BOSTON — The Nets’ starting lineup has been decimated. But Friday was the first time it got dominated.
Playing without three injured starters, Brooklyn suffered a 121-107 loss to Boston before 19,156 at TD Garden that was even more lopsided than the score would indicate.
Despite getting Cam Johnson back, the Nets were double-digit underdogs missing Ben Simmons, Nic Claxton and leading scorer Cam Thomas.
They played hard, but were outsized and outmanned.
And in the end, outplayed.
The Nets were outscored a staggering 29-5 on second-chance points, trailed by as much as 24 points, and never challenged in this In-Season Tournament rout.
“They made the first punch in the first quarter, first few minutes of the game,” said Lonnie Walker IV, who led the Nets with 20 points. “They got a lot of offensive rebounds to start and throughout the game, so that really affected our game.”
Jayson Tatum had 23 points, Jaylen Brown a game-high 28.
But Brooklyn (4-5) got hammered on the offensive glass, 17-9, even letting diminutive Payton Pritchard grab four offensive rebounds, his most since Nov. 11, 2022.
“Yeah, it was a lot,” Walker admitted of the second-chance points. “They even had Pritchard getting like four or five offensive rebounds. That’s kind of unacceptable.”
Playing without Simmons, the Nets lacked the frenetic fast break they would have needed to have any chance.
Behind Walker, backups Dennis Smith Jr. and Trendon Watford were the next-highest scoring Nets with 14 points apiece.
“It’s a realization from our guys. Half-court offense for us is difficult, at the end of the day,” coach Jacque Vaughn said.
“[We’ve] just got to be better rebounding on both ends, just boxing out and going and get some on offense, too,” said Mikal Bridges, who suffered through an off night with 12 points on 4-for-11 shooting.
Johnson had 11 points and five rebounds, but shot 4 of 13 in his first game back since suffering a left calf strain on opening night.
“We’re all trying to find out and play off each other,” Johnson said. “I take a lot of personal responsibility for this one. Just miscues and out of position and not taking advantage of opportunities I know I can. So that falls on my shoulders a lot.
“They hit some shots, got going, got some offensive rebounds. It’s just a moment in the game where we have to take it to them, be the aggressors, especially when we start closing that gap. That’s how it goes sometimes.”
Brooklyn fell to 1-1 in East Group C of the In-Season Tournament.
The Nets starters got outscored 84-47 by Boston’s.
The Nets went 1-for-9 with three turnovers during a second-quarter drought, and lost contact. Brooklyn had lost by a combined 20 in their other defeats, but they trailed by 24 points on Friday to the Celtics, favorites to win the NBA championship.
Down just 38-35 with 9:42 left in the half, Brooklyn gave up a 10-3 run.
Brown’s foul shot capped the run and made it 48-38 midway through the second quarter.
By the time Johnson broke the drought with a 3-pointer, the Nets had shot 1 of 7 with a turnover to fall behind by double-digits.
Brown’s layup made it 66-49 with 1:34 left in the second quarter, and his jumper padded it to 81-63 with 4:47 left in the third.
It reached 116-92 with four minutes left on Pritchard’s layup.
The fourth was garbage time, Spencer Dinwiddie not playing at all with Bridges logging just 2:21.
Harry Giles III made his return to the court with seven points on 3-for-3 shooting in nearly six minutes of playing time.
“Man, feels great,” Giles said. “I felt good getting up and down, my first run as a Brooklyn Net this season, it felt good and I’m thankful.”
It marked Giles’ first NBA action since a two-minute cameo for Portland in May 2021.
“I love his story,” Vaughn said.
“It’s a beautiful thing to see. I know he feels very blessed for the opportunity and has been ready,” Walker said. “Let’s not forget he was the No. 1 player in the country. That mofo got game. It’s only a matter of time before he can earn more minutes and show his talents.”
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