Brooklyn Nets' Schedule Breakdown and Record Predictions for January
It's a busy month for the Brooklyn Nets. Sixteen games in 28 days is no easy task for any NBA team, but that's what the Nets have as they enter January.
Like most of America, the Nets get New Year's Day off but begin their treacherous stretch Jan. 2 against the Orlando Magic, finally ending it Jan. 30 when they come home for the Toronto Raptors.
Nine of Brooklyn's 16 January games come against teams currently over .500, so the caliber of play isn't exactly preferable for the 15-16 Nets, who are coming off a win over arguably the best team in the Eastern Conference, the Chicago Bulls.
Brooklyn, who's won five of six, is on a roll. It's time to find out if that can carry into 2015.
Week of Jan. 5: So Many Games
1 of 5
Home: Dallas Mavericks (Jan. 5), Boston Celtics (Jan. 7), Philadelphia 76ers (Jan. 9)
Away: Orlando Magic (Jan. 2), Miami Heat (Jan. 4), Detroit Pistons (Jan. 10)
Predicted Record: 4-2
No, the Nets don't have six games in one week, but we are condensing the first week-and-a-half of the month into one slide-sized week since the New Year so inconveniently starts on a Thursday.
They may not have six games in a week, but the Nets do have six in only eight days, a period over which they have two back-to-backs. Ouch.
Brooklyn starts out this stretch in Florida, playing the first of two games against Orlando, which should be a win considering the talent disparity. The Miami game, meanwhile, gives the Nets an opportunity to exact revenge on the Heat for not one but two losses earlier in the season.
Brooklyn then comes home for the second night of a back-to-back against the Mavs, a presumed loss, but it should be able to follow up the inevitability of dropping that one nicely with two potential wins at home against Boston and Philly.
Those two home games against the Celtics and 76ers could make or break the Nets' week...even month. And no, that's not overly dramatic. Brooklyn must win those two.
The schedule gets harder and harder as the month continues. In a particularly difficult stretch, one which the Nets could easily finish below .500, Brooklyn has the win the gimmes. Philadelphia and Boston are as close to that as possible.
Detroit, meanwhile, isn't particularly talented but has been playing better since its loss in Brooklyn a couple weeks ago. And the fact that the Nets will be playing on a second consecutive night means they could fall to a worse team that evening.
Week of Jan. 12: Wizards Week
2 of 5
Home: Houston Rockets (Jan. 12), Memphis Grizzlies (Jan. 14), Washington Wizards (Jan. 17)
Away: Washington Wizards (Jan. 16)
Predicted Record: 1-3
The schedule doesn't get much better during the week of Jan. 12, when the Nets have four games on the slate.
They start off at home against the Rockets, which sounds like a loss. Houston has the arguable MVP in James Harden, a defense that can thwart the Jarrett Jack-Mason Plumlee pick-and-roll and a center who can slow Brook Lopez from potentially getting hot and winning a game with his offense.
The Grizzlies then come to town. Marc Gasol, Mike Conley and the rest of the Grizz probably yield a similar result to the Houston game. The weekend calls for one of those weird back-to-backs when the Nets play Washington on the road and then come back to Brooklyn to play it at home the following day.
The Houston and Memphis games are a pair of legitimate tests for the Nets big men, who are stuck in a bit of a jumble entering January. Maybe in a couple weeks, the rotation can be worked a little cleaner.
For now, Kevin Garnett and Plumlee start with Lopez coming off the bench. Back-to-back games against arguably the two best centers in the NBA, Dwight Howard and Marc Gasol, could prove as a nice litmus test for Lionel Hollins, mixing and matching his power forward/center combinations.
This week could easily be the start of a four-game losing streak, but let's say the Nets win the home end of the back-to-back with the Wizards since they'll have Washington's tendencies fresh on their mind, and fatigue could set in for John Wall and Co.
Week of Jan. 19: The West Coast Week
3 of 5
Home: N/A
Away: Sacramento Kings (Jan. 21), Los Angeles Clippers (Jan. 22), Utah Jazz (Jan. 24)
Predicted Record: 1-2
West Coast road trips are never easy, even if the competition isn't full with the elite of the Western Conference.
The Nets do get some time off at this point, with four days between the second Wizards game and their trip to Sacramento, but travel does get rough around this period. The biggest guarantee over this stretch seems like a loss to the Clippers, and though Brooklyn is better than Sacramento and Utah, no West Coast swing contains for-sure wins.
That said, both the Kings and Jazz possess defensive weaknesses the Nets are capable of exploiting. Sacramento has been dreadful defensively since Tyrone Corbin took over as head coach in mid-December. That likely won't change, considering Corbin earned the reputation of checkers-level defensive schemer during his four years coaching the Jazz.
The Kings' defensive effort has been lackluster and their pick-and-roll defense has been subpar, especially when the opposition gets Darren Collison on those stretches when he continually runs dead into screens.
Jarrett Jack and Plumlee have found offensive success in the starting lineup mostly in the pick-and-roll, considering Plumlee is capable of getting to the hoop and dunking from most angles—usually from a reverse one. This is an area in which Utah struggles, as well, especially if you can get Trey Burke defending the ball with Enes Kanter guarding the screener.
Let's say the Nets go 1-2 this week, earning a victory in one of the two non-Clippers games.
Week of Jan. 26: Well, This Is Hard
4 of 5
Home: Portland Trail Blazers (Jan. 26), Toronto Raptors (Jan. 30)
Away: Atlanta Hawks (Jan. 28)
Predicted Record: 0-3
There's really no way to justify predicting a win during the week of the 26th.
The Blazers game is at home, but Portland's record currently sits at 26-7, second best in the NBA.
The 23-8 Hawks are a dominant home team, running out a 14-3 record at their place.
Meanwhile, the Raptors have been atop the Eastern Conference all season and don't plan on falling any time soon. Unless there are some injuries to these opposing teams over the next few weeks, it's hard to imagine any of these games ending in a Nets victory.
Brooklyn's best off-chance at a win comes against either Portland or Toronto, since both are at home.
The Raptors could be reacquainting with their offense, as they expect DeMar DeRozan back some time slightly before this. DeRozan is one of the better wings in the NBA, but he's also a dribble-heavy perimeter player who is going to grab some ball-handling duties back from Kyle Lowry, who has been so dominant in his absence.
Still, 0-3 seems like the most likely scenario for this week, by far.
Final Thoughts
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The predictions unfortunately have the Nets going 6-10 during January, which would make the team 21-26 heading into the second month of the year.
The good news, though, is that the February schedule is far gentler to Brooklyn than is January's. The Nets only have six over-.500 teams on the slate for the month of February and play just 11 games during that period.
A kinder schedule could send them on a run, and considering how this team has caught fire during the second half of the season for the past two years, it wouldn't be crazy to see it happen for a third.
Fred Katz averaged almost one point per game in fifth grade but maintains that his per-36-minute numbers were astonishing. Find more of his work at WashingtonPost.com or on ESPN's TrueHoop Network at ClipperBlog.com. Follow him on Twitter at @FredKatz.
All statistics current as of Jan. 1.
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