The Nets are embracing radical truth.
And the real talk is leading to real wins.
The latest was a 124-97 rout of woeful Washington on Friday night before a crowd of 16,587 at Barclays Center.
It was their sixth victory in their past seven games, one in which they ruthlessly put away the outmatched Wizards.
The Nets — who led by as much as 30 points in improving to 12-9 — credit their recent success to coach Jacque Vaughn’s mantra of fostering an environment of player accountability and open communication, both in the locker room and out on the court.
And after a desultory first half, the radical truth they faced looking in the mirror — and listening to each other — was that they needed to be better.
The result was a 40-24 third-quarter blitz, taking a 19-point cushion into the fourth and opening it up even further from there.
“Yeah, the truth — the radical truth — calling each other out, knowing we can play way better than [that]. We just can’t just come out [and] half-ass it, play lower than what we’re capable of, and we had to pick it up,” said Royce O’Neale, who tallied 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists and was one of six Nets in double figures. “We adjusted the mentality coming in [to the second half]. First half, we weren’t playing [well] … and then we had to come in and pick it up and execute.”
The Nets executed to the tune of a staggering 76-56 edge in points in the paint, their total just two shy of tying the franchise record.
Mikal Bridges had a game-high 21 points and never got off the bench in the fourth quarter.
He wasn’t needed, with the Nets up by 19 after the third.
Cam Thomas scored 17, and both centers had double-doubles with Nic Claxton (13 points and a season-high 15 rebounds) and Day’Ron Sharpe (season-high 15 points and 11 boards).
The final period was time to empty the bench, with little-used Harry Giles III getting in and even scoring eight points.
“Nobody can really stop me on the glass, for real. Just realizing I’m a dog on the glass. I’m going to go at you every play and you’re gonna have to stop me every play,” Sharpe said. “I just know that if the big guy is gonna block it, more as likely it’s a little guy trying to box me out, and he’s ain’t gonna box me out. So you’re gonna need about three dudes to hit me, and I’m still gonna get the board then.”
Granted, the Wizards (3-18) are horrid.
But the Nets are convinced this run is more an epiphany than an aberration and say it’s being sparked by not just their honesty with each other but by not taking umbrage.
The Nets were leading just 62-57, after a Jordan Poole floater for Washington, when they pulled away for good.
A 7-0 run took just a minute, capped by Thomas’ running finger roll, to make it 69-57 midway through the third.
After allowing the final six points of the first half to see what had been a nine-point edge shrivel to just three at the break, the Nets returned the favor to close the third.
Their 6-0 run — capped by Dorian Finney-Smith’s 3-pointer — padded the cushion to 90-71. The lead reached as high as 30.
“It’s amazing, just the psyche. And this is a game that we can hopefully look back on. I think we were 3-for-18 at halftime from 3, and sometimes when the ball’s not going in that affects your mood, your spirit, your energy, and all of the above,” Vaughn said. “Came out just more focused. Focused on what we needed to accomplish. I think our activity level was higher in the second half. The ball started going in. Sometimes, it’s just that simple, seeing the ball go in for you.”
