Luck hasn’t exactly been on the Brooklyn Nets’ side since Christmas.
Up until the New York Knicks visited Barclays Center on December 26, the Nets had done just fine while Kyrie Irving (right shoulder impingement) and Caris LeVert (right thumb surgery) tending to their injuries. But the loss to the Knicks — in which Brooklyn had a horrendous shooting performance — is something the Nets have yet to fully recover from. Sure, they’ve played better, but they’re heading into Monday’s game against the Orlando Magic while in the midst of a five-game losing streak.
Meanwhile, injuries continue to plague this team. Then, on Saturday, Irving spoke to the press for the first time since mid-November, and his status for the season is very much up in the air.
It seems like things are starting to unravel for the Nets.
Following Saturday’s loss, Kenny Atkinson offered up why that won’t be the case with this group:
When I first started this job, I think we had 20 wins and [were] the worst team in the league, so I’ve been through the losing streaks. It’s just part of this league. It happens, but this will test us, test our character. I told the guys in the locker room, this happens during the NBA [season] and we’ll get it back. We’ll get it back down the road where we win five outta six, or win six in a row. I have enough confidence in the team. We gotta stick with our habits and our principles and trust what we do and we’ll get outta this.
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