First depleted, then defeated.
The Nets lost the Protocol Bowl to the Magic — 15 players between the two sides were sidelined by the NBA health and safety guidelines — in a 100-93 contest Saturday night at Barclays Center that snapped a four-game winning streak.
Brooklyn (21-9) looked like a team that was gutty but still figuring out one another’s names while falling to the woeful Magic. Orlando snapped a seven-game losing streak, but even though it lacked Terrence Ross, Moe Wagner, R.J. Hampton and Mo Bamba, asterisks might be required.
The Nets — or whoever it was who was wearing the City Edition blue jerseys, a few of whom were signed hours before game time — looked like a team lacking talent, depth and cohesion, if not heart.
Brooklyn was without the Big 3 of Kevin Durant, James Harden and the returning Kyrie Irving, all lost to the COVID-19 protocols. Ten Nets were in the protocol, and two more (Nic Claxton and Joe Harris) were out because of injury.
Still, the Nets fought back from a 17-point, third-quarter deficit and tied the game up at 93-all in the fourth with a 3 by rookie David Duke Jr. Duke, playing in just his fifth game, grabbed 14 rebounds and scored 16 of his 18 points in the fourth.
But Orlando’s Chuma Okeke responded with a 3 of his own, and the Magic (6-25) did not relinquish the lead.
“We’ve got a bunch of guys out there that are with us for the first time,” coach Steve Nash said. “We’ve got a bunch of guys out there that are playing extended minutes for multiple games for the first time. Overall, really proud of them.”
Blake Griffin, Patty Mills and Cam Thomas formed the new Big 3 for the ReplaceNets and combined for 55 points, keeping Brooklyn afloat but never getting over the top.
The Nets started three rookies (Kessler Edwards, Duke and Thomas) for the first time since 2009 and had just eight available players. No players on their bench (Langston Galloway, James Ennis III and Shaquille Harrison) were on the team a week ago.
They wouldn’t be enough against Robin Lopez, who led Orlando with 20 points. The Nets had no answers for the 7-foot Lopez — their tallest player was the 6-foot-9 Griffin and next up was the 6-7 Edwards.
Still, the biggest absence on a night of absences was the Nets’ 3-point shooting, as they went 9-of-46 (19.6 percent) from deep, which will happen when the majority of a team’s players are forced off the court.
“Good effort, but came out to win and came up short,” Griffin said. “But I was proud of how these guys fought.”