CLEVELAND — Two nights ago, after the Nets did something they rarely have done this season, win a close game, Deron Williams was shouting the new motto he has proposed for the team — “I love it” — about virtually everything. It was, he claimed, an effort to drive away negativity from the team.
So after Wednesday’s 97-90 overtime road upset of the 76ers, Williams proclaimed that he loved everything.
A close victory, mistakes that were overcome, four wins in eight games, creamed liver on raisin toast, Williams loved it.
OK, maybe not the creamed liver, but you get the idea. The Nets are trying to stay upbeat, embracing all the positives they can find in what has been an undeniably tough first month of the season. So they hope to ride the effect of the win in Philadelphia into tonight’s meeting with the Cavaliers that could feature the league’s top two rookie scorers, Cleveland’s No. 1 overall pick, Kyrie Irving (16.8 points per game), and the Nets’ impressive 23 years and a day old rookie, MarShon Brooks (15.4 ppg).
Brooks was listed yesterday as day-to-day and likely will be a game time decision. He has missed two straight games with a sore left Achilles tendon, an injury that coach Avery Johnson said could cause him to cut back on Brooks’ time. Brooks is fourth among rookies at 29.8 minutes per game, but he played at least 34 minutes in four consecutive games, twice cracking 40 minutes, before the injury.
“He means so much to our program,” Johnson said. “We can’t put him out there in a detrimental position.”
This means the Nets will take a cautious approach with Brooks, hoping Williams continues to go as aggressively as he did Wednesday when he finished with 34 points and 11 assists after owning the game throughout the fourth quarter and overtime — their first OT game. But don’t forget, close games have been rare for the Nets.
Consider that all but three of the Nets’ 13 defeats have been by double figures — including a 36-point slaughter by the Hawks and a jolly 16-point pounding by the Cavaliers here on New Year’s Day when Cleveland went a stunning 16-of-26 on 3-pointers. Of the Nets’ previous five wins, really only two were close throughout.
“We haven’t had that many close games where we’ve had to come up with big plays and hit big shots and make stops,” Williams said. “So I think these types of [close] games are ones that build character and build a team and build camaraderie.”
The optimism isn’t just hollow talk. The Nets are 4-4 in their last eight games, and believe it or not, just two games out of the eighth playoff spot. But crawl before you walk and walk before you run. The Nets right now are unraveling themselves from the fetal position.
“We’re playing good,” Williams said. “If we just hit some shots in that Oklahoma City game, it could have been a different game [they shot 31 percent]. We played well against Charlotte. I thought we played well against Chicago, we were just tired and they’re a good team. But I thought we played good and I’ve seen some bright spots.
“We’ve definitely been playing better and we’ve made some progress. We’re still a young team and we’re still learning but it’s been a lot better.”
And yeah, he loves it.