Nets Hang On, Again: Nets 101, Hornets 97 (Game Grades)

Deron-Williams52

Deron Williams POINT GUARD

Had a red-hot first quarter and displayed some fancy, crafty moves getting to the rim, but got stepped on on his hand in the middle of the third quarter and didn’t make much of an impact after that moment until hitting the final 11 Nets points of the game. Maybe his overall game doesn’t deserve an A+, but considering four of his fingers were crushed for a significant part of it, I’m giving it to him anyway.

Plus he tried to steal something from a little kid, and I’m intensely pro-bullying.

Joe Johnson SHOOTING GUARD

Gets an A+ solely for his scream attempt to try to shake Austin Rivers. It was fantastic: Rivers was set up for a corner three and Johnson, right behind him, roars like a bear right into his ear, then looks away sheepishly after the shot goes in. It’s the silliest thing Joe Johnson has perhaps ever done.

Gerald Wallace SMALL FORWARD

Hit two three-pointers, which is new.

Kris Humphries POWER FORWARD

Another game with some good minutes, but he’s a completely under-the-rim player these days, and his lack of a post game makes that even more alarming. Still: hustle, rebounding acumen appreciated.

Brook Lopez CENTER

He scores almost all the time. That doesn’t surprise you. But everything else was really fun to watch — he passed well out of the post, found C.J. Watson more than once in the corner, altered a ton of Hornets drives and post-ups, and actually played significant minutes in the fourth quarter.

Keith Bogans SHOOTING GUARD

Corner — and top of the key! — threes, Bogans remains the ultimate floor spacer. Key rebounds, key buckets in the fourth quarter. Role. Star. HIP. HOP.

MarShon Brooks SHOOTING GUARD

A lot of good and bad on display from Brooks tonight — at some times seemed like a wizard, splitting defenders and using the backboard effectively on awkwardly angled drives, and other times thought three steps ahead of himself, leaving the ball behind or throwing it away carelessly.

Reggie Evans POWER FORWARD

In the biggest Nets first half of the season, Reggie was probably the team’s least effective player. Watching him go up for a layup near the rim in traffic is just painful now. I wish he wasn’t a starter, for his sake.

C.J. Watson POINT GUARD

Had another solid “If Joe Johnson was six feet tall” type of game, hitting open shots and getting into the lane. Side note: YES Network lists Watson as 6’2″, which makes you wonder whose shoulders they allowed him to sit on.