Brooklyn Nets Offense Hitting A Wall As of Late

There isn't much expectation for the Brooklyn Nets as the final stretch of the NBA regular season commences. At 23-49, the Nets are in a dogfight with the Philadelphia 76ers for top-five odds in the draft lottery, so losing is incentivized at this point.

Brooklyn's offense has proved that point, especially after last night's 120-101 loss to the Dallas Mavericks at home. After putting up just 17 points in the first quarter, the Nets picked it up for the rest of the game offensively, but that hole to start the game nearly kept them from hitting triple-digit scoring.

The Nets' offense is one of the worst in the league with a 108.7 rating, good for 27th in the league. This puts them in company with some of the other lottery teams, such as the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets, and Utah Jazz.

While the general performance on the season is bad enough, Brooklyn has been noticeably bad amid its four-game losing streak. Over the last week, the Nets have been dead last in the league in offensive rating at 100.0. They've averaged 99.8 points per game, losing to the Mavericks, Boston Celtics, and Indiana Pacers twice.

One thing to note is Brooklyn's poor shooting. Through the losing streak, the team ranks 29th in field-goal percentage (42.3%), 28th in three-point percentage (31.0%), and 29th in free-throw percentage (66.7%).

The shooting struggles come from a multitude of factors, the most notable being the state of the roster. Star shooting guard Cam Thomas has been injured and shut down for the rest of the season, so taking away your best scoring option would naturally hinder the offense.

The other takeaway from the roster is that the Nets simply lack shot-creators. Their leading scorer over the last four games has been D'Angelo Russell, averaging 20.0 points across two appearances. If you want to focus on someone who has played in all four losses, then Trendon Watford is your guy at 16.0 points per game. There's a clear inconsistency in the team's scoring options, which can ruin the flow of the game plan.

Brooklyn has 10 games left in the season. It would give fans and the organization some hope if the Nets could show improvement on offense rather than hitting a wall.