Jordi Fernandez certainly exploded a problem for the Nets.
The team's first-year coach showed early on in his tenure that he is not afraid to publicly call out issues that need to be addressed.
On Sunday night, he was as energetic as he has been all year.
Fernandez lamented the Nets' leaky defense after his team's 118-113 loss to the Bucks at Barclays Center.
They trailed by 12 points late in the third quarter, but then allowed the Bucks to score 26 points in the final six minutes of the game.
Specifically, he threatened, “If our players who wear Brooklyn Nets jerseys don't play harder defense, they have no place on our roster.''
There's a good reason. Because the team's defense collapsed.
The Nets' defensive rating (points per 100 possessions) is 116.6, the sixth-worst in the NBA.
Other optimism has also faded, including an offensive rating of 113.1, which ranks 13th in the league.
Looking deeper, one area stands out. It's 3-point defense.
The Bucks made 15-of-31 from behind the basket on Sunday against the Nets, an impressive 48.4 percent.
December 8th. NBAE (via Getty Images)
Opponents of the Nets are shooting 37 percent from deep this season, the ninth-worst in the league.
However, the Nets have given up just 35.3 3-point attempts per game, fifth-fewest.
Abandoning the three-point look tends to result in higher quality.
“We had a lot of threes,” Dennis Schroder said after Sunday's loss. “We didn't rush back. There were a lot of 3s open. We have to watch film and get better.”
In Sunday's loss, Fernandez was responsible for double-teaming defenseman Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was ejected late in the game and allowing a kickout to an open shooter behind the arc.
“You play offensively, you make strong catches, you hit doubles with good angles, you rotate with speed,” Fernandez said. “I did it in the first half, I defended the 3-point line. At that point, it's a two-possession game that I own. I'll probably just be home for one or two possessions. And We got punished. We didn't do what we were supposed to do. We didn't act consistently.”
The Nets have gotten better inside.
They are giving up 48.7 points per game in the paint, 18th-most in the league.
While this is still below league average, it shows that he is better than his performance on the perimeter.
Having Nick Claxton with his feet under him will only help with that.
In Sunday's loss, he had a season-high 21 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks, making him a plus-3.
And the return of Dorian Finney-Smith will help both inside and shooting from deep with his ability to guard both wings and bigs.
He returned Sunday after missing the past four games with an ankle injury and was a plus-2 with nine points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
And perhaps most importantly, Fernandes' public challenge will certainly help.
“We don’t have the defense to finish third.” [quarter]. We can’t defend enough to finish the fourth,” Fernandez said. “That's how you win and lose games in the NBA. … If you look at the offense, it's pretty good. It's just that our defense was bad.”
The Nets value Fernandez's integrity.
“That's what really good coaches do. They hold you accountable. They hold you to high standards. They're simple,” Claxton said after the loss. “They tell you what they expect from you, and that's what you need, especially for a young team. We definitely feed off of that.”
Following Sunday's loss, the Nets will have four days off until their next game against the Grizzlies in Memphis on Friday.
