The Brooklyn Nets head coach didn't mince words about this take regarding the performance of the defense.
Jordi Fernandez labeled Wednesday as a night that won't cut it in the NBA -- especially for the Brooklyn Nets.
This season witnessed one letdown after another for the franchise. But this time Brooklyn fell 115-110 to the Indiana Pacers that are in a similar predicament as the Nets.
Indiana is another positioned to land near the top of the NBA Draft Lottery standings -- yet landing the No. 1 pick teams that selection with a healthier Tyrese Haliburton for next season.
But on the side of Brooklyn, the Nets had an opportunity to win three in a row. Fernandez didn't mince words about the defensive performance on the evening when speaking via the YES Network.
"A lot of the things that we did well, we stopped doing well," Fernandez said at the podium. "Only one quarter of defense doesn't help in the NBA."
Multiple defensive breakdowns manifested for the Nets. Brooklyn even got off to a fast start -- leading 31-18 and bottling Indiana to 36% from field goal range (18% from three-point land).
But it all unraveled after halftime as Fernandez pointed out.
"Then in the second half, 13 second chance points and nine fast break points. Only in the third quarter, 11 turnovers and it wasn't just one player. It was many players," Fernandez said.
The head coach viewed as self-inflicted wounds that covered the Nets.
"A lot of the things that we can control and be responsible for, we were not good enough and that's why we lost the game," Fernandez said. "Not happy with what happened. We have higher standards than that."
He even fired off a message as the night snowballed for Brooklyn.
"I told the guys 'When given the opportunity, you have to go out there and play as hard as you can, plus put your mind into it.' Obviously losing three out of four quarters will get you to lose in the NBA," he said.
Overall, he wasn't pleased with the "careless" night the Nets delivered. He also knows where everything starts if the team wants to improve.
"Starting with me, we all have to be better," he said. "And I believe we will."
But he'll need to re-tweak the defensive philosophy moving forward. That's going to include addressing the second unit that came in for the starters.
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