The Nets lost to the Pacers on Wednesday 115-110 despite building an 18-point lead as Indiana began to figure out how to execute its offense to get the shots it wanted. Rookie guard Nolan Traore led the way for the Nets with his 20 points and eight assists, while center Day’Ron Sharpe had 19 points and 12 rebounds in his final start in place of Nic Claxton, who missed the game due to a hip injury.
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The Pacers were without most of their usual rotation, including Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac, but forward Jarace Walker stepped up for Indiana with 23 points and five rebounds in 32 minutes on the court. The Nets enter the All-Star break with a loss, so here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s loss to the Pacers before having a bye week:
Nolan Traore continues to shine
Traore was inserted into the starting lineup eight games ago and has since shown that he is more prepared to handle the extra playing time now than at the start of the season. Traore, who finished this game with 20 points and eight assists, turned the ball over more than usual (five), but repeatedly showed his ability to get into the paint and wreak havoc against an injury-riddled Pacers team playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
Day’Ron Sharpe surprises again as a starter
With Nic Claxton missing this matchup due to a hip injury, Sharpe was inserted into the starting lineup with a decent matchup as his only competition all game was center Jay Huff, who had his fair share of highlights. With Indiana not having much size available, Sharpe was able to establish his presence in the paint and put together an impressive stat line of 19 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while having arguably one of his best defensive games of the season with two steals and two blocks.
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The networks drown the stretch
While the Nets were impressive in their recent wins at the Utah Jazz and against the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards, Brooklyn blew an 18-point lead against a Pacers team that lost most of its normal rotation. Not to mention, the Nets committed 13 turnovers in the second half and allowed Indiana to shoot 53.3% from the field. Brooklyn is still one of the youngest teams in the league, but the second-half collapse before the All-Star break has to be disappointing across the board.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 115-110 loss to Jarace Walker, Pacers