The Brooklyn Nets visited Wells Fargo Center on Monday for Game 2 of their first-round playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers and lost 96-84. Philadelphia leads the first-round playoff series 2-0.
For the Nets, Cam Johnson had 28 points and four rebounds while Mikal Bridges had 21 points and seven assists. Spencer Dinwiddie had 12 points and Seth Curry had nine points off the pine.
For the 76ers, Tyrese Maxey had 33 points and three rebounds while Joel Embiid had 20 points and 19 rebounds. Tobias Harris had 20 points and De’Anthony Melton had nine points off the bench.
In the first half, the Nets made sure to push the pace whenever they had a chance so that they could wear down the 76ers. Cam Johnson went off for 22 points as he took the game over by scoring at all three levels. Brooklyn scored 13 points off 11 Philadelphia turnovers.
In the second half, the momentum of this game shifted because of Brooklyn’s shooting going down the tubes. After shooting 40% in the first half, they shot just 33% in the second half and they allowed Philadelphia to get 18 second-chance points. The Nets were unable to score the ball on a consistent basis in the second half and that was their downfall.
Here are your Nets player grades for Game 2:
Spencer Dinwiddie: C+
Dinwiddie did not have one of his better offensive games in this matchup. He had a few time where he did not drive to the rim when the opportunity was there and he appeared to settle for too many fadeaways. Dinwiddie is one of the better drivers in the NBA so it was odd to see him hesitant to drive the basketball even when he had the advantage. Aside from that, Dinwiddie did a good job of rebounding the basketball from his guard spot and did a good job of passing the ball and finding his teammates in scoring position.
Mikal Bridges: B-
Bridges had a tough time shooting the ball in this one. It was one of those games where he was getting good looks, but wasn’t able to knock down shots that he makes in his sleep. To make up for that, Bridges drove to the rim more than usual and as a result, he was able to draw a good amount of free-throws. He also did a good job of helping rebound on the glass and he did a wonderful of making plays for others and picked up a lot of assists being the play-maker.
Cam Johnson: B+
Johnson did a great job of scoring the ball in this Game 2 against the 76ers. He was able to score at all three levels and he had some highlights including dunking on Joel Embiid two times in the first half. Johnson had one of his best offensive games for the Nets and it came at a critical time when no one else had it going. This was the type of offense that Brooklyn was hoping to get on a more consistent basis.
Dorian Finney-Smith: C+
Finney-Smith had a tough time shooting the ball in this one. He saw good looks at the basket all game long, but he just wasn’t able to make shots on a consistent basis over an extended period of time. Finney-Smith did a good job of getting on the glass and he played some solid defense. However, if Brooklyn is going to pull off an upset, players like Finney-Smith have to step up with their scoring.
Nic Claxton: D
Claxton had a tough task in this contest. Claxton had to expend most of his energy trying to body up Joel Embiid and make up work for anything he got. As a result, he was not terribly involved on the offensive end which is not entirely surprising. Claxton did a good job of rebounding the basketball despite having to deal with Embiid and he had some nice passes in this one to his open teammates.
Royce O'Neale: C-
O’Neale had a miserable time shooting the ball in this contest. He was ineffective from three and once that happens, O’Neale is usually not able to score in other ways. During the regular-season, he would rack up assists as a secondary ball-handler, but he did not do that in this game. He did a good job of rebounding the basketball, but other than that, O’Neale was not very impactful during his time on the floor.
Seth Curry: C
Curry did an okay job of scoring the ball in this Game 2 matchup with the 76ers. He was unable to get much going from three-point range, but he was able to make something happen from the mid-range like he typically does. Curry did a great job of passing the ball as a secondary ball-handler and that helped him stay on the floor despite not shooting so well.
Joe Harris: C-
Harris one of his quietest games of the season on the offensive end. He did not shoot much and when he did attempt to score, he wasn’t able to get anything to fall. The sharpshooter did play solid defense during his time on the court and that coincided with when Brooklyn made its run on Philadelphia in the first half.
