Nets extend losing streak to 10 with loss to Wizards in shadow of blockbuster

WASHINGTON — That’s how you hide a 10-game losing streak. 

The Nets’ 113-112 defeat to the Wizards extended the longest skid in the NBA, but all anybody wanted to talk about was the James Harden-Ben Simmons megatrade earlier Thursday that completely overshadowed a backup-filled contest on the court. 

With both teams depleted by huge moves at the deadline — the Wizards were already without injured Bradley Beal and dealt Spencer Dinwiddie for Kristaps Porzingis — the evening had a Las Vegas Summer League feel. 

Brooklyn broke up the Big 3 of Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving after only 16 games together, just two of them this season. With Harden gone and Durant hurt, Irving was the last star standing. He poured in a game-high 31 points, while rookie first-round pick Cam Thomas added 27 points. 

Nets extend losing streak to 10 with loss to Wizards in shadow of blockbuster
Kyrie Irving finished with a game-high 31 points.
USA TODAY Sports, Getty

It wasn’t enough. 

“We didn’t get enough stops. The defense was not good enough. That’s the bottom line. Without going into too many details, we’ve got to defend better,” coach Steve Nash said. “We started the game pretty good down there and then gave up too many points.” 

Washington’s Kyle Kuzma had his first career triple-double with 15 points, 13 boards and 10 assists. Raul Neto scored a season-high 21 points in his first start of the season for Washington. 

Irving went scoreless in the third quarter, and that’s when Brooklyn fell behind for good. 

But in the end, the result was secondary to the trade. 

“Really just look forward. Excited to incorporate these new guys into our group. I think they fill needs for us and should be an exciting time for us to reset and to rebuild and to hopefully put together a really competitive and terrific team in a short period of time,” said Nash, who had repeatedly insisted Harden wasn’t getting traded. But when it happened, he claimed he wasn’t shocked. 

“I’m not surprised. I think in the last hours, as the hours ticked by today, it seemed more apparent, but you’re never surprised. When I was asked those questions, there was no conversation between the two teams.”

For all the latest Sports News Click Here 

 For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News

Read original article here

Denial of responsibility! TheDailyCheck is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – abuse@thedailycheck.net The content will be deleted within 24 hours.