Fresh off the major holiday, the Brooklyn Nets were faced with one of their biggest challenges thus far in a home-and-home with the Charlotte Hornets. Led by future All-Star Kemba Walker, the Hornets have often run just as hot-and-cold as the Nets have through the first 30-plus contests. At times, Charlotte can look like a soon-to-be member of the conference elite, but in other, they’ve looked like they’re headed to the lottery for the third year running. But all that aside, these back-to-back games offered a new opportunity to the Nets: Would they rise to the occasion? Or would they squander a golden chance to prove that they belonged?

Through one half of the potentially season-defining experiment, Brooklyn was clearly game for the double overtime insanity that would lie ahead of them.

Clearly, however, the Nets weren’t looking to change too much up from their winning formula. The first half featured most of your standard Nets fare: Jarrett Allen highlights, D’Angelo Russell trying to figure out if he’s scorching-hot or icy-cold, and the Nets struggling to stop the other side from scoring at-will. Everybody’s Favorite Latvian, Rodions Kurucs, soared in for a first quarter steal near halfcourt to energize a lethargic crowd, but those two points were just a blip within the Hornets shooting 57.1% from the floor in the opening frame.

Thankfully, the Nets — who shot just 1-for-8 from three-point range early on — had something to say about that. Making up for inconsistent marks, Brooklyn began to drive the ball and play unselfishly. In desperate need for a jolt in the arm, head coach Kenny Atkinson went with Kurucs and the rookie delivered in spades. Even when he’s not scoring, Kurucs has the ability show up right where he’s needed most. From ensuring that the ball keeps pinging around the herringbone to making tough defensive efforts, he finds his spots and executes. Kurucs, not playing like a 20-year-old, helped the Nets hang around for the remainder of the half, even if his numbers didn’t support that final conclusion. Elsewhere, the Nets went back-to-back-to-back-(to-miss)-to-back from three-point range — via Dinwiddie, Joe Harris, Dinwiddie and then Harris again, that last one at the buzzer — to skip ahead of Charlotte and take a deserved lead into the locker room.

With Russell lighting the floor up to begin the third frame, the Nets built up their largest lead of the game. But with him glued to the bench and Kurucs forced there with him after a technical foul, Brooklyn had no choice but to enter another slugfest. Walker, the Eastern Conference’s best point guard for this author’s esteemed money, continued to torch whomever the Nets stuck on him. Outside of Russell, Harris and Dinwiddie, Brooklyn had an evenly-dispersed effort — for better or for worse. But the Hornets and their third-best bench scoring unit in the NBA — just behind the Nets, for the record — were held to just 12 total points through 36 minutes. If the Nets could manage to slow down Walker, they’d be in pole position to win the game.

That, unfortunately, is much easier said than done.

Walker kept cooking and that lead seesawed right along with it. 87-86, Charlotte. 88-88. All the while, Hollis-Jefferson, who started the half on Walker, tried his hand as the small ball five against Willy Hernangomez, a legit seven-footer. The results, naturally, were iffy. Size and muscle aside, the Nets stayed tough thanks to the usual suspects. 92-91. Then 98-94. Slipping away, the Nets need an answer for Walker and quickly. Fueled by Walker’s one-man show — and a 12-0 run all on his lonesome — the Nets appeared like bystanders in their own building. Dinwiddie nailed his sixth three-pointer of the night to cut Charlotte’s lead to just five with three minutes remaining but was struggling to mark Walker on the opposite end.

Kurucs’ gutsy, game-tying three-pointer was immediately canceled out by a questionable foul call on Jeremy Lamb during the next possession — see y’all in the L2M report tomorrow — leaving the Nets to pick up the pieces once again. After Dinwiddie went to the well a little too early, Harris propped himself up in the corner after the offensive rebound. Buckets, blouses, whatever — Harris had the Nets covered again. 104-104 and game on. Following a Monk And-1, Harris answered promptly again, only for Marvin Williams to knock down a Walker kick out. 

Could they make a three-pointer on their fourth consecutive possession? 

Well, yes and no. Given second life on a jump ball, Dinwiddie proceeded to draw a three-pointer with just 6.5 seconds remaining — cash, of course, on every look. Tied at 113 but that woe-is-me-as-a-Nets-supporter Walker buzzer-beater loomed. Annnnnnnnnnd inhale sharply… andstaywithmeherebecauseitisalot.

Walker made his first free throw and then missed his second intentionally, Hornets up one. With Brooklyn out of timeouts, DeMarre Carroll then attempted to heave from half court, only to be fouled by the aforementioned Walker. Ruled as a pass attempt, Carroll got two free throws and promptly made the first. He then missed the second, but the Hornets were called for a clear lane violation. Carroll, sadly, could not make them pay. Overtime. 

Exhale, I guess — but be ready to do this all again in a few minutes.

After both teams traded blows (and some bricks), the Nets led 120-119 with a minute to go. Kurucs dropped a bucket-denying block on future Hall of Famer Tony Parker, but then wildly gave it away on the other end — a rapid-fire cancelation for the ages. Dinwiddie put down a free throw with 22 seconds left to tie things back up but wishing to stop Walker in a late clutch-game situation twice in one game seems like a fool’s errand. 

And yet, they forced the ball out of Walker’s hands, where Parker tossed an ugly leaner off the backboard. The Nets, with 0.6 left on the clock, ran a lob play for Dinwiddie and just barely missed the mark. More drama, of course, because that’s how these things work post-Christmas — just ask Randy Foye.

Dinwiddie started double overtime off by destroying Parker en route to the old-fashioned four-point play, but Lamb quickly countered with a deep three of his own. Every question has its own answer — which sounds like a fake quote from every freshman philosophy class in the country — but one that definitely applies to the madness that embodied this basketball game nevertheless.

Following an always-timely Jared Dudley bomb and a Harris baseline gimme, the Nets suddenly had a six-point lead. Now, for once, instead of chasing, they just had to see a game out. In quick-fire succession, Malik Monk nailed his own three-pointer before Dinwiddie, out of control, missed his own, and Walker answered with an And-1 to tie this mind-blowing affair back up. I mean, you didn’t actually think they’d see this one out that easily, right?

UNTIL JOE HARRIS CAME TO SAVE THE DAY LIKE A POST-CHRISTMAS MIRACLE. 

Joe Harris seals the @BrooklynNets W with the steal and layup! #WeGoHard pic.twitter.com/7DHtExCZ4s

— NBA (@NBA) December 27, 2018

Monk, pounding the life out of the ball, lost control near the arc, only for Harris to scoop up the rock and head coast-to-coast. Laying in the go-ahead bucket with about three seconds remaining, the Hornets attempted to counter their final punch with zero timeouts in their pocket. But with Walker storming upcourt, the 24-second clock from Monk’s malfunctioned previous possession hadn’t reset, thus prompting the incorrect buzzer to ring. After the confusion subsided, the Hornets got a free timeout and one last half-court heave to shock the hearts of the Brooklyn faithful.

And nope — not this time, Satan!

For once, the final bounce of the ball finally went the Nets way.

Embrace that feeling — win or lose, the Brooklyn Nets are here to fight, make big shots, and punch above their weight. The Nets have badly needed another galvanizing, streak-starting win under their belts and this grimy, ugly, clutch win certainly fits the bill.

Let’s do it all again on Friday, yeah?