
The two game winning streak is history. And so is the first
meeting with LeBron James and the Cavs. So the Nets seek to return to their winning ways Friday night. They're in Toronto.
Well, there's always Saturday back at home against the Clippers.
The Nets (4-6) have shown they are capable. They beat Detroit.
They beat Atlanta twice. But they also showed they can disappoint.
They have collapsed in second halves, they've lost twice to Indiana,
lost at home to Golden State.
They are coming off their worst beating of the season, in terms of
margin, a 24-point drubbing by the Cavs in New Jersey Tuesday. So now
they have to try to regain the good feeling they held after
high-octane (234 combined points) wins over the Hawks. And they have
to find it against the Raptors in Toronto.
The Nets have lost four of the last five meetings against the
Raptors -- and that, of course, was before Toronto added Jermaine
O'Neal, who is getting around 13 points a game in his new environment.
And then there's Chris Bosh, who added another 40-point game to his
resume this week. The Nets may catch a break with point guard Jose
Calderon, who has battled a strained right hamstring.
Despite the might of O'Neal and Bosh inside, the Nets' biggest
headache could be the Raptors' three-point ability: they are ranked
2nd in the league while the Nets are last in three-point defense. So
Jason Kapono, Jamario Moon, Andrea Bargnani and Anthony Parker could
lead a Raptors' long-distance party.
CAVS 106, NETS 82: The Nets defended poorly much of the night and
went invisible offensively in the second half. With LeBron James
getting in the lane at will and the Cavs ramming home 10
three-pointers, the Nets were overwhelmed when they managed just 30
second half points. The Cavs opened the third quarter hitting four
three-pointers in the first 3:09, to open up a nine-point lead that
grew and grew. Devin Harris scored 23 for the Nets while rookie Brook
Lopez forged his first career double-double (15 points, 13 rebounds).