Even though the Nets lost late against the Timberwolves on Thursday, Nic Claxton proved he can compete with one of the league's best centers in Rudy Gobert.
Going into the matchup, Brooklyn lacked size against Minnesota's two biggest centers, the 7-foot-1 Gobert and the 7-foot Karl-Anthony Towns.
Towns (27 points, 10 rebounds) and Gobert (10 points, 13 rebounds) had double-doubles on the night. Gobert is also the league's second-best rebounder, averaging 12.5, and ranks eighth in the NBA in blocks per game (2.1), two spots behind Claxton's 2.2.
But the Nets' fifth-year center held his own at 6-11 and 215 pounds, posting 16 points, 11 rebounds, two steals, and two blocks against Minnesota's big men, ultimately winning the game. . They won 96-94 at Barclays Center.
Claxton praised his teammates for helping him influence the game.
“I knew with Rudy…he was going to go block the shot and that got me open and I just took advantage of that opportunity,” he said.
“I think I'm a great big man,” Claxton continued when asked how he thought he could pair up with other bigger centers. “Whenever there's a matchup like that, being one of the top centers in the league, it's always personal to me to go out there and be the best version of myself. I'm a very competitive person. I love basketball and I love competing, so I bring my basketball with me every night.”
He will be tested again on Saturday and will play against Houston's third-year center Alperen Sengun. Sengun is having his best season to date, averaging 22.1 points, 5.1 assists, and 9.2 rebounds per game while shooting 54.1 percent from the field. He is averaging 25.6 points over the past five games.
Against the Rockets, the Nets are nearing the halfway point of their season, having lost 12 of their past 15 games, and will be hoping to end a three-game losing streak in a tough stretch.
“There are no moral victories. It's another tough loss. I mean, it's tough to lose a game like this, but we've got to stay positive and stay united,” Claxton said. “I know it sounds repetitive. I feel like I say the same thing all the time, but it's the same story. We don't lose by a big point margin. They don't score 100 points tonight. But we were solid defensively. We just have to keep trending in the right direction and things will be in our favor.”
Dayron Sharpe (left knee hyperextension), Darik Whitehead (left shin stress reaction) and Ben Simmons (lumbar nerve impingement) remain sidelined for Saturday's game against the Rockets.
On Thursday, coach Jacque Vaughn announced that Simmons will play Saturday with the G League's Long Island Nets and is expected to return next week, barring a disability.
