Brooklyn Nets vs Philadelphia 76ers 4-4-17The Brooklyn Nets road into Philadelphia looking to extend their two game win streak to three against the tanking 76ers. As it turns out not only was Brooklyn able to walk out of the Wells Fargo Center with a victory, but they did so in a historic way.
Brooklyn was put up the second highest point total without having a 20-point scorer and put up the most points scored in a half in team history on way to the 141-118 victory. They were able to win behind strong play from almost everyone on the team. The Nets were able to beat the 76ers behind the offensive explosion, Spencer Dinwiddie playing some of the best basketball of his life, and guys like Archie Goodwin stepping up and playing consistently when given the chance.
Brooklyn Scored 140+ Points Without Having A 20-Point Scorer
The Brooklyn Nets accomplished a rare feat last night, scoring over 140 points without having a 20-point scorer. It was absolutely incredible display of beautiful basketball. Four starters scored in double figures, three players dished out seven assists, five players only missed one shot, and the team shot 64 percent from the floor overall.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson scored 12 points on five of six shooting, Randy Foye added 12 points, Sean Kilpatrick had 13 points on four of five shooting, KJ McDaniels had 14 points on five of nine shooting from the floor, Justin Hamilton had nine points, Trevor Booker chipped in eight points, Caris LeVert had seven points and seven assists, and Quincy Acy had five points. Everyone was feeling it last night.
Jeremy Lin ended his night with a intriguing stat line of 16 points on six of ten shooting from the floor, seven assists, five rebounds, two steals, and five turnovers in 23 minutes of action. In comparison to his recent slump, this was a good game to help him establish some confidence going forward. In comparison to where Jeremy Lin should be, this game was a little pedestrian.
Shooting 60 percent from the floor and a perfect two of two from deep is excellent, pulling in five rebounds as a 6’3″ point guard is a good day at the office for any player, and dishing out seven assists in 23 minutes is a good sign too but five turnovers against a team featuring guards that Lin should be picking apart isn’t ideal.
Dinwiddie Is Playing The Best Basketball Of His Life
Few players have enjoyed the type of rebirth that Spencer Dinwiddie has with the Brooklyn Nets this season. The former Detroit Piston turned D-Leaguer has enjoyed success while thriving in Kenny Atkinson’s system. His success culminated last night in the form of 13 points on four of five shooting from the floor, seven assists, two rebounds, and two steals in just 24 minutes.
Dinwiddie has looked better and better with each game that passes in his role as backup point guard. Last night he was responsible for keeping the second unit running just as efficiently as the first, pacing them in both scoring and facilitating the offense. What has been most surprising is his new found shooting stroke.
The lanky guard was never known for being much of a shooter at the NBA level, but since getting to Brooklyn he has been shooting at a career best. Duncan Smith, editor of Piston Powered, notes that Dinwiddie’s true shooting percentage of 57.3 percent would lead his former team this season and be third highest on the Chicago Bulls, the team that cut him and sent him to the D-League.
Goodwin Is Proving He Should Be In Brooklyn’s Long Term Plans
The strong play of Archie Goodwin might be one of the most pleasant surprises for the Brooklyn Nets late in the season. His scoring off the bench has been making a big difference since he joined the team and last night was no different. Goodwin ended with 14 points on five of six shooting from the floor while also dishing out two assists and pulling down two rebounds.
The former Kentucky Wildcat has had an up and down NBA career, but Brooklyn could be a great place for him to hang his cap for the foreseeable future. He fits in nicely with everything Atkinson is doing offensively, he is a scrappy defender, and most importantly he is hungry for his shot.
Archie Goodwin clearly knows that this stint with Brooklyn could be the most important of his career. After getting inexplicably cut from the Phoenix Suns, he was inexplicably not picked up by any NBA team. It was always clear that he was an NBA talent but for some reason he remained in the D-League for a majority of the year.
If this stint with Brooklyn doesn’t work out, he could have that “should’ve stayed in college longer, it stunted his growth” stink all over him for the remainder of his career. Luckily for both Brooklyn and Goodwin, things are working out great so far.
This Win Was Nice, But…
Let’s not forget exactly who we are dealing with here. The 76ers are in full on tank mode with all of the young talent that has been shut down due to injury, again. Ben Simmons has yet to play a minute of NBA regular season basketball while Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor have been sidelined with injury. This is a team that wants to roll out a lineup of young players and play as good a game as possible without winning.
Games against Philadelphia right now are like glorified exhibitions. All the coaching staff cares about is getting as much young talent on the floor for as long as possible without getting anyone injured. Wins do not matter right now, so to see Brooklyn play to win the game against an opponent that is essentially there to get the worst record possible and have extreme success shouldn’t be surprising to anyone.
This was a good example of what this offense can do when firing on all cylinders and when they are met with little to no resistance. It should be a good confidence boost to the players and serve as a moral boost to the fans, but don’t get too ahead of yourselves. The Brooklyn Nets are much better than their record, but they still have a ways to go until they can truly say they are a good team.