The Brooklyn Nets watched the Milwaukee Bucks receive their championship rings on Tuesday night, and then fell to the reigning champs in the season-opener, 127-104.
The Bucks jumped to a commanding 19-point lead in the first half, and while the Nets made several runs to cut the deficit throughout the game, Milwaukee never surrendered the lead.
The Nets were without Kyrie Irving, who will be missing indefinitely until he changes his stance on vaccination, and some fans are already worried the Nets might not be the favorites in the East if Brooklyn doesn’t have the full Big 3 in place.
Many fans were also surprised to see Bruce Brown ride the bench for essentially the entire game, only checking in late in the fourth with the game out of hand.
See: Brooklyn Nets player grades for opening night
Here’s what fans and analysts were saying on Tuesday night.