The Nets are coming off their winningest stretch of the season, but also their softest.
Now comes the hard part. The measuring stick starts Thursday vs. Miami.
“We’ve got a real rough schedule coming up, especially the next month,” Nic Claxton said.
The Nets partition their season into five-game segments, and they are coming off their first winning one of this campaign.
But they actually will go into Thursday’s game against the visiting Heat having taken four of their past six.
But all of those games came against opponents with losing marks. Their opponents went into Wednesday an aggregate 54-103, for a sorry .344 winning percentage.
The next six — starting with Miami — will be a far more grueling gauntlet.
All but Golden State have winning records, and even the Warriors are 13-14. And at a cumulative 90-64, they represent not just a .584 winning clip but a test.
“We’ve been playing better, our process has been better,” Claxton said. “So going up against [good teams], it doesn’t matter who you’re playing against. We’re all NBA players, we’re going to do what we do. And I feel like we should rise to the occasion. When we’re playing against better teams, you get up for those games. Those games are usually easier to play your best in.”
Day’Ron Sharpe has averaged 10.5 points, six boards, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals over his past four games in a scant 17 minutes.
Jordi Fernández wants to build up Sharpe to play more minutes, but the coach said considering how hard the backup center plays, he’s currently happy with the minutes distribution.
The first couple of milestones in the trade season came and went — Dec. 15, when most players inked in the summer became eligible to be dealt, and Dec. 16, the last day for those getting moved to be able to be aggregated in another deal by the Feb. 5 deadline.
Michael Porter Jr. has rehabilitated his value.
Detroit is reportedly a team to monitor as a potential suitor, according to Forbes, able to create a framework mainly built around Tobias Harris.
Drake Powell threw down a nasty dunk in practice Tuesday. And Day’Ron Sharpe has encouraged the rookie to show off that explosiveness in games.
“I just tell him all the time you got the gifts, man; use it,” Sharpe said. “I tell him if you’ve got that, do it. Drive in, go attack the rim, go do dunk it, show your athleticism. Just show them the skills that he’s got, so everybody else in the world can see it, too.”
Fernández congratulated Knicks head coach and mentor Mike Brown for winning the NBA Cup.
“You know what he means to me. So I’m very happy for him. He deserves it,” Fernández said. “So he’s going to have to pay for dinner now because he won.”
The Nets will pay tribute to the victims of the Sydney Hanukkah Massacre with a Hanukkah celebration before Thursday’s game.
As part of the solidarity event, a giant “basketball menorah” will be lit by the 14-year-old nephew of Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was killed in the attack.
