Getty Kevin Durant blocks Zach LaVine during a May 11 game against the Chicago Bulls.
The Brooklyn Nets came into their matchup with the Chicago Bulls on January 4, looking to extend their NBA-leading 12-game win streak to 13 games. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get back in the win column as they fell to the Bulls 112-121.
The most disappointing part of the loss for Nets fans has to be that the game was very winnable up to the final buzzer. After the Loss, Nets star Kevin Durant alluded to the fact that Brooklyn was able to force the Bulls All-Star duo of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan into a cold shooting night. But ultimately, the contributions of the Bulls’ role players led to them snapping the Nets’ win streak.
“Their top two guys (DeRozan and LaVine) were 12-for-31 for 35 points,” Durant said after the loss per NetsDaily. “We can live with that. But Pat Williams made some shots and easy rolls to the rim. Ayo (Dosunmu) is playing great this year and put pressure on the rim.”
The latest Nets news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Nets newsletter here!
Kevin Durant: League ‘on Notice’ in Matchups With Nets
The Nets went from the bottom of the barrel to becoming legit title contenders, seemingly overnight. Wins over the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers during their win streak solidified that. But now, as the Nets have blossomed into perceivably the NBA’s biggest threat, Kevin Durant knows that the Nets have to be prepared to face the best version of their opponents.
“We understand how we want to play every night,” Durant added. “I feel like the league is always on notice with the talent we have on our team. I don’t think anybody takes us for granted when they’re preparing for us each night. But I think for us, we found some things that were good for us on both ends of the floor and want to just be consistent with executing those things as we move forward.”
“I don’t think anybody takes us for granted when they’re preparing for us every night. It’s good to have winning streaks, but we’re more concerned with how we’re playing and what we’re doing to produce the wins”
– Kevin Durant
Nets head coach Jacque Vaughan echoed a sentiment similar to Durant, noting the Bulls played with a level of “desperation” that the Nets simply did not match.
“They came to play. They were pretty desperate to get a win, and we needed that same desperation,” Vaughn said of the Bulls per NetsDaily. “We could not get over the hump, and we were playing catchup the whole night.”
Royce O’Neale Sounds off on Cold Shooting Night+3
While the Bulls’ role players showed up big in the contest, the same could not be said for the Nets. Most notably, Nets sharpshooter Royce O’Neale. O’Neale has been a major catalyst of this Nets win streak as he has shot a scorching 41.5% from three this season. But in their matchup with the Bulls, he looked like a shell of himself, shooting 0-8 from beyond the arc and 0-9 overall.
O’Neale missed the Nets’ last game against the San Antonio Spurs because he was battling a non-COVID-related illness. The Nets sharpshooter believes that could be one of the reasons for his stale shooting night from the field.
“Of course, when you feel sick and you’re out and don’t play [it has an impact],” O’Neale said to the New York Post after the loss. “But these guys have confidence in me to keep shooting, and that’s what I’m going to do. I mean, never have I ever had a game like this. But I learned from it. Every game is a learning experience. And you know, this is great for myself and going forward.”
The Nets will have a chance to get back on the winning track in their next game against the New Orleans Pelicans.