With the NBA going on hiatus — which NBA commissioner Adam Silver set as at least 30 days on Thursday — and New York’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, placing a ban on gatherings of more than 500 people for the foreseeable future due to the coronavirus outbreak in the United States, no Brooklyn Nets games will be played for the time being.
For the Nets, as much as any team, this comes at an odd time — Brooklyn was battling the Orlando Magic for the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference standings. At the stoppage of play, the Nets had a half-game advantage over the Magic.
Since there aren’t any games, each day Nets Wire will highlight major individual performances and key developments throughout Nets history:
Shawn Bradley wore a Nets jersey in 107 of the 832 NBA games he played in, but he never spent a full season in New Jersey. The center joined the team in the middle of 1995-96 and was shipped to Dallas mid-1996-97.
But the big man had some of his best days while with the Nets, including New Jersey’s game against the Washington Bullets on March 14, 1996 (full box score).
Now, the Nets lost 100-92 at home, but Bradley found a way to entertain fans.
After blocking 10 shots for the first time in his NBA career two nights before, Bradley blocked 11 of Washington’s shots. In the process, he logged his first career triple-double, finishing with 19 points and 17 rebounds (nine offensive).
Armen Gilliam led the Nets with 20 points in the loss, and he also grabbed 13 boards. P.J. Brown finished one rebound shy of a double-double, scoring 17 points. Vern Fleming scores 14 points off the bench.
For the Bullets, second-year big man Juwan Howard led all scorers with 25 points. The 1996 All-Star — the only year he received the honor — also had nine rebounds. Washington rookie Rasheed Wallace scored 11 points.