Minott exploded for a career-high, fueling Brooklyn's fight. Meanwhile, Atlanta's Jalen Johnson dominated, securing the Hawks' eighth straight victory.
The Brooklyn Nets' record dropped to 17-49 after suffering defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night 108-97.
Brooklyn was crushed on the boards 51-39 in the team's first game since the announcement of Day'Ron Sharpe's season-ending UCL tear.
17 offensive rebounds were surrendered to Atlanta, with Zaccharie Risacher's 7 leading the way.
From the outset, the Nets' mission for the game became perfectly clear -- Give the two-way guys some burn.
E.J. Liddell, Chaney Johnson and Tyson Etienne logged a combined 51 minutes of burn, and all three showed flashes of effectiveness on both sides of the ball.
However, Josh Minott was Brooklyn's standout performer in his 24 minutes. The ex-Boston Celtics wing notched a career-high 24 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 8-for-10 from the free throw line.
Minott struggled mightily from deep in his first 6 games with the squad (21.4%), but his 4-for-7 night from three-point range against Atlanta could spark a shot-making revival.
His outside shot-making was a welcome sign. Athleticism is the name of the game for the 6-foot-8 combo-forward, though he's drained a career-high 40.7% of his looks from long-range through 39 appearances with both Boston and Brooklyn this season.
Atlanta's first-time All-Star Jalen Johnson was in full command, filling up the box score with 21 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals. His ability to get hands in passing lanes and turn fastbreak opportunities into easy buckets was paramount to the Hawks' success. They'd win the points-off-turnovers battle 29-13.
The severely short-handed Nets fought hard to keep up with the Hawks' mix of shooting talent and athleticism, but their 20 giveaways ultimately told the story of the night.
The Hawks' latest hard-earned victory is their 8th straight, as they continue to fight for a guaranteed postseason berth.
Other than Minott, Noah Clowney and Johnson were the only Nets to shoot at least 50% from distance (2-for-4, 1-for-2), but the rest of the team failed to find their groove.
Outside of both Minott and Clowney, Brooklyn connected on just 5 of their 22 three-point looks (22.7%). Drake Powell clanked 5 of his 6 attempts, and Danny Wolf missed the mark 4 times in 5 attempts.
Powell struggled heavily from a scoring perspective overall with a 4-for-13 night from the field for 11 points. His possessions against Atlanta's two-way guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker were a disaster to watch unfold.
Brooklyn will now try to avoid picking up their 50th loss of the season in enemy territory against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday night.
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