Tag: Royce O’Neale

Nets’ Royce O’Neale says win over the Boston Celtics was ‘big time’

Royce O’Neale said that beating the Celtics on Friday was a big win for the Brooklyn Nets.

Brooklyn Nets forward Royce O’Neale has had to deal with a good amount of adversity since the NBA trade deadline passed. Not only did he go from being a starter to coming off the bench, he has also had to deal with getting fewer quality shots thanks to the dynamic of the team changing.

However, in Friday’s 115-105 win over the Boston Celtics, O’Neale scored 10 points to help Brooklyn come back from a 28-point deficit to beat the Celtics for the first time this season. He did not shoot particularly well (4-of-11 from the field, 1-of-6 from three-point land), but his impact was felt beyond the box score.

In 34 minutes, O’Neale had a plus/minus of +14 which tied him with Dorian Finney-Smith and Seth Curry for the highest plus/minus on the team. O’Neale grabbed six rebounds, had 3 assists, and played solid defense on Jayson Tatum and Al Horford during the epic comeback. O’Neale reacted to the comeback win after the game:

“It’s big time. I mean, we got a new group, had to find our mojo. Putting a bunch of new guys together, it’s gonna take time, and I think just us building on this and just taking it one game at a time. That’s what we got to do and I think just us believing in each other, staying together.”

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Nets’ Royce O’Neale says ‘getting stops’ led to dominating fourth-quarter against the Warriors

Royce O’Neale credit “getting stops” for Sunday’s comeback win over the Warriors.

Brooklyn Nets forward Royce O’Neale has had big moments throughout this season for Brooklyn. In Sunday’s 120-116 win over the Golden State Warriors, O’Neale had 13 points, including a clutch three with 28.5 seconds left in the game.

While O’Neale will probably never score 30 points for the Nets, he has been crucial for Brooklyn in games like Sunday at Golden State when the Nets were down big and needed someone to step up and be a steady presence on the floor. O’Neale has been one of the team’s best shooters this season and he has been relied upon to provide big defensive stops when the moment calls for it.

On Sunday, O’Neale was needed to provide good defense on Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins (combined to shoot 6-of-26 from the field) and make big shots like the one he made at the end of the game to seal the win. O’Neale spoke postgame about what the Nets did to complete the comeback against the defending champs:

“I think just us being solid. We had a game plan that, we just know how to execute from the beginning all the way to the end. Tough team to play. And, I think us just being locked in on the defensive end, knowing we had to get stops. Being down and on the offensive (end), creating open shots for each other.”

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Nets’ Royce O’Neale says team ‘set the tone’ in decisive win over the Jazz

Royce O’Neale says the Nets “set the tone” in Friday’s win over the Jazz.

Brooklyn Nets forward Royce O’Neale had about as good a homecoming as any player could ask for. He got a tribute video for his five seasons as a member of the Utah Jazz and he played well as he scored 13 points (4-of-9 shooting from the field and 3-of-8 shooting from behind the three-point line) and had six assists in Friday’s 117-106 win over the Jazz.

This was O’Neale’s first visit back to Utah since he was traded to the Nets this past offseason for a 2023 first-round pick. He started off this game strong as he made three three’s in the first quarter. During O’Neale’s time with the Jazz, he was known more as a defender than as a shooter and the Jazz fans respected that about him.

However, in his first season with the Nets, he has had flashes of that elite defense, but he has also shown an ability to shoot the three and pass the ball effectively. O’Neale spoke postgame about Brooklyn was able to win this contest:

“I think just us locking in from the beginning. We set the tone early in the fourth quarter, our rebounding, defense, we turned it up a notch and got easy baskets on the offensive end. And, we just moved the ball.”

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Player grades: Kyrie Irving scores 30 in deceptive 117-112 loss to the Suns

Here are your Nets player grades after Thursday’s loss.

The Brooklyn Nets strolled into the Footprint Center on Thursday to face the Phoenix Suns for the first of two matchups this season and lost 117-112. Phoenix leads the regular-season series 1-0.

For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 30 points and seven assists while Nic Claxton had 20 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks. Joe Harris and Seth Curry had 16 points each.

For the Suns, Mikal Bridges had 28 points and nine assists while Deandre Ayton had 24 points and 14 rebounds. Cameron Johnson had 19 points off the bench after missing two months with his knee injury and Damion Lee had 16 points.

This game was close in the first quarter as neither team played much defense, but the game turned into a blowout between the second and third quarters. Phoenix out-rebounded Brooklyn 49-34 as the Suns absolutely crushed the Nets on the glass. Ben Simmons was ejected in the third quarter after being called out for an illegal screen and was tossed after mouthing off to the ref.

Things turn on its head in the fourth quarter when Irving scored 21 points in the period to bring Brooklyn within single digits. In the end, it was too little too late as the Suns made free-throws to seal the game and escape with a win.

Here are your Nets player grades:

Player grades: TJ Warren scores 19 as depleted Nets lose to Spurs 106-98

Here are your Nets player grades for Tuesday’s loss to the Spurs.

The Brooklyn Nets visited AT&T Center on Tuesday to take on the San Antonio Spurs and lost 106-98. This was the second and final game between the two teams this regular-season and the teams split the series 1-1.

For the Nets, TJ Warren had 19 points and five rebounds off the bench while Seth Curry had 16 points and seven rebounds. Nic Claxton and Cam Thomas had 15 points each.

For the Spurs, Keldon Johnson had 36 points and 11 rebounds while Jeremy Sochan had 16 points and four rebounds. Tre jones had 13 points and Jakob Poeltl had 12.

In a game where Kyrie Irving was a late scratch due to right calf soreness, the Nets had quite the trouble generating good offense. Despite the Spurs having the worst defensive rating in the league, Brooklyn was unable to score on a consistent basis.

Brooklyn got scoring from some unanticipated sources like Thomas, but they did not have an answer for Johnson. Turnovers (21) were an issue as well as it looks like the team doesn’t have much to fall back on without Durant and Irving.

Here are your Nets player grades:

Player grades: Seth Curry scores 23 in Nets’ demoralizing 112-102 loss to the Thunder

Here are your Nets player grades for Sunday’s 112-102 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets welcomed the Oklahoma City Thunder to Barclays Center on Sunday and lost 112-102. This is the first of two meetings between the teams this regular-season. Oklahoma now leads the series 1-0.

For the Nets, Seth Curry had 23 points off the bench and Nic Claxton had 17 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks. Royce O’Neale had 11 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists while Kyrie Irving had 15 points.

For the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 28 points and seven rebounds while Josh Giddey had 28 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists. Lu Dort had 22 points and Isaiah Joe had nine points off the bench.

In almost a repeat of the loss to the Boston Celtics on Thursday, the Nets were competitive for the first three quarters and was up by 10 points at one point. There were too many times where Brooklyn forgot to cover someone, whether at the three-point line or at the rim, and it doomed them in the end.

As has been the case throughout this season, Brooklyn had trouble limiting dribble penetration. Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddey were able to get to the rim at will and even with Claxton having four blocks, the Nets struggled to defend the paint. Nets guard Ben Simmons was a late scratch for this game due to back soreness.

Here are your Nets player grades:

Player grades: Kyrie Irving scores 24 in Nets’ 109-98 loss to the Celtics

Here are your Nets player grades for Thursday’s disappointing loss to the Celtics.

The Brooklyn Nets hosted the Boston Celtics on Thursday for the second matchup between the two teams this season and lost 109-98. Boston now lead the regular-season series 2-0.

For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 24 points and six assists while TJ Warren had 20 points off the bench. Joe Harris had 18 points and Royce O’Neale had 11 points.

For the Celtics, Jayson Tatum had 20 points and 11 rebounds while Marcus Smart had 16 points and 10 assists. Malcolm Brogdon had 16 points off the bench and Derrick White had 15 points.

This game was competitive through the first three quarters. With the absences of Kevin Durant and Jaylen Brown, neither team had as much firepower as typically expected. Brooklyn did a good job of defending Tatum and Irving did not have his most efficient shooting game.

This game turned into a blowout in the fourth quarter as Boston had its offense rolling despite Tatum’s tough shooting night and Brooklyn was unable to keep up without Durant on the court. The Celtics out-rebounded the Nets 48-31 in this game and that lead to a lot of second possessions for Boston that eventually got the best Brooklyn.

Here are your Nets player grades:

Nets’ Royce O’Neale says he was in ‘right place, right time’ for game-winning putback

Royce O’Neale says that he was in the right place at the right time for his game-winning putback.

Brooklyn Nets forward Royce O’Neale did not have a good offensive game in Sunday’s 102-101 win over the Miami Heat. For the game, he finished with eight points on 3-for-11 shooting from the field (27.2%) and 1-of-7 from behind the three-point line (14.2%). However, his last bucket made all of the difference in this game.

With the Nets trailing 101-100, Kyrie Irving shot a three from 30-feet out with about eight seconds left in the game. He missed, but Yuta Watanabe was able to keep the ball alive as it bounced into O’Neale’s break basket just for him to softly float the ball into the net. At that moment, the Heat still had 3.2 seconds left to make something happen, but O’Neale already did his job.

In all, O’Neale finished with six rebounds, six assists, and two blocks as he did everything else to make up from his lack of scoring. O’Neale explained postgame what led to his game-winning putback:

“Nic (Claxton) got the rebound, it was a big time play. We knew Ky (Irving) was going to take the shot. We trust him with that and then, that’s a great opportunity to crash the glass, especially at the time. Yuta (Watanabe) did a great job keeping the ball alive and I was there. Right place, right time.”

Brooklyn’s next game is Thursday as they host the Boston Celtics.

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Player grades: Kyrie Irving scores 29 in nail-biting 102-101 win over the Heat

Here are your Nets player grades for Sunday’s 102-101 win over the Miami Heat.

The Brooklyn Nets take a trip to South Beach on Sunday to battle the Miami Heat and won 102-101. This is the first time that these teams have played each other this season.

For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 29 points and six assists while Kevin Durant had 17 points and four rebounds despite leaving the game in the third quarter with a knee injury. Seth Curry had 14 points off the bench and Nic Claxton had 13.

For the Heat, Jimmy Butler had 26 points and nine rebounds while Tyler Herro had 24 points and four rebounds. Bam Adebayo had 10 points and Haywood Highsmith had 10 points as well.

This was a tightly contested game from the first buzzer to the last. Both teams were not playing much defense in the first half as points in bunches were coming in transition. Brooklyn did a poor job of boxing out as they allowed Miami to finish the game with 16 offensive rebounds.

In the second half, both teams played better defense as the intensity on both ends rose. Each shot became more important as the misses started piling up. Durant left this game in the third quarter after Jimmy Butler fell into his knee on a night that he became the 14th all-time career scorer in NBA history. Royce O’Neale called game on a huge offensive rebound and putback of an Irving miss.

Here are your Nets player grades:

Player grades: Kevin Durant scores 33 in thrilling 108-102 win over the Pelicans

Here are your Nets player grades in this intense win over the Pelicans.

The Brooklyn Nets visited the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Friday and won 108-102. This is the second and final matchup between the two teams this season.

For the Nets, Kevin Durant had 33 points and 10 rebounds while Kyrie Irving had 19 points and five assists. TJ Warren had 15 points and Royce O’Neale had 14.

For the Pelicans, CJ McCollum had 28 points and six assists while Naji Marshall had 23 points and nine rebounds. Jose Alvarado had 17 points off the bench and Jonas Valanciunas had 12.

Brooklyn did not start this game with much energy. Even though they were down only one point at the end of the first quarter, one could see that the Nets were going through the motions to begin this game. Brooklyn wasn’t getting many offensive rebounds and it led to the Pelicans getting out in transition and scoring points in bunches.

In the second half, the Nets began to match the intensity of the Pelicans. Despite New Orleans missing Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, they fought hard and actually didn’t do much wrong in this game. Durant and Irving struggled from the field, but in the end, they made the shots necessary to pull out this win.

Here are your Nets player grades: