Spencer Dinwiddie comes into Sunday’s game against Atlanta off one of the best games of his career. And with Caris LeVert rounding back into form and Kyrie Irving nearing a return to the court, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson intimated he’s looking at ways of closing games with that trio.
“I guess. I don’t know what he said, so I can’t go against what he said,” Dinwiddie said. “We talked about it, and we’re going to figure it out.
“Yeah. We’re going to stay aggressive. I’m going to do what they ask me to do when Kyrie gets back, whatever that means, still starting or coming off the bench. It’s all part of it. As long as we get wins and try to do the best of our ability so we can try to hold the fort.”
Dinwiddie had 26 points, a career-high 14 assists, four boards and just two turnovers against Miami.
“He’s been really good all year. He went through a stretch where he struggled a bit and got back on track,” Atkinson said. “With your quarterback, the guy that’s running your team, you have a lot of discussions. With Spencer, he’s trying to find that perfect balance between getting his teammates involved but still being aggressive.
“So he’s really trying to find that. At the end of the day, I’d rather have him be aggressive. Had a good talk with him the other day. We need him to be aggressive. I think that’s helped us keep afloat, helped us keep our head above water when we were playing well. We need him, it’s just that clear.”
LeVert has steadily seen his minutes increase since returning. He logged 15:43 in his comeback on Jan. 4, then after sitting out the next game, played 22:29 and then 23:43 against Miami.
“Obviously his minutes are up enough now we can play him at the end of the game,” Atkinson said. “So we’re a much-improved team when he’s out there. I can’t wait until he gets his normal run — we’ll be even better.”
Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot had 10 points, three boards and an assist in 21 minutes off the bench against Miami. As a two-way, he’s limited to just 45 days with the Nets, and he’s getting close to that limit.
The Nets are in a stretch where they’ll play seven playoff teams in eight games. Atlanta is the lone exception, with the Hawks an NBA-worst 8-31 and having dropped three in a row.