Brooklyn Nets vs. New York Knicks preview: Nets finally make it on national TV!

After going on a six-game road trip out west, the Nets return to NYC looking to secure their third win of 2025. The Nets were ordinary and simply not good, going 1-5 and even losing by 59, their worst loss ever in one of the excursions. But today is a new day back in Brooklyn!

Tonight, the tank may have to take a quick break as Brooklyn takes on their crosstown rivals in the New York Knicks. Since beating the Nets in two straight games back in November, the Knicks have risen to third in the East. While the Nets aren’t that good to say the least, this game will be for bragging rights, so be prepared for a dogfight.

And since the Nets have the Knicks’ first round pick in the June draft, a win could ultimately have some value in June. The problem, though, is that the Nets have lost six in a row at Barclays, and the stands will likely be filled with orange and blue.

Where to see

See the action at 7:30 PM ET on TNT and Youtube TV. It is the Nets’ only game on national television this season. Time to shine for Ernie, Charles, Kenny and Shaq.

Damage report

Bojan Bogdanovic, Cam Thomas, DeAnthony Melton, Maxwell Lewis, Ziaire Williams and Trendon Watford are out. Dariq Whitehead is with the Long Island Nets. Ben Simmons is again questionable with an illness. Brian Lewis reports that Bogdanovic has resumed activities on the court, but he is far from escaping this list.

For the Knicks, Mitchell Robinson (ankle) and Kevin McCullar Jr. (knee) out.

The game

With the all-time lead in the rivalry now in the Knicks’ favor (114-112) after the Knicks’ two early season wins, the two teams have rarely had their fates so closely linked as they are now. Leon Bass thought so much of Mikal Bridges as his final championship piece that he traded away five first-round picks, all but one easily unprotected the second; an unprotected first-round pick swap; a second rounder and three players for Bridges and the now departed Keita Bates-Diop. The two teams’ first trade in 42 years will define things for years to come.

It’s no secret why they’ve turned things around this season for Manhattanites. In seventh place in the league in points per game (117), the Knicks have finally gotten their act together and let their offense flow. One player key to this transition is Bridges, who returns to Barclays tonight. Brooklyn Bridges is averaging 18 points on nearly 50% shooting, a big jump from November, when fans criticized him for his jump shot and looked like a shell of himself. He still has occasional setbacks, but he’s been more consistent lately.

Bridges’ one-time “twin,” Cam Johnson, hasn’t had a problem seeing the ball go in either. Johnson has elevated his game, going from a catch-and-shoot specialist to a far more complete and sophisticated scorer. He enters tonight’s game shooting 50/40/90, something only nine other players in NBA history have accomplished over the course of a full season.

Other than that, Ben Simmons is now questionable with an illness, the same thing that kept him out of the Thunder game. As fans know, good things happen when he’s on the court: players get open shots, opposing offenses have a little more difficulty scoring, you get the idea.

Will it be a dogfight today? Hope so. Brooklyn must continue with the tank, but this is for NYC people. Just think how good Nets fans will feel that we can have the upper hand on their rival WHILE we’re on the tank. That feeling would feel good no matter how bad the team is.

Player to watch: Karl Anthony-Towns

You thought we’d pick Mikal Bridges, didn’t you? Wrong! How about Jalen Brunson, who is averaging 34.6 points, 6.4 assists and 3.0 3-pointers over the last five? No!

New Jersey’s own Karl Anthony Towns looks to continue his dominant stretch on the season. Towns is averaging 25 and 13 and has been a man on a mission, showing an aggression that wasn’t really seen too much with the Timberwolves. Because of his frame, it could be trouble for Claxton and Clowney, who are more on the frail side. Either way, we could have a big man-to-man battle on our hands if both sides come to play.

KAT has become a fan favorite in New York, or as much of a fan favorite as the mercurial Knicks fandom allows. “What have you done for me lately?”, the New Yorker’s classic ploy in any negotiation, also applies to basketball. But the bottom line is the Knicks need Anthony-Towns to carry them if they have any hope of playing this spring.

From the Vault

Last February, as the Nets slowly sank in their bid to win during the rebuild, their supposed leader, Mikal Bridges, college buddies Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart were on their “Roommates” podcast…

It got snarky when Bridges complained about how Barclays Center looked and looked more like Madison Square Garden.

The context of the conversation was what it’s like to play an away game with a large contingent of Knick fans cheering them on, a common experience now for growing New Yorkers. When Bridges asked if Brooklyn was the most extreme case — “the worst” in his words — Brunson and Hart, along with co-host Matt Hillman, agreed. It was, as we noted at the time, “crum-worthy.”

Some might place the beginning of the Nets rebuild later in the year. But in the days after Bridges’ comments, Jacque Vaughn was fired and there were reports that Bridges told his ex. Villanova teammates that if they were so interested in reuniting with him, they should make Leon Bass make Sean Marks an offer he couldn’t refuse. In the end, he did.

More reading: Posting and Roasting, SBNation NBA