The net is off to a surprising .500 start thanks to poor defense in the fourth quarter

NBA players are too talented for the defense to take it all away from them. Winning and losing depend on receiving the right things and receiving them in the right way.

That’s what the Nets did when it came to exceeding expectations heading into Sunday morning’s game against Detroit.

It was assumed that the rebuilding Nets, like the Pistons, would be in contention for a spot in the lottery.

But Detroit is just 1-5, while the Nets are a surprising 3-3, winning three of four thanks to strong defense in the fourth quarter.

“At the end of the day, it was a pretty close game,” coach Jordi Fernandez said. “The difference is that in this league the players are so good that you just have to take care of those little details.”

For the Nets, these details force opponents to take the shots they can afford rather than the high-value looks their opponents expect. They will look to repeat this against Cade Cunningham & Co.

The Nets entered the weekend having limited their opponents to the second-fewest three-pointers in the league (31.8). They did an even better job of driving opponents off the line late in the last four games, nearly beating Denver and earning victories over Milwaukee, Memphis and finally Chicago on Friday.

“Our guys understood that we couldn’t allow a team as good as the Bulls to shoot a lot of threes — and they have really good shooters — just to keep taking free shots,” said Fernandez, who saw his Nets allow 14 of 25 in the first half, but only 3 of 19 in the second. “You could see the urgency from there.

“When the game breaks, you can still fly. Again, it’s not perfect, but when they’re shooting 2 of 19, it definitely helps you. And they were on track to maybe break the NBA 3-second record, and then these guys were everywhere. They did a great job, so it was nice to see it.

Fernandez saw them hold Chicago to a .261 overall mark and a 2-of-11 mark in the final period. He noted that fourth-quarter defense has become a common topic lately.

Poor fourth quarters cost the Nets their first two games, posting the league’s second-worst rebounding percentage (40.0) and third-worst effective field goal percentage allowed (65.3). However, since their victory over the Bucks on October 27, they are ranked first (61.1) and second (39.8).

This could be a key moment on Sunday, just as it was on Friday against Chicago.

“I just catch the ball and try to secure rebounds. They hurt us on the offensive glass. And really I’m just trying to push them from the three-point line,” Cam Thomas told YES Network. – In the first half they were really effective in getting the three-pointers, but in the second half we lost their effectiveness. So just try to limit them to 3 so we can escape and get a shot. So we did a good job.”

Let me say it again: NBA defense is all about choices.

Protecting the three-point line came at a price, especially since Nic Claxton blocked shots He is on limited minutes and has not started a match yet.

Driving shooters out of bounds led to offenses, and the Nets had the third-highest percentage of looks at the hoop (30.4 percent of attempts from within three feet).

Without his normal rim protection when Ben Simmons steps up the middle, that’s a weakness the Nets will look to address starting Sunday.

“It’s not just about shooting the hoop. These are uncontested hoop shots. That’s what worries me and it’s something we’re working on and we’re aware of,” Fernandez said. “A lot of it is because our ball pressure is good. Sometimes you’ll get beat and then you’ll have to get a hoop and cover for your teammates.

“We’re not there yet. This is in progress. We know that all these high-level defensive teams, playoff teams – Orlando, Celtics, Minnesota – are very good at pressuring the ball and are very physical. It’s a process. It’s not like you’re going to become this type of band overnight. You have to go through this. But yeah, we have to do better at the rim.”