The Nets Don’t Have Anyone To Compete With Embiid
There really isn’t anyone on the Nets roster that could even compete with Embiid, but putting the 6’9″ Trevor Booker or the slow Brook Lopez on him was not the answer. Embiid went off for a career night, scoring 33 points and pulling down 10 rebounds and rejecting three shots. He did so in just 27 minutes of action, while shooting 12 of 17 from the floor and nailing two shots from deep. There was just no stopping him.
When he would go down low, he was able to power it through Booker. When he would face up, he would shoot right over the much shorter Booker. Combining his size, strength, and athleticism is deadly. Now that he is healthy and slowly shedding his minutes restrictions, teams will have to game plan around him and all that he does. As for the Nets, the Embiid issue is not about to go away any time soon. With Philadelphia being a divisional opponent, it’d be worth getting someone on the roster that could at least hang with him defensively in the future. Only problem is finding it with little to no assets.
Brooklyn Got Destroyed On The Offensive Glass
The Nets are not a team that is known for grabbing rebounds, especially offensive rebounds, and that ended up being the difference in this game. Brooklyn got out rebounded seven to fourteen and in a one point game those extra opportunities are worth their weight in gold. If Brooklyn grabbed two or three of those offensive rebounds away from Philadelphia, then we are talking about a completely different ball game.
The mystery of why the Nets can’t seem to pull down offensive rebounds is going to be elusive to solve, but having a guy like Jahlil Okafor pull in one less rebound then the entire Nets team is a problem that needs to be solved. Brook Lopez has never been and will never be known as a rebounder, so looking for him to step up now and become even an eight to nine rebound a night guy is pretty much out of the cards.
The Nets will have to bring in someone to help in this area. When and how the help arrives will be indicative of where the team’s mindset is now. If they look to make major roster moves before New Year’s Eve, then they are looking to win now. If they make a move at the deadline, it could still point to a win now frame of mind but it could also be Marks capitalizing on an asset’s value before it started to depreciate. If no move is made by the deadline, then it will show that this season has been and will continue to be about developing this roster as best they can for the future.