Is tanking the winless Nets' best course of action for 2025-26 NBA season?

New York Post

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00:00The Nets are 0-5 for the first time since 2015.

00:04Can they turn it around?

00:05Do they want to turn it around?

00:07Or should we just all call this a rebuild year?

00:09Let's talk some Brooklyn basketball with our Nets beat writer, Brian Lewis.

00:13B-Lew, appreciate you coming on, man.

00:15I wish we could be talking about a 5-0 undefeated Nets team

00:18than a team that's been defeated all five times.

00:22But let's kind of break down some of the stuff,

00:25the storylines that came out of last night's Hawks loss.

00:27In last night's loss, Jordy Fernandez benched rookies,

00:32Yegor, Yeoman, and Ben Sarra for the entire fourth quarter for two vets.

00:37Rookies have to play to develop, Brian.

00:40So was that the right call by Fernandez?

00:44I'd say it was.

00:45I mean, here's the thing, man.

00:46He's trying to win.

00:48And I understand that the team is tanking.

00:50I get that.

00:51But people have to understand that players don't tank

00:56and coaches don't tank.

00:59So, now, organizations may do that.

01:02General managers may do that.

01:04But they do it by taking the former away from the latter.

01:08But Jordy's trying to win.

01:10And if you watched that game,

01:14Yegor struggled.

01:16Ben struggled.

01:16And they were replaced by guys who were playing well.

01:25Martin played very well.

01:27Mann played very well.

01:29And Mann was put on the ball.

01:32He ended up with six assists.

01:34Team high six assists.

01:35So, the idea is, from Jordy's perspective,

01:39this is what I need to try to do to win this game.

01:44And there is, I understand the reasons why the team is tanking.

01:50I understand the reasons why the fans would want them to tank.

01:53But those fans have to understand that there is also a danger

01:58within the locker room if the players see that you're not trying to win.

02:03And it's going to be pretty obvious if a coach isn't trying to win.

02:10So, for that reason alone, yeah, it was definitely the right move.

02:13Well, I have all the respect in the world for Jordy Fernandez

02:16than when you kind of, when you break it down like that.

02:19Because I'm old school Herm Edwards.

02:21Hello, you play to win the game.

02:22You play to win the game.

02:24Hello.

02:25So, now I have to kind of reshape my next question

02:28because I was going to ask, like,

02:29what are the top two or three reasons this team is so bad right now?

02:33And was this start somewhat expected?

02:37So, let's say they were actually trying to win games.

02:41Could this team, does it have enough to compete?

02:45No.

02:47The projections are fair.

02:50Depending on where you look, and, you know, I'm not a gambler,

02:54but 20, 20.5, 19.5, depending on where you look,

03:00that's reasonable.

03:01They may win.

03:02They may win even fewer than that.

03:05Here's the thing.

03:09It's the quickest way to lose in the NBA,

03:13and this is something that Michael Porter Jr.

03:16pointed out completely unbidden last night

03:19is when you hand the reins over to rookie point guard.

03:25Rookie point guards generally do not impact winning.

03:28It is the hardest position to play.

03:32It is like handing your team to a rookie quarterback.

03:35Now, the difference is

03:37the Nets don't have a seasoned veteran

03:41to hold a rookie's hand.

03:43They don't have a seasoned veteran

03:45that they can turn to

03:47when things start going sideways.

03:49They have three point guards

03:51and all of them are teenagers.

03:53So, that's the quickest way to lose.

03:56I think what's been moderately surprising

03:59is just how horrific the defense has been.

04:02I think people expected them to lose,

04:05even if their roster might even be better

04:07than last year,

04:08because they had three rookie point guards.

04:10But the problem is

04:12they've also embarrassed themselves defensively

04:15in terms of the lack of consistency

04:18of their effort,

04:20looking disorganized out there,

04:23as if not everybody's on the same page.

04:26When you combine those two things,

04:28no, they don't have it in them

04:31to win at any kind of consistent clip.

04:35But again, this is what this season is.

04:38So, that's not overly shocking.

04:40So, let me throw a hypothetical out there.

04:43If you or me, we're Jordy Fernandez.

04:45We go up to the front office

04:47and we tell them,

04:48look, I want to be competitive.

04:49Like, I need shooters.

04:52I need guys that can play game in, game out.

04:55Could there be a turning point to the season,

04:58a game or decision or a trade

05:00that could spark some sort of momentum

05:02for the next three or four months?

05:04I think for the most part,

05:07any solution is coming internally.

05:10So, as an example,

05:11this is what I'm saying.

05:14Yegor struggled mightily.

05:16And Yegor, by the way,

05:17has struggled to get by anybody.

05:19He has struggled to beat anybody off the dribble.

05:22There are five games into the year

05:23and he doesn't have a single two-point basket.

05:26Not one.

05:27So, the improvement

05:31is going to come from probably

05:33within the building.

05:36But, as I said,

05:38they have five first-round draft picks.

05:41So, those guys, theoretically,

05:44are going to develop

05:45as the season goes on.

05:47That's probably where your improvement will come.

05:49Or it will come from

05:50guys getting on the same page

05:53defensively.

05:54It can come from

05:56Jordy and the coaching staff

05:59tweaking things.

06:00And last night,

06:01not only did they,

06:02as you correctly point out,

06:04tweak the rotations in the lineup,

06:06but he also tweaked

06:07what he was doing defensively

06:08and went away from this

06:10aggressive defense

06:12where they were blitzing pick and rolls.

06:14But that means everybody has to be

06:16on a string behind and rotating.

06:19And went more to a little bit

06:20of a switching defense

06:22in the fourth quarter.

06:23And it worked.

06:24Those are the kind of ways

06:26that they're going to improve.

06:27If they're making a trade

06:29mid-season,

06:30and I do expect

06:30there will be at least one,

06:32if not more,

06:33that's probably going to be more

06:36for the big picture.

06:37In other words,

06:39you know,

06:39if that's trading a veteran

06:41to get another lottery pick,

06:44or another,

06:45I'm sorry,

06:46more draft picks,

06:47I won't say lottery picks,

06:48if they're trading a veteran

06:49to get future draft equity,

06:51that's probably the kind of trade

06:54you're going to make.

06:55I don't see them

06:56making a trade

06:58mid-season

06:59to try to win

07:00an extra game

07:02or three

07:02because that's counter

07:04to what this entire season

07:05is about.

07:05Well,

07:07I've had to kind of,

07:08I came into this interview

07:10with some optimism

07:12and wrote the questions

07:13thinking like,

07:14okay,

07:14how can they turn it around?

07:17Dream crusher here,

07:17I'm sorry.

07:18You just told me

07:18there's no Santa Claus,

07:20so thank you,

07:21Brian Lewis.

07:21So I guess,

07:22how bad can it get though,

07:24Brian?

07:25Like,

07:25are we talking 2009,

07:272010

07:28when they finished

07:2912 and 70?

07:30Do you think

07:31this year's

07:33Nets team

07:33can break that record?

07:35Well,

07:36I mean,

07:36it's not like

07:37they're completely

07:38devoid of talent.

07:39I mean,

07:40listen,

07:41Michael Porter Jr.

07:42is

07:42a very gifted shooter

07:45and he's a guy

07:47who's won

07:47also.

07:48I mean,

07:48he's a guy

07:49that's got a ring,

07:50so it's not like

07:50he doesn't have pride

07:52or he's not trying.

07:53He's a solid player.

07:55He's probably

07:55the best player

07:56right now

07:57on their roster.

07:59Cam Thomas

08:00is a gifted scorer.

08:02He's a bucket,

08:04right?

08:05Now,

08:06Nick Claxton

08:06can play

08:08and needs to play

08:09better

08:09than he has

08:11played so far.

08:12He played well

08:13last night.

08:14If Nick plays

08:16like that

08:18most nights,

08:20they have the ability

08:23to win some games.

08:24So, yeah,

08:24I think

08:2512

08:26is a little low

08:27and as I said,

08:28they do have

08:29five first-round draft picks.

08:31So,

08:32I think

08:33there is a potential

08:34for them to be

08:35better than that.

08:38Teens,

08:39high teens,

08:39maybe 20.

08:41I think

08:42that's reasonable

08:43and I think

08:43once you start

08:45seeing some

08:45of these young guys,

08:47you start seeing

08:48them reap the benefits

08:49of the experience

08:51that they're getting

08:52and the hard

08:54learned lessons

08:55that they're taking,

08:56then I could see

08:57improvement maybe

08:58in the second half

08:59of the year.

09:01Looks like

09:02I'll be going

09:02to Nets games

09:03to go to the

09:04Shake Shack

09:05that's across the street.

09:06They have really good

09:07burgers.

09:08They have a Shake Shack,

09:09they do.

09:10Thank you for

09:11coming on today

09:12and we'll talk soon

09:14most definitely.

09:15Thanks for having me.

09:16I appreciate it.

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