtually faded away.

Against a Celtics team missing Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for the first time this season, Brooklyn had a golden opportunity to get a win over a team that was initially projected to beat them by more than 10 points. However, thanks to the efforts of Kristaps Porzingis and Baylor Scheierman, the Nets were unable to come out on top in a winnable game.

Here's how Fernandez summarized the loss:

"We were taking good shots. We only had nine turnovers for 10 points. Their switch-ability bothered us because we had a lead, and then, it was a couple of times that they took the lead, we took the lead. We were in a good place, but Scheierman made five threes in the second half. That was the big difference."

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 104-96 loss at Celtics

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