It took a few extra days, but we finally got our Mikel Brown Jr. vs Darius Acuff summer showdown. It was Nets as a unit, however, who delivered the box office production.
Brooklyn leapt out to a 22-6 advantage to the begin the game, forcing eight Sacramento turnovers in the contest’s first six minutes. Joshua Jefferson, who struggled in his first appearance as a Net over the weekend, got in on the action right after coming in off the bench.
Brown Jr. personally didn’t do any scoring to help to build that run, but facilitated on a few buckets. Despite having no points to match Acuff’s six in the first, he did come up with two assists.
Advertisement
His backcourt mate had him covered, however. Egor Dëmin led everyone with 16 first period points, shooting 3-3 from the field and 4-4 from the line. The sophomore, who’s starting to look a bit too good to be out there, had a near-perfect frame even outside of his shooting figures, pitching in three rebounds, two assists, two steals, and zero turnovers in 10 minutes.
Then, Brown Jr. started to get going. Acuff picked his pocket on the second period’s first possession, though Brown Jr. got back in time to block his subsequent shot in transition. MBJ walked the ball down the court right after, shook Acuff with a crossover, and dropped in a buttery midrange jumper. He finished with five points and two more assists in the period.
But while it was good to see Brown Jr. win round two, Drake Powell experienced a far larger and more cathartic redemptive arc. After beginning the summer 1-28 from the field between the California Classic and Vegas, he started the game 4-5 from three and a +11 at halftime.
Brooklyn eventually waltzed its way to a 56-34 lead at halftime, and it would’ve been even messier than that if not for Emanuel Sharp. The 45th overall pick out of Houston also went 4-5 from deep in the first half to lead his team with 14 points. Nobody else on Sacramento had more than eight at that point.
Advertisement
Dëmin, who put up a 20-piece last time out vs New York, had the same amount today by halftime while shooting 5-9 from the field. He continued to have Brown Jr.’s back all the way until the first half horn…
The dunking didn’t stop there, nor did the deposing of the Kings. The Nets continued to force Sacramento turnovers that led to easy points the other way. Brooklyn ended up earning 41 points off 28 Sacramento giveaways by the end of the night. About halfway there, Johnson, Dëmin, Brown Jr., and Wolf collaborated on what has to be the play of the summer so far for the team…
Helped by that sequence, Brooklyn went on a 13-0 run in the heart of the third to open up a 30+ point lead, and while that was enough to excuse Dëmin for all but one random possession in the fourth, Brown Jr., Powell, and a few others played on.
Advertisement
The former got a few points back on Acuff before sitting a few sequences later. Acuff still finished the game with the higher scoring total, although he had sacrifice his efficiency to get it. MBJ finished with 16/5/2, and four turnovers while shooting 6-11 from the field and 2-5 from deep. Acuff ended with 26 points, five assists, and five turnovers while shooting 9-18 from the field and 2-6 from deep.
The Nets did get a bit too rowdy in the that third period, picking up three technical fouls between the bench, Dëmin, and Powell, who got caught hanging on the rim for a tad too long after finishing off an alley-oop. Normally, you’d rather avoid seeing that. But hey, its summer. And again, you saw the Powell numbers before this one. He finished with 18 points, two steals, and a block after shooting 6-10 from the field and 4-7 from deep.
For the most part, the bench plus Johnson and Wolf took us the rest of the way. Sacramento never put any pressure on the lead as Ben Saraf’s methodical game and Johnson’s dominance on the glass kept the Kings on a leash anytime they tried to string together quick points. Saraf bounced back with 11 points, five assists, four steals, and zero turnovers on 3-4 shooting in 20 minutes played. Johnson, a game high +31, nabbed 13 points and nine rebounds, three assists, and a steal after shooting 5-7 from the field.
Advertisement
The Nets nabbed their second win in Las Vegas. The were five points shy of tying the league record for the most points scored in a Summer League game.
Final: Brooklyn Nets 115, Sacramento Kings 83
Midway through the second period, Sean Marks also joined the broadcast for a brief interview where he touched on the the team’s young pool of talent., Julius Randle, and Jordi Fernández.
“Very excited about this group,” Marks said. “I mean, they’re young but they’re out there competing. They’re playing hard. They’re playing the right way. You see the ball moving around. These guys are competing — diving on the floor for loose balls. They want to compete for something, so that’s exciting.”
Advertisement
Marks later spoke specifically on Mikel Brown Jr., even giving us a bit of an idea of what he and the Nets look for in draft prospects.
“Obviously watching him, going back from from my days, watching him at the Hoop Summit, and then obviously Louisville, you see how he played there, and just how he approached his teammates,” Marks said. “I know he missed a few games, but then even in the games he was out, it was like, just watch him on the sidelines. Who’s interacting with? What do the coaches say about him? He’s a very cerebral player. He’s incredibly competitive, so that’s obviously going to translate to our level.”
It’s similar to what he said shortly after the Nets selected Brown Jr. last month.
“And what we’ve seen so far, not only in the California Classic Summer League, but in Vegas here, is just how he’s got those leadership characteristics, taken a lot of the guys under his wing, and spent time with them away from the court as well, which is really unique for a young man like that,” he added. Those things will translate to a really, really positive career.”
Advertisement
Marks also praised the borough of Brooklyn as a platform to raise up prospects like Brown Jr. He called it a “melting pot” before acknowledging its salt-of-the-earth reputation.
“It’s such a diverse borough that, to me, is exciting,” he said. “It’s a working-class borough. That’s that adds something to the culture of the locker room like we experienced with the Spurs. So, to me, that’s great. Everybody has their own story, and that’s it’s a worldly game now, which is what we’re just seeing right now on the on the court.”
He also shouted out Fernández and his coaching staff in that same regard.
“One of the things that’s really shined from Jordi and how he’s approached his first few years here has been just how honest he is with players,” Marks said. “Nobody ever questions, ‘Well, where do I stand? What are my expectations? What am I supposed to do?’ Jordy lets everybody know right off the get-go and and owns it. He’s honest with it, honest about himself, honest about the mistakes that he makes, and I think that takes a lot. That’s a special leader, and he’s been absolutely tremendous in these first couple years.“
Advertisement
Marks wrapped up things up soon after that, but not before sharing what he expects Julius Randle to bring to the Nets this season. Randle also shared his thoughts on coming to Brooklyn in a different Summer League game a few days before.
“I look at how enthusiastic Julius is about coming back here and you know being in New York again, and so forth. I think he’s he’s been on winning franchises. He understands what it takes. He’s a pro’s pro. He’s a powerful player — that’s something we’re looking for. We need a downhill player that can play in that position, which we didn’t have, so I think him being able to take some of these young guys under his wing, show what it means to be a real pro at this level, and lead flags out will be great. That’s exactly what we’re excited about with Julius.”
Erik Slater of ClutchPoints also caught up with Marks during the game to ask about a potential Michael Porter Jr. contract extension. He indicated there won’t be any news on that soon.
Next Up
Brooklyn will take a day off before playing in its final “regular season” Summer League game on Thursday afternoon vs the Houston Rockets. That’ll tip off at 4:30 p.m. EST. Depending on how the standings shake out, they’ll either move onto a four-team playoff or play one consolation game after that either on July 17, July 18 or July 19th.
Advertisement
