Winning games or a game can totally change the mood in a struggling team’s locker room. Brooklyn Nets guard Jarrett Jack, who entered singing “Sorry,” the new Justin Beiber song, wasn’t that disturbed about his betting on Washington over the Cowboys. “We’ll see them again,” he said.
Brook Lopez snapped on the Joe Johnson bobbleheads given to fans Tuesday night by the Nets organization. Thaddeus Young shouted out Jack’s parent’s 42nd wedding anniversary while being interviewed—special shout out to the Jack family. Center/power forward Willie Reed didn’t seem to mind reporters blocking his locker area while they interviewed Bojan Bogdanovic.
Brooklyn, who were unable to break the Golden State Warriors’ winning streak here Sunday, broke their own two-game losing streak by beating the jump-shooting Houston Rockets for the second time this season.
“I thought it was great for our team,” said Johnson. “We needed some type of spark.”
Brooklyn completely shut down center Dwight Howard and last season’s MVP candidate, James Harding, holding them to 10 points apiece, while each of the Nets starters scored in double figures, three hitting 20 or more: 22 for Johnson, 20 for Young and 24 for Lopez, a first this season, as well as 27 team assists.
“I told them before shoot around this morning that the ball had to move from side to side against this team,” said head coach Lionel Hollins. “You can attack them a little bit better when you move the ball that way.”
Johnson was outstanding in the fourth quarter, down the stretch, as Houston mounted a comeback. “We know we can go to him time and time again,” said Lopez. “In crunch time, he’s going to deliver.”
Brooklyn, now 6-15, hosts the last-place Philadelphia 76ers tonight (Thursday), the Los Angeles Clippers Saturday and the Orlando Magic Monday, and are slowly distancing themselves from Philly, 1-21, one game at a time. “As I told the players, it is really tough to win in this league, and we will take a win wherever, whenever,” said Hollins. “They have been hard to come by, and I’m just excited for the fellas as we move forward.”