3 Nets takeaways from 115-112 win at the Wizards

[ASFN Admin]

You must be registered for see images attach

The Brooklyn Nets (24-51) had been in the midst of a stretch in which it seemed like they were losing nearly every game that they played coming out of the All-Star Break. While Brooklyn was coming off a crushing blowout loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, they had a chance of changing that with a visit to the Washington Wizards (16-58) and they finally pulled through.

The Nets beat the Wizards 115-112 on Saturday in what was an exciting game from start to finish thanks to how both teams were playing on the offensive end of the floor, including how Brooklyn finished the game. Tyrese Martin led the way for the Nets with 20 points, five rebounds, and four assists while Jalen Wilson had one of his best games of the season with 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench.

Things got interesting in the fourth quarter of this one with the way that Colby Jones and AJ Johnson played for a young Wizards team, but Brooklyn was able to make the necessary plays down the stretch despite losing Cam Johnson and Noah Clowney going down with injuries. Here are three Nets takeaways from Saturday's win at the Wizards:

Tyrese Martin​

You must be registered for see images attach

Martin started in the absence of D'Angelo Russell and he had a better outing this time around as he had his game working from all over the floor. Martin's performance on Saturday is a continuation of how he has been playing in March with the way that he is running the offense as one of the point guards while also remaining aggressive on the offensive end of the floor with his shooting and driving ability.

Martin finished Saturday with 20 points, five rebounds, and four assists with just one turnover, showing the growth that he is making as a ball-handler, including making one of the biggest plays of the season towards the end of this game. With the Nets down 112-111 with 13.1 seconds left, head coach Jordi Fernandez drew up a play for Martin and center Drew Timme to work the pick-and-roll together and it resulted in the game-winning play for Brooklyn.

Here's what Martin had to say about how the Nets were able to finish the game strong:

"Just executing what Jordi wanted to run for us. I feel like there was major growth in that group today that was out there. With CJ going down, Noah going down, no older guys out there and things like that. Then, going through adversity with the three turnovers and still being able to execute and get a stop and come out on top, I feel like that was growth and good for the group."

Jalen Wilson​

You must be registered for see images attach

While much has been made after this game regarding the connection between Tyrese Martin and Drew Timme, Jalen Wilson was one of the key reasons that the Nets were able to make their comeback from a 17-point deficit to pick up the win. Wilson had one of his best games of the season with 20 points, seven rebounds, and three assists, showing that he was ready to make the most of the 23 minutes that he was on the floor.

Wilson has been steady for the Nets this season despite not playing as much towards the end of the season as he was in the beginning. He has continued to do what has been asked of him and along the way, Wilson is showing that he can still be a productive player in limited minutes, especially with him shooting 36.5% from three-point land in March, his second-best percentage from that distance in a month this season.

Here's what Wilson had to say about what allowed him to step to the challenge against the Wizards:

"Just being ready to shoot. My teammates are creating, Wat (Trendon Watford) getting downhill, Tyrese getting downhill, just being ready to shoot and reading what the defense gave me."

Drew Timme​

You must be registered for see images attach

Timme has been everything that the Nets could have expected in the past two games ever since the team signed him to a multi-year contract earlier this week. While Timme played well against a tough Los Angeles Clippers team on Friday, he turned right around and played even better against a Wizards team that loves to push the pace while also not playing too many bigs outside of Alex Sarr and Tristan Vukcevic.

Timme came off the bench to drop 19 points, six rebounds, and three assists in 29 minutes on the floor and his combination of skill in the post and his passing ability has been refreshing to watch for a Brooklyn team missing both Nic Claxton and Day'Ron Sharpe for this game. Timme was on the receiving end of a great pass from Tyrese Martin and while Timme didn't necessarily finish the layup (due to Washington goaltending), he was in the right place and was poised enough to put the ball where it needed to be.

Here's what head coach Jordi Fernandez had to say about the opportunity that players like Timme are getting and how he is keeping those players engaged while the team is losing:

"I saw them on the bench talking to each other. On the court. I think it was good. No quitting plays, more winning plays. That's what you want to do. You want to see that connectivity and making those runs. At the end of the day, you'll make mistakes. That happens, but if you do more positive than negative, that's usually how you find a way to win games."

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 115-112 win at the Wizards

Continue reading...