The Brooklyn Nets picked up their first win of the season in Indianapolis, but there’s little time to celebrate. The team heads to Madison Square Garden on Monday to face the defending champion Knicks, a building that has been brutal for Brooklyn over the past year.
Last season, the Nets lost twice at the Garden by lopsided margins — 134-98 on Nov. 9 and then 120-66 on Jan. 21. The second loss stands as the worst defeat in the history of the Nets-Knicks rivalry and the second-worst in franchise history.
Forward Michael Porter Jr. said the team needs to carry that memory into Monday’s game rather than let it go.
“We’ve got a big game [Monday] that we should be very excited to play,” Porter said. “Last year, when we went to the Garden, it was not pretty, and we should remember that and look forward to getting our rest [Sunday night] and going in there and being competitive. I know I’m looking forward to it.”
Julius Randle will face his former team for the first time since joining the Nets. Randle spent five seasons with the Knicks and made three All-Star appearances during that stretch.
“I’m sure it’ll be a lot of fun,” Randle said. “No, I don’t know nothing about it. I live in the present, baby. … Focus on what we need to do to get a win, build off of what we did [Sunday] and stick together as a group.”
Randle said he wasn’t aware of the two blowout losses from last season.
Reinforcements expected
The Nets are expected to get rookie point guard Mikel Brown Jr. back for Monday’s game. Brown sat out Sunday’s win in Indiana for back injury management, though head coach Jordi Fernández downplayed any concern and confirmed he’s expected to play against the Knicks.
Brown remains on a minutes restriction. He logged a career-high 28 minutes in Tuesday’s loss in Boston before playing 23 minutes in a home loss to the Pistons on Friday.
Center Day’Ron Sharpe had a strong outing Sunday, posting season highs of 15 points and 13 rebounds to go with four assists, while hitting his only 3-point attempt. It marked the fourth time in his career he’s recorded at least 13 points and 13 rebounds in a game.
“Unbelievable. He was big on the boards. He did a little of everything: He made his 3. He set screens. Very happy for him. We don’t win this game without him, and the reality is how much he cares about winning and impacting winning,” Fernández said.
“I told him finally he gets more than 10 rebounds. I think he can do that night in, night out, get 10-plus rebounds. And if he does that, we’re gonna be a hard team to beat, especially if he’s getting four offensive rebounds,” Porter said. “As long as he’s a force, he’s getting fouled on the glass — that’s his superpower — if we’re getting that from him, then we’re really happy, for sure.”
