LOS ANGELES — Wednesday's Nets loss went beyond horrific to historic.
Biggest loss in team history.
This is one of the top 10 worst losses in NBA history.
In the end, the Clippers won 126-67 in the shiny new Intuit Dome, already a house of horrors for Brooklyn.
This would be a surefire outcome for the Nets.
Or at least it should be.
Center Nic Claxton scored two points on 1-of-7 shooting in 16 minutes, 35 seconds despite having doubts about a tight hamstring, saying, “Honestly, I feel like I'm not doing my job.'' ” he said. “We all have a lot of pride and we have to get better. But we can't keep losing like this. That's never going to happen.”
Claxton is the only proven starter on the floor for Brooklyn, which has lost six of its past seven games. They played without leading scorer Cam Thomas, shooter Cam Johnson, and point guards D'Angelo Russell and Ben Simmons.
“Damn, I don't know if we've ever lost by this much. It's frustrating. It's frustrating for sure. I feel like we've been getting beat up on a lot lately, to be honest. ” Claxton said. “But we're getting some players back, so we have to keep fighting. We have short-term memory.”
It was the most lopsided loss in Nets history. And even by Tank team standards, it would certainly be one of the most humbling events in recent memory.
The Nets trailed by a mind-boggling 64 points with five and a half minutes left, the fourth-worst pace in NBA history. The late catch-up alone put them in a tie for 10th worst in NBA history, surpassing the Cavaliers' lowest point total of 62 points on January 28, 1997.
Of course, that record comes from a 73-point loss to Oklahoma City in 2021, and the Thunder currently sit at 33-6, the best in the league. But the Nets (14-27) are just beginning a rebuild.
“Now is not the time to point fingers or deflect anything,” said Jordi Fernández. “It's time for everyone to own it, and I'll be the first to own it. The guys kept fighting. I don't think they quit. And it's not like you did anything right. It's one of those days where you don't, you don't have the right energy and togetherness. But when you do it, it takes a little more focus and everything else.
“We've always fought until the end, closed the lead and competed. I'm proud of this group of players and I know they're going to show up and work the next day. So now I All we can do is have a positive but competitive mindset that this hurts and we don't want to be in this situation again.”
Jalen Wilson scored 16 points and Dayron Sharp added 12 points and 14 boards.
“That was one of those games,” Sharp said.
It's no surprise that YES Network staff had to fill in time, and the discussion turned to Intuit Dome's 1,400 restrooms. We write our own dad jokes.
The Nets' worst loss in franchise history was a 52-point loss to Houston on October 18, 1978. That was back when they were the New Jersey Nets. The Clippers nearly drove it back to Jersey on Wednesday night.
The Nets lost touch early and never fought back. They allowed the Clippers a 66-13 overtime lead and were down 90-38 with five minutes left in the third quarter. The only drama in Game 4 was finding out just how historically bad this beating was going to be.
Kawhi Leonard scored 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting and had a career-high plus-46 points despite playing just 24 minutes. They were more than enough.
Former Nets star James Harden dominated his old team with 21 points and 11 assists. He earned 60 cents in the first half, the same amount Brooklyn earned as a team.
Noah Clowney was ejected for his second technical, making it a typically frustrating night.
