The Nets lost 106-93 to the Miami Heat on Wednesday night, and a look at the rebounding column in the datasheet explains what went wrong with the home team.
The Heat were stronger than the Nets all night, so they outperformed Brooklyn 70-45, including a 17-4 advantage in offensive rebounds.
After the game, head coach Steve Nash noted that the Nets need to bounce back as a team to make up for their lack of size.
"We've talked a lot. Giving up offensive rebounds is the fatal weakness for us," Nash said. "We have to keep working hard, that has to keep being a priority, but obviously 17 games tonight is too much.
"It has to be a priority. You just need to want it. You have to put it first. You can't lean against the other end of the court. We all have to come back, we have to gang back. We're going to give up a lot of team size. It's important for us to be really diligent and play, not to give up a bunch of possessions in a situation where we're all inclined to attack before we get the ball. ”
The Nets didn't start center Nick Clarkston, who missed the game because he wasn't COVID-19. So they played small with Blake Griffin, starting from the fifth position, but they were beaten by the Heat, including Jimmy Butler, who had a game-high 14 rebounds.
"Obviously on the personnel side, if we have a group of leading rebounders, it's not going to be a problem. But since we didn't have people who specifically cleaned the glass, we had to all come in and the gangs bounced back," Nash said. "We can't let two or three people fall to the other end of the board to watch the ball and get hit there. We had to come back to help and bat. Tonight we were definitely great at rebounding and that's where the game was different. ”
In addition to their rebounding problems, the Nets' overall shooting percentage is also poor, shooting 38.8 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range.
"I know what you want me to say," Kevin Durant responded when asked about the lack of rhythm in the offense this season. "Yes, we do miss Kyrie (Owen). We are. He's a part of our team, but for the most part we've been creating great shooting opportunities and we've been getting into the paint. It's just a matter of us knocking them down. I think it's coming. ”