The Brooklyn Nets continue to grapple with persistent offensive struggles, ranking near the bottom of the league in scoring and offensive efficiency despite a roster bolstered by new talent. Following a 103-90 loss to the New York Knicks on Monday, head coach Jordi Fernández acknowledged the team's difficulties.
"I mean, you hold a team to 103 points in the NBA, you should be able to win a lot of games," Fernández stated after the game. However, the Nets' offense has been a consistent issue, dating back to previous seasons.
In Fernández's first season, the Nets ranked 28th in scoring and offensive rating. The subsequent season saw the team finish last in the league in both categories. This season, despite acquiring two-time All-NBA selection Julius Randle, No. 6 overall pick Mikel Brown Jr., Mo Wagner, and Keon Ellis, the team has struggled to find offensive chemistry.
Through seven games, the Nets stand at 1-6 and rank 29th in scoring (105.6 points per game), 28th in offensive rating, 29th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.21), 28th in turnover percentage (18.3), and 28th in field goal percentage (41.7).
In their recent loss to the Knicks, the Nets scored a season-low 90 points. They shot 3-for-16 from the field and committed five turnovers in the fourth quarter, allowing a late lead to evaporate. The team is averaging just 94 points over its last three games.
Fernández pointed to a lack of organization and player positioning as key factors. "I think it's more about us not being organized, and then if you have empty possessions, you don't run anything for anybody, like nobody's in the right spot," he explained. "You don't touch the paint. You don't move. You don't reverse the ball, and you get either no shots or terrible shots. … Everybody's got to do their jobs because whether we call a play or not, you got to run to your spots, and we didn't do it enough times, and that's the frustrating thing."
Individual performances have also contributed to the offensive woes. Randle is averaging a career-high 4.1 turnovers per game and shooting 41.5 percent from the field, below his career average. Brown is shooting under 30 percent from the field in the early part of his career, and the point guard responsibilities have been shared by young players Egor Dëmin and Nolan Traore.
Randle emphasized the team-oriented nature of the problem. "Just gotta remain disciplined. We know what we need to do… you can’t just put it on one person. It’s a team game. It’s five players out there, so we got to be better at communicating, understanding the moment, what’s going on. It’s all five of us. We all got to be better out there," he said.
