Brooklyn Nets lose third straight to open Summer League, 97-93, vs. New York Knicks
That back-to-back began on Tuesday evening, a date with the New York Knicks. As a result, Egor Dëmin and Danny Wolf were resting — with Tosan Evbuomwan and Tyson Etienne out with minor ailments — giving fellow first-round picks Nolan Traoré and Ben Saraf a chance to shine, as well as UDFAs Grant Nelson and TJ Bamba.
Advertisement
Saraf had a strong start, scoring seven quick points and giving Nets fans the same sell his most ardent believers did before the draft. He is 6'7' with a real handle, and though the outside jumper is a major question, he can eat up space anyway...
He scored seven points in the first quarter, but finished with just ___. Mixed in with some impressive drives and a nice pass here and there...
...were a ton of missed shots, as the #26 overall pick shot just 4-of-11 from the field, turning down some open ones as well. Ben Saraf, nor any rookie, can change the trajectory of their career in Summer League, but his strengths and weaknesses seem very clear after his third and possibly final appearance in Vegas.
Advertisement
While Saraf played 30 minutes, Traoré played just 19. It mostly went like this...
As in his first two Summer League games, Traoré is blindingly quick with a downhill handle, but where he'll get his points from remains a mystery. He scored two points on 1-of-8 shooting, missing both of his 3-pointers and occasionally going too fast for his own good. It'll be a while before the #19 overall pick has the strength and craft to consistently finish at the rim.
The guard who stood out on Tuesday was New York's Tyler Kolek; the 2024 second-rounder hit five 3-pointers in the first half and controlled every positive possession for the Knicks, who also entered 0-2. Brooklyn's offense could have kept up had they not shot 20% from deep, but alas, they lost steam early in the second half and never recovered.
Advertisement
Once again, they featured a whole hell of a lot of Drew Timme, who led the team with 24 points on 8-of-19 shooting...
Some of his buckets were delectable, but at some point, watching the soon-to-be 25-year-old take over most every possession in the second half with Traoré sitting on the bench and Grant Nelson sitting in the corner got old.
Nelson, for his part, passed up too many 3-point opportunities and turned it over four times, but he shot 3-of-4 with three steals. In a word: fine. The most impressive Net was Caleb Daniels, the 26-year-old former Villanova guard who put up 16/9/2 in 27 minutes. At 26, he probably should be one of the best players on the floor in Summer League, but he was. Minor applause.
Advertisement
Alas, the Summer League Nets, missing four of their guys, dropped their third straight game to open play. They kinda just ran out of talent, not effort, with MarJon Beauchamp matching Kolek's 25 points and the rest of the team making just enough 3-pointers.
Brooklyn has just one game left in Sin City before the true quiet of the offseason arrives. Maybe that's not such a bad thing.
Final Score: New York Knicks 97, Brooklyn Nets 93
Egor, you may now see the Shot Doctor
Perhaps the most entertaining part of Tuesday's broadcast was an in-depth breakdown of Egor Dëmin's oft-discussed outside shot. Former NCAA coach and certified basketball lover Tom Crean broke down Dëmin's jumper, and why he expects the Russian teenager to blossom into a prolific shooter...
Injury Report
As expected, both Ben Saraf and Nolan Traoré will miss Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic. However, Brian Lewis of the New York Post reported that Traoré does have a minor injury...
Next Up
2025 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot
With Egor Dëmin and Danny Wolf likely back in the fold, the Brooklyn Nets wrap up their Las Vegas Summer League experience against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday evening. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
Advertisement
More from netsdaily.com:
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rookie Fairchild making strides on offensive line as Bengals set to face Eagles in preseason opener
CINCINNATI (AP) — The Cincinnati Bengals drafted Dylan Fairchild in April with the expectation that he would be their starting left guard when the season opens on Sept. 7 in Cleveland. During the first two weeks of training camp, Fairchild has looked every bit like a starter. Fairchild and the rest of Cincinnati's expected starters should get at least one quarter of action during Thursday's preseason opener at Philadelphia. 'If you're gonna be in there with the ones, you better be up to par. So we better just expedite that growth and learning curve," offensive line coach Scott Peters said about Fairchild. 'For most of the guys from college, it's like they got to forget about what you did there. It like two different games, checkers and chess. Don't go out there like a meathead and try to head bang somebody because it won't work. So he's done a really nice job getting those things corrected." Fairchild started 14 games at Georgia last season and was a Associated Press All-America second-team selection. Fairchild was a teammate of Bengals right tackle Amarius Mims at Georgia from 2021-23. The consensus among scouts during the draft process was that he was a physical pass protector, which was sorely needed after Joe Burrow was sacked 48 times last season, tied for fourth most in the league. Fairchild — who admitted he is still adjusting to the speed of the pro game and refining his footwork — has embraced the expectations for him to contribute immediately. 'I love being here to provide value for this team. They believed in me and I believe in them,' Fairchild said. 'Now, it's us together working for one common goal. It's just continuously improving. You better come here with your head on straight every single day because if you don't, you get exposed. The stakes are shown." Lucas Patrick signed with the Bengals in free agency and is penciled in as the starter at right guard. Of Patrick's 64 career NFL starts, 37 have come at guard with 17 on the right side. He started 11 games at left guard for New Orleans last season. Cordell Volson, who is entering his fourth season, has 51 starts in three seasons with the Bengals, but struggled at left guard. Cody Ford offers versatility at either tackle or guard. In addition to the guard spots, right tackle is a concern as Mims has battled a wide array of injuries since being drafted in the first round last year. Rookie Jalen Rivers, taken in the fifth round in April's draft, should get plenty of snaps on Thursday. Coach Zac Taylor has stressed for the past eight months that his starters will receive plenty of playing time in the preseason in order to try and prevent another slow start. Cincinnati was 9-8 last season but dropped four of its first five games. Taylor said on Tuesday the first unit could play into the second quarter if there is a long drive on either side of the ball in the first 15 minutes. 'We don't have this targeted for our biggest play time for all of our guys. We picked (Aug. 18 at) Washington to be able to do that,' Taylor said. 'I think just those 11 guys being in the huddle on both sides of the ball and all the communication that's got to occur. It's just a good opportunity for those guys to get some additional reps.' ___ AP NFL:
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Details of Roman Anthony's $130 million, 8-year contract with the Boston Red Sox for 2026-33
Signing bonus: $5 million, payable Jan. 15, 2026 2026 salary: $2 million 2027 salary: $4 million 2028 salary: $8 million 2029 salary: $15 million 2030 salary: $19 million 2031 salary: $23 million 2032 salary: $25 million 2033 salary: $29 million 2034 club option: $30 million Escalators — If first or second in 2025 Rookie of the Year voting, 2031 salary would increase by $2 million for each MVP award from 2025-30, $1 million for each second- or third-place finish. $750,000 for each fourth or fifth, $500,000 for each sixth through 10th and $200,000 for each All-Star election or selection from 2026-30 — 2032 salary would increase by $2 million for each MVP award 2025-31, $1 million for each second- or third-place finish. $750,000 for each fourth or fifth, $500,000 for each sixth through 10th, $200,000 for each All-Star election or selection from 2026-31 and $1 million if first or second in 2025 Rookie of the Year voting — 2033 salary would increase by $2 million for each MVP award 2025-32, $1 million for each second- or third-place finish. $750,000 for each fourth or fifth, $500,000 for each sixth through 10th, $200,000 for each All-Star election or selection from 2026-32 and $1 million if first or second in 2025 Rookie of the Year voting — 2034 club option would increase by $2 million for each MVP award 2025-33, $1 million for each second- or third-place finish, $750,000 for each fourth or fifth, $500,000 for each sixth through 10th, $200,000 for each All-Star election or selection from 2026-33 and $1 million if first or second in 2025 Rookie of the Year voting ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rockies lose, 20-1 to Blue Jays, set new mark for futility with 63 hits allowed in 3-game series they lost by 39 runs
Colorado's performance in a three-game series against Toronto went from bad to worse to historic on Wednesday as the Blue Jays pummeled the Rockies in a 20-1 blowout. The loss completed an overwhelming three-game sweep by the Blue Jays in which the Rockies set a new mark for futility, compounding their flirtation as the worst team in MLB history. The Blue Jays won Game 1 on Monday by a 15-1 margin. On Tuesday, they won by the relatively reasonable, yet still blowout margin of 10-4. Then came Wednesday's debacle in which the Blue Jays scored eight runs in the ninth inning of a 19-run win that had long been secured. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] Making matters worse for the Rockies, the Blue Jays did this at Coors Field in front of the fans in Denver who decided that it was worth showing up on a Wednesday afternoon to witness the proceedings. When the dust was settled, Toronto had tallied 63 hits at Coors Field this week, which added up to the most by one team in a three-game series in MLB history, according to the Denver Post. Toronto's margin of victory in the series was an astounding 39 runs. The Blue Jays secured 24 of their 63 hits Wednesday in a game in which the Rockies actually led early with a 1-0 margin in the first inning. But the wheels started to fall off in the third as the Blue Jays took a 3-1 lead off of starter Kyle Freeland via a three-run Bo Bichette home run. The Blue Jays chased Freeland in the fifth with another three-run outburst highlighted by a two-run triple from Nathan Lukes, his sixth hit of the series. From there, the Rockies' wheels fell off. Toronto added four runs in the sixth and two more in the eighth. Then came the ultimate addition of insult to injury in the ninth as the Blue Jays sent 11 batters to the plate after entering the game's final inning with a 12-1 lead. Eight of them scored. Davis Schneider and Ernie Clement each hit home runs. The ninth-inning outburst came entirely at the expense of backup Rockies catcher Austin Nola as Colorado opted to not further tax its pitching staff. Nola now has an ERA of 72.00. Before it was done, the Blue Jays' social media staff offered a shoutout to the mile-high air in Denver. In the end, the Blue Jays scored 20 runs on 24 hits, five of them home runs. Bichette, Schneider and Lukes tied for the team lead with four RBI each. Eight different Blue Jays record multiple hits, led by four each from Clement, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Ty France. The Rockies sent seven pitchers to the mound. Freeland (6 earned runs), Angel Chivilli (4 earned runs) and Nola (8 earned runs) took the bulk of the damage. The Blue Jays improved to 68-48 with the sweep to increase their AL East lead over the Boston Red Sox to 3.5 games. The Rockies fell to 30-84 (.263) with the loss and remain in striking distance of matching or surpassing last season's Chicago White Sox (41-21, .253) for the most losses in modern-era (starting in 1901) baseball history. The Rockies have been bad for pretty much the entire 20-season tenure of controlling owners Dick and Charlie Monfort. This week may have marked a new low.
