Brooklyn looks even more thinner than ever with a new notable injury before facing Portland.
This season continues to be a curse and blessing for the Brooklyn Nets.
In that particular order to before facing the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
The former is Brooklyn's record, the injury pileup and the youth movement that needed to take place. Yet the latter represents a painted future of what's to come moving ahead. More so on the development of the young players and adding, quite possibly, the No. 1 overall pick come June.
Brooklyn's loss to Sacramento Sunday continued to increase the Nets' chances of claiming the top pick of the NBA Draft. Erik Slater of ClutchPoints now says Brooklyn's odds of landing at No. 1 are 93% likely ahead of the lottery.
It could go even higher inside the Moda Center with Portland now on the same court.
The Trail Blazers are the 14.5-point favorite to win this one per FanDuel Sportsbook. They could cover too considering how the last meeting between both teams went.
Portland made quick work out of Brooklyn in winning 114-95 inside Barclays Center. But that game brought out a historical component on the Israeli side: Three different players of Israel ethnicity in Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf and Deni Avdija all played on the same floor...drawing fan interest in Israel.
Saraf has since continued his improvement on the floor, which he shared to Slater following the 126-122 loss to Sacramento on Sunday.
“I felt like I was able to finish at the rim. I mean, they didn't have a crazy shot-blocker, so I was able to get the go to go all the way [to the basket]," Saraf said.
Looks like Brooklyn needs a heavier dose of Saraf, though, for a good reason.
Danny Wolf went down hard early in the loss to Sacramento with a twisted ankle. He's not listed as probable to play either and head coach Jordi Fernandez may consider resting him.
He's already rested fellow rookie Egor Demin for the rest of the season. Michael Porter Jr.'s season is also at stake as he nurses his ankle ailment.
All signs are indicating this will be a one-sided loss just like the March 16 meeting with both teams. The YES Network will provide the action of Nets vs. Blazers.
Join our ROUNDTABLE community! It's free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!