Long before Deron Williams turned Barclays Center into his own personal playground last night, Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo was talking about the importance of his Big Three playing like a Big Three. For his team to move up the Eastern Conference standings and position itself for a long run in the playoffs, it will be up to Williams, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez to get them there.
Carlesimo admitted as much, saying it was important for the trio to at least maintain their combined scoring average of 53 points per game.
“We need those guys, at minimum a couple of them and usually all three of them, to play well to beat the better teams,” Carlesimo said. “We need that 50-something as a bottom line and then you can get to the mid-90s a little easier. When one or two of them is struggling, it gets very, very tough for us.”
Maybe Williams was trying to disprove Carlesimo’s point that the Nets need at least two if not all three stars to win a given a game. Maybe he just wanted to give Lopez and Johnson a night off. Whatever the reasoning, Williams didn’t need much help last night to dispose of the Wizards. The Big One was enough.
Taking advantage of a poor defensive team, Williams poured in 42 points — 33 of them in the first half, when he set an NBA record with nine 3-pointers before intermission — as the Nets claimed a 95-78 win. Williams had 23 points in the first quarter, when the Nets jumped to a 38-14 lead. His halftime total equaled that of the entire Wizards team. His 11-of-16 from 3-point range for the game set a franchise record and was one short of the NBA record of 12 3-pointers in a game.
“I definitely got hot, especially in that first half,” Williams said. “I found myself really open. I hit the first couple. They were shots where when they leave your hand they felt good, so I just kept shooting.”
Granted, Carlesimo did say he would need all three of his stars to play well in order to beat “the better teams.” The Wizards (19-41) don’t qualify. Yet, it was still impressive to see Williams single-handedly dominate the early part of the game, working free for opening 3-pointers or driving to the basket when necessary.
“He kept making shot after shot,” Carlesimo said. “When a guy is going that good, we could never get Joe or Brook going.”
Johnson scored six points and Lopez 11. Overall, it proved to be a comfortable evening for a team that faces a month of discomfort. As much as the Knicks’ busy March schedule has been discussed, the Nets face their own version of March Madness, which will go a long way toward determining their playoffs positioning. The Nets play 10 of their next 12 games on the road.
The lengthy road trip interrupted by home games against the Hornets and Hawks on Tuesday and March 17 is caused primarily by the circus occupying their building. The Nets can only hope their season doesn’t turn into some type of circus, though anything is possible at this volatile point of the year.
The optimist might note that at 35-26, the Nets entered last night’s game just three games behind the Knicks for second place in the Eastern Conference. But the skeptic might point out they were only 1 1/2 games ahead of the seventh-place and red-hot Celtics.
That’s why the Nets’ priority isn’t necessarily catching the Knicks or Pacers or anyone else ahead of them in the standings, but to get healthy, stabilized and confident. Last night’s win was a step in the appropriate direction.
It should be no shock the Nets will only go as far as their Big Three will take them. The job now is to get them playing like a Big Three. A Big One, like Williams was last night, won’t always be enough.