On Friday night, Brook Lopez will play against the Nets for the first time in his career.
The Nets selected Lopez No. 10 overall in the 2008 draft, and he spent nine seasons with the organization before being traded to the Lakers for D’Angelo Russell and Timofey Mozgov in June.
The 29-year-old big man is currently the Nets franchise leader in points (10,444) and third in minutes played (18,118) behind just Jason Kidd and Buck Williams.
His tenure included an appearance in the 2013 All-Star Game and averages of 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per contest.
“I’m a huge Brook Lopez fan,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I just think he’s one of the most professional people I’ve ever been around. One of the nicest people I’ve ever been around.
“He means a lot to this franchise. He did a lot of great things for the Nets. So I think we all need to show him a lot of respect.”
“It’ll be cool to see Brook. We miss him as a teammate,” said forward Trevor Booker, who spent the 2016-17 campaign with Lopez. “I’m sure he’s going to be happy to see us, and we’re going to be happy to see him.”
In Tuesday’s 122-114 loss to the Suns, Atkinson employed a small-ball lineup with the 6-foot-7 Rondae Hollis-Jefferson playing the five.
“It really brought us back in the game,” he said. “We were down 15, I felt like we had to try something different.”
Though the rebounding obviously suffers in those situations, Hollis-Jefferson’s versatility allows Brooklyn to throw out the unique look that features more speed and more shooting.
“[With] his length and he’s so active, we don’t feel like we’re really punished in the post,” Atkinson said. “Teams don’t post up as much and take advantage. … So I do like the lineup, I think it gives us an offensive advantage and we don’t get hurt that much defensively.
“It’s a lineup you could see sporadically.”
Quincy Acy (left groin strain) has been ruled out for Friday’s game. Jarrett Allen (left foot strain) is listed as questionable.”