The Nets will begin the preseason on October 8th against the Clippers without their most complete player.
Nic Claxton will be out with a sore hamstring, Jordi Fernandez announced after the Nets' practice on Friday and before the team heads to San Diego for the remainder of training camp.
The decision was for precautionary purposes, and Fernandez said he did not know when the center was injured.
Claxton also missed a scrimmage during Thursday's practice.
“We're not worried about that,” Fernandez said. “We're just setting more goals.” [for] It's the first game of the season and he's doing what we believe is best for him to be ready there. ”
Trendon Watford and Dayron Sharpe are being evaluated for hamstring issues.
The status of both players for Tuesday's preseason game is not yet known.
“Obviously today is a big recovery day after working hard for three days,” Fernandes said. “Well, it's a long flight today so I'm just trying to recover.” [ahead]It's going to affect their bodies too and they'll have a good practice when they get there the next day. ”
The Nets wanted a $97 million center with lofty goals like winning Defensive Player of the Year, but this is not a start.
Claxton, 25, is a key starter for the Nets and could be their final link to better times starting in the 2019-20 season.
With Claxton sidelined, Noah Clowney could get more opportunities at center as he had some success late last season in the G League, scoring 10 or more points in four games.
“He's a multi-position player on both ends of the floor. That's an advantage for him because it gives him more opportunities to be on the court, he can play the perimeter spot, the center spot when we play small. It's the same,” Fernandez said. “But at the same time, it's sometimes hard to figure that out because he can be a little bit all over the place, right? So whether he's going to play at No. 4, if he's going to play in a perimeter spot, if he's going to play at No. It's my job to help him play efficiently, regardless of whether he plays, and so far he's been doing a very, very good job.”
Dorian Finney-Smith won the inaugural Barrow Cup, a new week-long free throw shooting contest at Fernandez's training camp.
Scores are given just like in golf, so the lower the score the better.
Finney Smith finished at -27, with Dennis Schroder (-21) and Tyrese Martin (-19) rounding out the top three.
Claxton (9) and Ben Simmons (11) finished last.
The Nets took some notes from the Lakers and introduced DJ to Friday's practice.
When asked what he wanted to ask, Fernandes replied: When I play music for other people, you have to play for an audience. If you play for yourself, then you're a bad DJ. ”
