Nets center Nic Claxton certainly didn’t mince words. So did interim coach Kevin Ollie.
They have revenge in their hearts.
The Nets’ dwindling postseason ambitions probably necessitate it, too.
After briefly returning to Brooklyn during a five-game road trip, the Nets will travel to Orlando to face the Magic on Wednesday.
Just two weeks ago, the Nets lost 108-81 to the Magic in one of the most uncompetitive and embarrassing games of the season.
This was Ollie’s fourth game in charge, replacing Jacques Vaughan.
“I had a little blowout last game,” Claxton said after practice Tuesday afternoon. “They played with a lot more energy than we did. If you don’t play with energy in the NBA, you don’t win games. So we definitely came out and played with the energy right and played with energy. We have to focus on our game plan…just being here. [multiple seasons], and when you see what it’s like when you’re always winning games and then you come out and lose and the other team is laughing, you hate watching that as a competitor. So you definitely take it personally. ”
This lack of energy and effort has been a recurring issue for much of the season, and was noted by both Ollie and the players immediately after the loss to the Magic on February 27th.
But the loss also served as a wake-up call, as the Nets went on to pick up two impressive wins against the Hawks, bringing them within striking distance of the 10th seed and the final play-in spot.
But that didn’t last long, as the Nets lost three of their next four games against bottom-tier NBA teams: the Grizzlies, Pistons, and Hornets (a win over the 76ers).
But their brilliance resurfaced Sunday as the Nets defeated the short-handed Cavaliers 120-101, and they’ll be needed Wednesday.
And going into 3¹/₂ games from the play-in on Tuesday, they can’t afford to miss again.
“[The Magic] They beat us,” Ollie said Tuesday. “And in that game we didn’t counterpunch. But I think our players are resilient. They’ll bounce back, and they certainly did, but now we’re more consistent. We have to keep working hard. And that doesn’t waver from game to game. …The big challenge now is to carry that on.
“And I think we’re going to have the mindset that we’re going to carry that on. We’ll see the results, but I truly believe that this group has the mindset that we’re going to get better every day, and we’re going to carry that on the road trip as well.” I want to perform to the best of my ability.”
Beyond just his effort and energy, Claxton will be crucial to the Nets’ comeback.
The Magic have one of the league’s best and most promising frontcourts in Pablo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Wendell Carter Jr., who are averaging 22.8, 20.1 and 11.6 points per game, respectively.
How Claxton, the Nets’ defensive anchor and one of the league’s best rim protectors, handles himself against the Nets will be a big factor in the Nets’ success.
“They have a lot of young players,” Claxton said. “They’re well-coached. A top-five defense. [in defensive rating]. They do a really good job of putting a lot of pressure on the rim. You really have to protect your yard and they have a lot of different players that can go out and score 20-plus points. ”
In addition to slowing him down defensively, the Nets will need to punish Claxton offensively as well.
Claxton, who became a free agent after the season, has started to break out offensively in recent games.
He is averaging 16.6 points per game in his past five games, up from 12.3 points per game this season.
“want [Claxton] We don’t want him to be in the box offensively to get unlocked,” Ollie said. “I want him to do all kinds of things on the court because he does all kinds of things for us defensively, like blocking shots and rebounding. We throw him the ball. He needs to, but he needs to demand the ball as well. I told the guards, “He’s doing a lot of cleaning for us on the defensive end, so we’re going to give him this great guy a lot of cleanup.” We must reward them.” Once he gets his feet in the paint and establishes himself, he should be able to get the ball.”
