Brooklyn Nets

And just like that, we're back. The Brooklyn Nets tip off the 2022-23 regular season on Wednesday night against (the return of...) Zion Williamson and his ...

The game is also a chance for the Pelicans to get a look at their young “Big Three” of Williamson, Brandon Ingram and C.J. It will be their first game together just as it will be for KD, Kyrie and Ben10. For the Pelicans, it’s big game for the most obvious reason: Zion Williamson is back after missing all of last season. Then again, he is still only 22 and that combination of athleticism and raw power is exhausting for opposing teams. Zion will look to bounce back from what was a lost season due to injury and return to his MVP-caliber form. The optimism tank is full, my friends!

Brooklyn Nets vs New Orleans Pelicans: Here is all you need to know before the NBA 2022/23 opening night game.

The game will be streamed LIVE on Voot. Durant ended up staying, and the roster was boosted with Ben Simmons returning fit. The franchise was then jolted by reports claiming that Kevin Durant had asked the front office to trade him out.

This will be the first time since the 2021 NBA Playoffs that Ben Simmons has played in a game (not counting the preseason). He joins Kyrie Irving and Kevin ...

The Celtics went on to make the NBA Finals, but the Nets not winning a playoff game was a massive surprise. This will be the first time since the 2021 NBA Playoffs that Ben Simmons has played in a game (not counting the preseason). On Wednesday evening, the Brooklyn Nets are hosting the New Orleans Pelicans at Barclays Center in New York to tip off their new season.

3. Kyrie Irving joins the 50/40/90 club for the second time. Through Irving's controversial vaccine stance and holdout last season, many forget he became the ...

Warren](https://clutchpoints.com/the-under-the-radar-signing-that-could-put-nets-over-the-top-in-2022-23/). Several players have hinted that Durant’s trade request [forced much-needed conversations](https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-kyrie-irving-reveals-why-kevin-durant-trade-demand-was-actually-a-good-thing/) this summer. [top-five player](https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-brooklyn-biggest-mystery-kevin-durant-earns-impressive-honor-nba-gm-survey/) when healthy. Despite a tumultuous offseason, the [vibes were different](https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-brooklyn-vibes-have-been-straight-but-kevin-durant-sends-challenge-to-teammates-for-2022-23-season/) in Brooklyn during training camp. [longer and more athletic](https://clutchpoints.com/the-key-nets-offseason-moves-that-address-top-weakness-from-celtics-sweep/) team this season. [best basketball situation](https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-its-philly-on-steroids-ben-simmons-confident-heading-into-first-season-brooklyn/) of his career in Brooklyn alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. [The sharpshooters](https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-kevin-durant-brooklyn-will-be-without-2-key-role-players-to-start-season/) are both recovering from ankle surgery and represent crucial pieces of Brooklyn’s offense. [Igor Kokoskov’s](https://clutchpoints.com/steve-nash-gets-brutally-honest-on-nets-major-offensive-shift-after-key-coaching-change/) offensive influence, should lead to an increase in high-quality looks. As for rebounds, the Aussie should find himself near the rim more than he was in Philadelphia alongside Durant and Irving. Simmons averaged 2.7 assists in transition per game during his last season, the second-most in the league. Simmons should average over 10 points on putbacks, rolls to the rim and transition opportunities alone. The 26-year-old’s physicality should increase as he re-acclimates to the game following offseason back surgery.

The Brooklyn Nets season debut for Ben Simmons is finally here and he can't wait to be on the hardwood for it.

For the next 30 minutes, I'm going to go home and take a nap." "I take the opportunity when it comes to guarding the best players in the world. "For me, I'm looking forward to playing this game. "Slowly getting back to who I am and who I'm supposed to be. I think everybody has it in them and wants to do their job defensively." I think I definitely want to come out here and set the tone. Over time, I'm going to get there." Looking ahead to the season opener against the Pelicans, Simmons is embracing the challenge of guarding the best offensive player on the opposing team. We got a great group of guys here ready to roll." "Looking forward to getting out there and playing in the official start of the season. This is what I do so I love to do it and can't imagine doing anything else. I can't wait to get out there.

The Brooklyn Nets opened the 2022-23 season with a disastrous 130-108 home loss to Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday.

Kevin Durant (25 PTS) is the only Nets player to score in double figures. The Pels jumped out to a 32-14 lead after one quarter. His three gives him 21, but puts the Pelicans up 25 points with an 87-62 lead at the 4:09 mark of the 3rd quarter.

Ben Simmons was back playing an NBA game for the first time in a year-and-a-half - but it was a nightmare showing for both the Aussie and his Brooklyn team.

Cancel anytime.

Simmons last played in an NBA game in June 2021 when he was on the Philadelphia 76ers and they lost to the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

"I think I definitely want to come out here and set the tone. "There's not many guys who can do that," Simmons said of being a defensive trendsetter. So I got to be the motor." After so much time away from the game, Simmons appears to have a new lease on his basketball life. He requested a trade later that summer, citing mental health concerns, and was ultimately dealt to the Nets just before last February's trade deadline. We got a great group of guys here, and we're ready to roll."

Things did not go as planned. The Brooklyn Nets got walloped in the season opener, 130-108, by the New Orleans Pelicans despite Kevin Durant's 32 points on ...

We’re here to support him, we’re here to push him, coach him up, and try to get him to a place where he can play at the level he’s played in the past. “I mean, I think that you see those glimpses throughout the preseason, but now putting it together, really getting his legs under him, his rhythm, and then assimilating to a new group—there’s a lot on his plate. He faked the pass to Kevin Durant, drove to the cup when the defense shifted over toward the Nets’ star, and then had himself another awesome finish through contact to complete the play. Brooklyn got things back on track in the second quarter, beginning with an excellent pass from Ben Simmons to Nic Claxton in the short roll and a corner three from Markieff Morris. Fortunately, the Nets finished the quarter strong when Nic Claxton—the only antidote to the unstoppable force that was Zion Williamson—used his impressive 7’2” wingspan to pin Zion’s layup to the glass, leading to a Kevin Durant three on the other end. A 22-point blowout loss and a 0-1 start to the season with a tough opponent, the Toronto Raptors, headed to Brooklyn on Friday. That’s a part of just being competitive, being aware, and understanding what our weaknesses are and trying to combat them from the start.” Then, three straight steals by Royce O’Neale shrunk that deficit to just 12, and the Pellies were forced to call timeout. In typical Nets fashion, the onslaught began with a slow start, as the Nets missed their first three shots. I think there’s a lot of jitters out there early on, but it was good to get out of the way.” Rebounding was Brooklyn’s Achilles heel on Wednesday, with the Pelicans out-boarding the Nets 61-39. “I talked about the other day, just us being tested and us being challenged,” said Kyrie Irving after the loss.

The Brooklyn Nets fell to the New Orleans Pelicans on opening night.

For Kyrie Irving, he wants to see his teammate Ben Simmons on the floor as much as possible. Having traded James Harden for Simmons, the Nets truly feel as if he can be a key piece alongside Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. It was a rough Brooklyn Nets debut for Ben Simmons, who fouled out in just 23 minutes.

Ben Simmons was excited to play in his first NBA game after over a year, but that excitement came with a price.

"I think you see those glimpses throughout the preseason, but now putting it together, really getting his legs under him, his rhythm and assimilating to a new group. We’re here to push him, coach him up and try to get him to a place where he can play at the level he’s played at in the past. Nash attributes the foul trouble in back-to-back games to his new star being "rusty." You know, we told him in the locker room: he is a valuable piece for us and we need him out there, and fouling out is not an option," Irving said. "You know, playing aggressive is something that we want him to do, but we also want to play smart, and we can hold each other accountable like that in that locker room, which I'm glad for. There were a few times where we lost games just last year and I could just feel our spirit just down, and when we lose games, obviously, there are things that we wanna correct, but we don't want to lose this way, which is beating ourselves up and not doing the things that you know that the game deserves." Beyond his glimmering excitement, did the speed and lack of being accustomed to a regular season game also play a factor to getting into foul trouble? It's the first game and you obviously want to win but we know the reasons we lost. In the season opener, he was limited to 23 minutes and ended his night with a quiet four points, five boards, five assists, and four turnovers. There are multiple reasons we lost and those are the things we need to fix. "It's also just reading who I'm guarding, where to be; it's a faster game. "I gotta tone it down," said Simmons after the Nets' 130-108 loss to the Pelicans at Barclays Center Wednesday night.

Looking spry and explosive, Zion Williamson returned from an 18-month absence with 25 points and 9 rebounds.

Unrestricted free agency awaits Kyrie next summer; in the meantime, Irving has that much time to put opening night in the rearview and prove that it was a fluke. And while Durant, Irving and Simmons are all in uniform, the Nets can’t be accurately judged one way or another until Seth Curry and Joe Harris return to the rotation. Therefore, he comes into 2022-23 with plenty of incentive to (a) put aside his quirks, especially if they interfere with his play or threaten the team’s success, and (b) deliver a star-quality season. Question: When was the last time the Nets were at full strength since Durant and Irving teamed up in the summer of 2019? It’s the first of 82, and the Nets have clearly stated a desire to remain patient with Simmons … Kyrie shot just 6-for-19, missed all six of his 3-pointers, and when the Nets needed a second option, he couldn’t fulfill the role. The good news for the Nets is Kyrie is actually eligible to play at home, which wasn’t always the case last season because of his vaccination status. The success and failure of the Pelicans this season, therefore, will rest with what they can muster defensively. The force and rim-attacking and gentle touch around the basket all resurfaced and rekindled the image of Zion as a dominant player, which he was during most of the 85 games played in his short and injury-interrupted career. That said, the level of disappointment needs to be placed in the proper context: It wasn’t anything like his playoff game finish in Philly two years ago when he bypassed a layup over the Hawks’ Trae Young, and there won’t be any dreadful fallout from this game. He also showed a very solid cohesion with Brandon Ingram and the two Pelicans had a 1-2 inside-outside punch all night, with Ingram dropping 28 points. And yet, Simmons in Brooklyn looked suspiciously like the last time we saw Simmons in Philly.

Ben Simmons's return to the NBA scene was made much harder by having to defend New Orleans star Zion Williamson, who powered past the Australian All Star ...

[Simmons missed all of last season with Philadelphia due to back and mental health issues](/news/2022-05-05/ben-simmons-to-go-in-for-back-surgery/101040296), ensuring all eyes were on the three-time All Star's first regular-season minutes since [an unceremonious exit from the 76ers](/news/2022-02-11/ben-simmons-nba-trade-deadline-where-do-we-go-from-here/100815560). Simmons fouled out early in the fourth quarter with four points, five assists and five rebounds, and the team was outscored by 26 points in his 23 minutes on court as the Nets were well beaten 130-108 by the Pelicans. Australian star Ben Simmons has had a rough night out in his return to the NBA, scoring just four points and fouling out of the Brooklyn Nets' season-opening loss to New Orleans.

It became obvious well before the final buzzer on opening night of the Brooklyn Nets' season that Ben Simmons' struggles won't have a quick fix, despite the ...

But even he couldn’t fix the problems that beset the Nets last season, and that continue to be an issue after just the first game of a whole new 82-game campaign. Then, in transition, they’re constantly beaten down the floor, leading to uncontested opposition dunks or lay-ups. On Thursday, it was plain to see why – the roster’s biggest deficiencies from last season hadn’t been addressed. The Nets’ lack of size and strength down low means they’re constantly bullied by opposition bigs in the paint, particularly when it comes to not securing rebounds and giving up second-chance points, but perhaps even more troubling is how the ball seemed to stick in the hands of Irving and Durant in a stagnating offence. Just how could coach Steve Nash get the group singing from the same hymn book after an off-season in which Durant reportedly made an ultimatum – to be traded, or have Nash and New Zealand-born GM Sean Marks fired? Williamson returned from his own one-year absence through injury with 25 points and nine rebounds, powering the Pelicans to their commanding win.