Brooklyn led then hung with the Atlanta Hawks until a massive fourth quarter meltdown on Sunday.
The Brooklyn Nets endured one of the most one-sided final eight minutes in recent memory. This one occurring down in Atlanta.
Once leading 102-91 in the fourth quarter, the Hawks outscored the Nets 24-2 the rest of the way -- engineering their 115-104 comeback win on Sunday.
Even Nets insider for ClutchPoints Erik Slater has never seen anything like this eight-minute sequence.
"One of the most lopsided collapses I've seen covering the team," Slater posted on the social media website X, formerly known as Twitter.
The two-point output comes following Brooklyn scoring just 10 second quarter points against the Oklahoma City Thunder -- with that mark becoming a new season-low.
This defeat, though, in a way improved Brooklyn's projected draft spot come May 10 when the league conducts its lottery pick order.
"The Nets remain in sole possession of third place in the lottery standings. They're one loss behind the [Indiana] Pacers for second," Slater added.
Still though, the collapse weighed heavy on head coach Jordi Fernandez -- as his team continues to struggle with closing out games this season.
"This is tough because wins in the NBA matter. You have to play to compete and play to win," Fernandez said via Slater.
What happened that sparked the final struggles inside State Farm Arena?
The Nets went cold from field goal range -- missing 11 of their final 12 attempts there. Brooklyn even went blank behind the arc, going 0-for-10 with its three-point shot selections.
Fernandez especially saw one of his top fast-rising performers Nolan Traore struggle late. Except the head coach saw Sunday as a new learning experience for the rookie.
"You go through the experience, and you learn," Fernandez stated. "Some of the rushed shots and turnovers…You gotta learn how to be composed."
He added: "You gotta learn how to put everybody in [the right] place and take good shots. We just didn’t. So next game it is.”
Atlanta outscored Brooklyn 26-17 in the final period. But again, as astonishing 24 came during those final eight minutes of the game.
Turnovers emerged as another issue too -- even for leading scorer Michael Porter Jr. who lost the ball four times. Brooklyn as a team lost the basketball 13 times.
Six different Nets players reached double figures -- with Porter leading at 18. Nic Claxton scored 15 in his return from a lower leg injury. Egor Demin finished with 13 points. Noah Clowney scored 12 while Traore added 11 among the starting crew.
Day'Ron Sharpe scored 11 points off the bench for Brooklyn. The Nets have now lost four straight.
Join the Community! Don't miss out on our NETS ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news! It's completely 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