BOSTON -- The Brooklyn Nets have a roster that isn’t going to win a lot of games this season.
There will be a slew of contributing factors to their struggles, but lack of effort won’t be one of them.
The Boston Celtics got an up-close glimpse at the pesky Nets last week before squeaking out a 100-97 preseason victory.
Brooklyn’s coming to the TD Garden tonight for more preseason action, and will return next week for the regular season opener for both clubs.
Celtics head coach Brad Stevens believes the Nets' scrappy ways are a direct reflection on their new head coach Kenny Atkinson who was an assistant coach on the Atlanta Hawks roster last season.
“I know a lot about Kenny and I know how well thought of Kenny is,” Stevens said. “They’re sharing the ball like you thought they would, they’re moving it. They’re playing at a great pace and they’re playing really hard on defense.”
Indeed, the Nets (1-3) have tried to play a more up-tempo game which in the preseason has resulted in them having a PACE (possessions per 48 minutes) of 103.06 which ranks eighth in the NBA, just behind the Celtics whose PACE is 103.11.
Boston Celtics
It is one of the many areas Brooklyn hopes to improve upon this season.
Among the issues factoring in Brooklyn’s 21-win campaign a year ago was them ranking among the league’s worst at establishing a fast-paced tempo. The Nets had a Pace of 97.37 last season which ranked 21st in the league.
So the Nets went about adding the kind of players that would allow them to play faster, chief among those new additions being former Harvard star Jeremy Lin.
He has averaged 16.3 points in the preseason while shooting 57.7 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range.
Luis Scola provides a veteran presence with the ability to bang inside or step out on the perimeter and shoot 3-pointers. Greivis Vasquez provides added depth at the point while Trevor Booker, like Scola, gives Brooklyn another forward/center who can play inside-out basketball.
In Boston’s win at Brooklyn last week, both Scola (14 points, 11 rebounds) and Booker (11 points, 12 rebounds) tallied double-doubles.
They join a squad that’s led by Brooke Lopez and improving wing player Ronde Hollis-Jefferson.
“You knew with the guys they brought in, that they were going to play an unselfish brand of basketball,” Stevens said.