Nets drop opener to Hawks despite putting up fight literally and figuratively
NY Post
ATLANTA — Just because the Nets aren’t fighting for a championship in coach Jordi Fernandez’s debut season, that doesn’t mean they can’t show some fight. They might have shown a little too much in his first game as coach.
The Nets momentarily lost their poise in Wednesday’s season opener, and then lost 120-116 to Atlanta at State Farm Arena.
“I loved our physicality. We’ve been talking about Brooklyn grit, right? You saw it with 32 fouls,” Fernandez said. “The only thing is, we got to be smarter. Our technique has to be better. We have to lead with our chest and show our hands. They shot 21 more free throws.”
A shorthanded six-point underdog on the road — and projected by the sportsbooks to win a league-low 19.5 games — few expected the Nets to win this one.
Yet they led late in the third quarter, and trailed just 90-89 with 8:22 left when they allowed a 12-3 run — aided by a pair of frustration fouls, including a Flagrant 2 by Nic Claxton that got the center ejected.
“Yeah, that was clearly a foul,” Fernandez said. “You know, we don’t want anybody to see anybody get hurt. I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean to.”
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