The record is now the worst in the sport. The team has lost eight of its last nine games and has won away from home just once in 17 contests.
And, yet, to hear the Nets talk, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not an oncoming train. They believe they’re getting closer, even if the won-loss record doesn’t indicate it.
Simply, they trust the process — the cliche phrase most losing teams use.
“Our record speaks for itself. It’s not going to stop what we’re trying to do, and that’s getting better every day,” guard Sean Kilpatrick said after practice Tuesday. “That’s something our young guys really take heed of. We don’t pay that stuff no mind. We come in, we just get better.”
That has been first-year coach Kenny Atkinson’s message:
Consistency. Wins or losses shouldn’t change their work ethic, and for the most part that has been the case.
Sure, there have been poor efforts on occasion, and there was bickering among teammates during the ugly defeat to the Wizards in Washington last Friday, but close losses to playoff contenders such as the Rockets, Bulls and Jazz give Atkinson’s team confidence.
In Monday night’s setback to Utah, for instance, the Nets were even after three quarters against a team nine games over .500. The Jazz shot just a shade under 42 percent, needing a big fourth quarter to pull away.
“If I look at [Monday] night’s game, how hard we played, I was very pleased with the effort, and the defensive effort, our engagement,” Atkinson said. “I thought it was at a high level. You get feedback from people, and that’s the feedback we’re getting.
“It’s frustrating because we’re not getting over the hump. We just have to trust if we keep pounding that rock, keep pounding at the door, that eventually there’s going to be a breakthrough. I’m happy with the process and I feel the spirit of the team [is good].”
The road has been a particular struggle, the Nets last winning there against Phoenix on Nov. 12. They have lost 13 straight, several of those by lopsided margins. They get their next chance Thursday in Indiana against the Pacers.
“We have to have the same mentality we have at home: Try to go out and play as hard as possible,” rookie point guard Isaiah Whitehead said. “If we play that we, we play as hard as possible, we try not to let the crowd affect us, I think we can get some wins.”
Kilpatrick said in the offseason, the team did mental exercises, to prepare for difficult times. He declined to elaborate on them, but said they have helped the Nets, especially their young players. With a brutal January ahead, with games against elite foes such as the Cavaliers (twice), Spurs, Raptors (twice), Hornets and Rockets, Brooklyn will need to have that resolve.
“I just think these tough times are really going to help us in the long run,” Atkinson said. “I feel like even a game like [Monday] night, we’re getting better. I feel like there’s progress being made. We have our games where it doesn’t go so well.
“We’ve had a few of them, but for the most part [the tough losses we’ve had] gives you solace that we’re competing, really giving it everything we have each game. That’s all we can ask for right now.”