During the Big 3 era, and even last year, when the Nets won, it was more on talent than toughness.
It’s early, but so far this season, it’s the other way around.
And that toughness has led to a surprising 4-4 start for the Nets going into Friday’s game at Boston.
“There’s a grit, you know?” Cam Johnson said. “Two of our wins have come on the second night of a back-to-back, which I don’t think we had great success with in the past. We’re not winning games because we’re playing pretty basketball or because we’re making shots and things are going our way. We’re finding ways to win and finding ways to be tough and figured that part of the game out.
“We’ve had a lot of games, we’ve given up a lot of free throws, we’ve had games where we’ve been a little undersized. But there’s a toughness component to it that’s pretty foundational, and taking this little eight-game sample and establishing identity for 82.”
It’s something they figured out all too infrequently during the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving era, or with the Mikal Bridges-led squad last season.
Brooklyn grit was an empty slogan, not a reality.
They let go of the rope far too often late in games, blowing fourth-quarter leads and showing a lack of fortitude.
“I wouldn’t say as a team we weren’t tough enough. I’ll probably say we just didn’t show it,” admitted Johnson. “We didn’t respond in the best ways at times and it just boiled down to the foundation of what we were doing. A lot of the emphasis through camp was strictly on that foundation and how we’re going to play night in and night out and what we’re going to hang our hat on. That’s what leads to sustainability and that’s what leads to the toughness we’ve shown on the court.
“That toughness aspect and how we’re trying to play is sustainable. And I don’t think we’re subject to the ebbs and flows of the games as much.”
The devil is in the details.
Nothing screams grit more than putting one’s body in harm’s way taking a charge.
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And last season the Nets took just nine combined as a team, fewer than any other team since the league’s website began tracking such stats in 2016-17.
Over the past 20 seasons, no other team had as few as nine charges drawn in a season, per Elias Sports Bureau.
But they’re actually in the Top 10 in the league so far this season.
And their endgame play has shown toughness as well, their Effective Field Goal percentage allowed vaulting from 16th last season to third-best now.
And that fortitude has shown in back-to-backs.
The Nets were a sorry 4-10 last season playing on no days off rest, but they’re 2-0 this season, bouncing back from losses on the first night both times.
“I think the guys really care. And when we play hard and give ourselves a chance and we don’t win, you always want to find a way to be a little bit better. You cannot always control everything, but what you can control is to just come with that energy,” said coach Jordi Fernandez, who focused heavily on toughness while putting his Nets through a grueling camp. It’s paying dividends.
“The work reward is always important. This group has been working really hard and the message has been if we work together, we build those relationships, then we’ll see the results on the court. Sometimes you see results and then you lose. And then when you win you’re happier. It’s part of the process.”
The Nets have another back-to-back coming up, on Friday at reigning champion Boston and then Saturday at undefeated Cleveland.
“This year we’re just coming in with no excuses,” second-year forward Jalen Wilson said. “Everyone in the league has to do back-to-backs, so it’s not like something where we can be tired because the other team is just as tired as us. We just attack the situation.”
