Do The Brooklyn Nets Want to make the Playoffs?

As the NBA successfully got underway with its opening weekend reboot, the Brooklyn Nets were in action Friday against the Orlando Magic.

Coming into the reboot of the NBA Season with the cards stacked against them, the Brooklyn Nets suffered their first loss of their eight seeding games when they were defeated by the Orlando Magic 128-118. The Nets, who were without many of their key contributors, came into Orlando planning to rely heavily on Jarrett Allen and Carvis LeVert.

The two-man game of Allen and LeVert worked exceptionally in the first half, Allen was doing his best work in the pick and roll alongside LeVert. Picking his spots on the offensive end in addition to being the defensive anchor finishing the first half shooting 6/7 from the field with 12 points and five rebounds.

LeVert was aggressive out of the gate, driving to the bucket, and showing off his lethal mid-range game. With Kyrie Irving out, Levert showed off his playmaking ability with seven assists to go with his 17 points. If the Nets have any hope of holding onto their playoff spot, they are going to need great productivity from these two players.

With the likes of Wilson Chandler, Spencer Dinwiddie, Kyrie Irving, Deandre Jordan, and Taurean Prince electing not to partake in the restart, the Nets are trying to find quality minutes and production from unfamiliar faces.

Former first-round pick Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot led the team with 24 points, being a spark plug off the bench while hitting five three-pointers. Tyler Johnson, who has shown solid production during the scrimmages, tallied 11 points. Despite the much-anticipated signing, three-time 6th man of the year award winner Jamal Crawford did not check into the game. Considering their lack of depth, the Nets could lean on Crawford’s veteran leadership and scoring prowess in future contests.

With the loss, the Nets dropped to the eighth spot in the conference. Look for the team to bounce back when they match up against the Wizards on Sunday, who are missing their star player Bradley Beal.

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While the Nets would have to go on a major losing streak to drop out of eighth place, the Wizards are in striking distance for the playoff play-in. With that, none of the remaining seven games are more important than this one.

The Nets will need to put forth more effort going forward if the goal is to make the playoffs, even so, is that the true goal? Making the playoffs would stamp this season as a success, besides attempting to make the playoffs, the Nets are using these games to evaluate the current status of the team and each player.

Looking forward to next season with the return of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the Nets are vetting the roster with questions of who would mesh well with these two superstars returning back to court.

Brooklyn Nets: Several Players Skipping Orlando. dark. Next

Keys for Success Going Forward:
1. Feed off the play of Allen and LeVert
2. Continue searching for the perfect rotation
3. Solid production from role players

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