Nets Fall to Hornets for Sixth Straight Season-Opening Loss
Brooklyn drops its home opener to a shorthanded Charlotte team, extending a streak of season-opening defeats.
The Brooklyn Nets began their season with a 110-103 loss to the visiting Charlotte Hornets, marking their sixth consecutive defeat on opening night. The loss came before a sellout crowd of 17,548 at Barclays Center.
The team, which aimed to move past three challenging seasons including two overt tanking periods, was looking to build momentum with a strong start. However, falling to a depleted Hornets squad with a difficult upcoming schedule risks creating negative momentum instead.
While rookie Mikel Brown Jr. made his debut, veterans Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets' offensive effort. Randle, acquired to improve the team's performance, scored a game-high 33 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and dished out seven assists. This performance places him among a select group of Nets players to achieve at least 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists in their debut.
Porter contributed 24 points, seven rebounds, and three steals, overcoming a slow start and showing unexpected defensive prowess. Despite their efforts, the Nets struggled with turnovers and allowing offensive rebounds, being outscored 20-8 in second-chance points.
Brooklyn committed 22 turnovers against 22 assists, a statistic that contributed to their struggles. The Hornets, playing without key players Kon Knueppel and Coby White, managed to secure the win.
Brandon Miller scored 12 points early in the game, helping Charlotte build a lead. The Nets spent much of the game trying to catch up. Porter’s resurgence in the third quarter, including a four-point play, briefly gave Brooklyn a 64-62 lead. However, the Hornets regained control.
Brown entered the game in the first quarter and scored his first NBA points on a drive against Charlotte’s Moussa Diabate. He appeared composed in his official NBA debut. Meanwhile, Egor Dëmin struggled at the point guard position, committing three turnovers and recording only two assists while shooting 2-for-10 from the field.
The Nets face a challenging six-game stretch against opponents projected to have winning records.