OKLAHOMA CITY — In Ziare Williams, the rebuilding Nets got a former lottery pick as a salary dump.
He was an athletic, floor-running defender, and the jumper was his weakness. But if he can continue to shoot like he's been lately, their gamble might pay off.
“He's done a great job in the gym and worked on his job. That's why he's so confident. It's a no-brainer,” coach Jordi Fernandez said. “And as you can see, even though he was out for a little while, he worked well. He gets a lot of reps. And he comes into the game with confidence.
“We know his superpowers are length and defensive strength, but you also need that to hit the right shot. And he's doing that. is doing a great job.”
In Friday night's 102-101 loss to the Lakers in Los Angeles, Williams had 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and one block in 25 minutes.
The forward shot 40.8 percent from deep in the nine games he played after missing 12 games with an injury, making multiple 3-pointers in all but two of those games. Before being laid off due to injury, he was shooting just 27.3 percent with five multiple 3-point attempts.
“They always say, oh, shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot,” said Williams, who is only 23 years old. And yes, that's good. It feels good now. And I'm just trying to maintain this rhythm. ”
Keon Johnson reached double figures in points in a career-high eight games.
Tothan Ebbuomwan scored 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting against the Lakers and added six boards, two assists and one steal in 27 minutes.
The two-way forward has reached double figures in scoring in five of his past six games since Jan. 8. During that time, he averaged 12.8 points in 24.8 minutes, shooting 58.3 percent from deep and 37.5 percent from deep to top the bench.
“We trust each other and we're taking the right shots,” Ebbuomwan said of the bench. “Ben” [Simmons] and [D’Angelo Russell] He does a great job as a point guard and puts us in the right position, which makes it easier. So a big thank you to those people. They set the pace well and found us, so it worked. ”
Nets owner Joe Tsai, chairman and co-founder of Chinese giant Alibaba, weighed in as President-elect Donald Trump, set to take office on Monday, vows to impose tariffs on Chinese exports.
“Right now, I can say definitively, this is the most unfavorable geopolitical environment we have ever experienced,” Tsai said at the Asian Financial Forum in Hong Kong this week. “As a Chinese company, if you want to do business in the United States, you're going to be hit no matter what. [including] Tariff. ”
O'Shea Brissett, who won a title with the Celtics in June, signed with the Long Island Nets of the G League. He was participating in the Canadian team's camp under coach Fernandes.