Noah Clowney’s emergence so far this year has been one of the brightest moments in what is sure to be a tough campaign for the tanking Nets.
But while he scored a season-high 22 points in Sunday’s loss to Toronto, he missed an ill-advised three-point play in the closing minutes of what will surely be a hard-earned lesson.
As fans fixate on the Nets’ attempt to develop a record five rookies in the first round, the emergence of the 21-year-old Clowney is a promising sign.
After struggling to start the season after coming off the bench for the first six games — averaging just 4.3 points on 23.3 percent shooting and 18.2 percent from 3-point range — the forward has done well since entering the lineup.
Clowney averages 15.1 points as a starter. He is riding a career-best six-game streak, scoring at least 12, averaging 16 points and 1.5 blocks, on 45.9 percent shooting and 35.7 percent from deep.
Last season, Clowney’s Achilles heel was his driving force, hurt by both a lack of size and decision-making. The third-year pro has been a force so far this season, evidenced by a strong drive and dunk over Seton Hall graduate Sandro Mamukelashvili.
But with the score at 98-98 and the Nets still looking for their first lead of the night, Clowney forced a 3-pointer and gave it a bad airball. Mamukelashvili rebounded, and the Raptors continued on the ensuing possession.
The Nets never took the lead.
Tyrese Martin led all players with a season-high 26 points off the bench, shooting 5-of-9 from deep and a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe. It is the second-highest scoring game of Martin’s career and the most scored game by a Nets reserve this season.
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points on 4-for-9 shooting from behind the arc, with six rebounds and four assists.
It extended his career-long streak of 20 points to nine, tying Cam Thomas and Mikal Bridges for the longest tie with a Net since Kevin Durant had 14 in a row from Dec. 4, 2022, to Jan. 6, 2023.
Nic Claxton (10 points, 11 boards) recorded his 80th career double-double, tying him with Keith Van Horn for ninth-most in franchise history. His two blocks give him 556 in his career, three of which are unable to hold Derrick Coleman (559) in fifth place with a net.
Coming off the best game of his career, Friday’s win in Boston, rookie Egor Dëmin was 2-for-10 with a bad miss late.
The Nets played without Thomas, Ben Saraf, Nolan Traore and Danny Wolf.
Jakob Poeltl (back) was out for Toronto, while RJ Barrett left the game in the third quarter with a knee injury.
The Nets host the Knicks, who they have not beaten since January 2023, on Monday.
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