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Brooklyn Nets vs. Toronto Raptors preview: The battle of losing streaks

Somebody’s gotta win, right?

By Brian Fleurantin
/ new
Oklahoma City Thunder v Toronto Raptors Photo by Mark Blinch/NBAE via Getty Images

A hard fought loss, but a loss nonetheless. The Brooklyn Nets made a quick trip to Manhattan to face the New York Knicks on Saturday, and it was a good game early on what was a dreary NY Saturday. However, a fourth quarter Knick downpour ruined Brooklyn’s Saturday and doomed them to their sixth consecutive loss.

The opponent tonight has had even worse luck than the Nets recently. It looked as if the Toronto Raptors had an outside chance of making the tenth seed and a date in the play-in game, however, that’s cooked. Their losing streak is now at ten games after they lost to the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

Where to follow the game

YES Network on TV. WFAN on radio. Tip after 7:30 PM.

Injuries

Cam Johnson, Dennis Smith Jr., Keita Bates-Diop, Dariq Whitehead and Ben Simmons are all out.

RJ Barrett is away from the team following the passing of his younger brother, Nathan. Our condolences to RJ and his loved ones. Immanuel Quickley is away from the team due to a personal matter. Same for Jontay Porter. Scottie Barnes recently fractured his left hand and will miss this contest. Chris Boucher has a partial MCL tear in his right knee and is out. DJ Carton is out with an ankle sprain.

The game

Brooklyn won the first game in November while Toronto took the second one in February.

I’m kinda surprised our old friend Bruce Brown is still on the Raptors. When they acquired him in the big Pascal Siakam trade earlier this winter, all signs pointed to Bruce being rerouted to a contender that could use his services. At the same time, the Raptors have been obliterated by injuries and having a good vet will help the team try to make it to the off-season.

For Mikal Bridges, this stretch of the season is all about adding things to his arsenal for the future. Lucas made this observation during Saturday’s game

If Bridges can end the year on a high note, it’ll create some sense of optimism leading into the 2024-2025 season. Lord knows he and the Nets need it.

In the meantime, he and the Nets will try to keep Gary Trent Jr from heating up. With everyone else out, Trent Jr will get all the shots he can handle. He’s paid it off to the tune of 40.4 percent from three point range, his best since the 2019-2020 season with the Trailblazers. With the Raptors desperate for a win, look for Trent Jr to try and force the issue early.

Player to watch: Kelly Olynyk

Like the Nets, the Raptors are trying to figure out what to do with their roster going forward. But unlike Brooklyn, their starting center won’t be a free agent this summer. Earlier this month, Olynyk signed a two year contract extension to remain with the team. In any stage of a rebuild, you need some talent that’s credible and can slot into their assigned roles. He won’t start when Poeltl returns, but as a good hand coming off the bench, he’s pretty solid.

The Nets have a bit of a situation at center. They have three talented youngsters who deserve minutes as they try to figure our what the future looks like. Nic Claxton will start and he’ll be tasked with flying all over the court. When he does fly all over the court, it’s up to his teammates to pick up the slack on the glass for him. Fortunately for Brooklyn, Toronto is 25th in rebounding rate this year so they may not be able to take full advantage. That should open things up for Day’Ron Sharpe when he checks in. Sharpe has been a bear on the glass and allows the Nets to extend possessions on the offensive glass. That might leave Noah Clowney as the odd man out, but the Nets should find room for him on the court.

From the Vault

We’re on the road to Wrestlemania, so it’s only right we revisit one of Mania’s greatest matches that took place in Toronto!

More reading: Raptors HQ, SB Nation NBA

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