There hasn’t been much for Brooklyn Nets fans to cheer about down the stretch of this season. Oddly enough, the team’s most exciting recent development came on a night they were eliminated from postseason contention. Rookie Noah Clowney turned in a breakout performance Wednesday during a 115-111 win over the Indiana Pacers.
The 21st overall pick posted a season-high 22 points and 10 rebounds (five offensive) on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, 3-of-4 from three, and 5-of-7 from the free-throw line.
Clowney became the sixth player in NBA history to record 20-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in 17 or fewer minutes. At 19 years and 264 days old, he is the youngest player ever to accomplish the feat. He’s also the youngest Net to score 20 points in a game since Cliff T. Robinson in 1979.
With the Nets trailing by eight midway through the second quarter, Clowney entered and quickly turned the tides in Brooklyn’s favor. The Alabama product scored on three straight possessions, finishing a dump-off before draining back-to-back threes. He poured in 14 points over five minutes to close the frame.
Clowney also posted an impressive block on Indiana star Tyrese Haliburton during that span. Upon checking in during the third quarter, he made another momentum play, outworking two Pacers for an offensive rebound and finishing an and-one. He capped off the night by draining two free throws in the final minute to seal the win.
Noah Clowney confident after breakout showing
Clowney received the game ball following the win. He had a confident take when asked about his breakout showing after spending most of the season in the G-League.
“At the end of the day, it’s still all basketball,” Clowney said. “The ball’s still round, the three-point line’s still the same distance, there’s still five people on each team, so a lot of the concepts are similar. So I’ve just been ready to play, I’ve been playing.”
He exuded the same confidence when asked about the performance coming against a playoff-caliber team.
“I always say, ‘They bleed the same blood, they put their shorts on just like I do,'” he said. “I mean, yeah, they’re a good team, but I gotta play with the same confidence here that I do in the G-League. I don’t want to start playing shy and then, you know, I’m playing bad, trippin’ over mistakes. I just play confident.”
Clowney’s development in Long Island has been a silver lining for the Nets during a disheartening season. The South Carolina native has averaged 17.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.6 blocks on 50.0 percent shooting over 19 regular season G-League games.
Nets teammate Cam Thomas offers Clowney praise
He’s impressed in limited NBA opportunities when called upon, although never at the level he showed Wednesday. After playing sporadically during his first two seasons, Cam Thomas knows all too well what it’s like to be part of Brooklyn’s “stay-ready” group. The third-year guard, who was frequently communicating with Clowney on and off the court during Wednesday’s game, offered praise for the rookie’s adaptability.
“He’s just showing the hard work that he’s put in going back and forth from the G-League to here,” Thomas said. “Just him staying ready. You know, I know all about the staying ready piece, so just for him to stay ready and come off the bench and give us 22 and 10, that’s incredible… I just try to talk to him as much as I can because I know what they go through in games like that.”
“I’ve been in games like that playing with KD and them, trying to play off of them, so I know how nerve-racking it be sometimes. But at the end of the day, you just gotta play your game, make or miss. If you miss, don’t get down on yourself, because in this league, the ball’s gonna come right back to you; that’s just how teams guard. So I’m proud of him. He made big shots, big rebounds and the free throws at the end were huge.”
With the Nets playing Clowney exclusively at center during the win, Day’Ron Sharpe did not see any action. The third-year center was among Brooklyn’s most positive storylines during the first half of the season but has seen Clowney cut into his minutes in recent weeks.
Thomas led the Nets with 27 points on 9-of-21 shooting in the win, while Mikal Bridges added 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Brooklyn will host a back-to-back against the Detroit Pistons and Sacramento Kings this weekend before closing the season against the Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks, and Philadelphia 76ers.
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