Nets Drop Fifth Straight, Fall to Suns at Home

Brooklyn was unable to get off the schneid at home.

Jan 22, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) drives to the basket while being defended by Brooklyn Nets guard Tyrese Martin (13) during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images

In the second half of a back-to-back, the Brooklyn Nets were unable to end their recent losing skid, falling to the Phoenix Suns 108-84.

Without Cam Johnson, Ben Simmons or D'Angelo Russell, Jordi Fernandez's crew struggled mightily on the offensive end. Finishing the contest shooting just 37.4% from the field, tonight extended a streak of lackluster scoring outputs for the banged-up Nets.

However, there were some bright spots.

Keon Johnson, who's played beneficiary in multiple matchups this season when the go-to offensive weapons sit, took advantage of an uptick in opportunities yet again.

He added 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting while grabbing seven rebounds, proving himself as an impactful contributor even when the likes of Russell and Johnson suit up.

Jalen Wilson posted 15 points of his own, albeit while shooting a lackluster 1-of-8 from beyond the arc.

But the biggest winner of the evening (despite the lopsided score), was Dariq Whitehead.

Last year's first-round selection out of Duke has been given limited minutes this season and has spent the majority of his sophomore campaign with Brooklyn's G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets.

The high volume of injury designations forced Whitehead into the lineup, and the results were quite encouraging.

He rattled in three of his five three-point attempts, tallying 12 points and two rebounds in just 15 minutes of action.

While none of those performances proved enough to overcome a 56-point joint effort by Devin Booker and former-Net Kevin Durant, they were positives for Brooklyn fans to hold onto nonetheless.

The shooting percentage, especially a 19.4% hit rate from deep, is undoubtedly cause for concern. Although much of that can be attributed to an ongoing injury issue that has plagued the Nets nearly all season.

Johnson will return soon. Simmons is expected to be available this Saturday, having only sat out because he hasn’t been cleared for back-to-backs. Russell should also be back shortly.

And once Cam Thomas returns from his ongoing hamstring issue that has limited him to just 19 games this season, Brooklyn's offense will appear much better.

In the meantime, the team shifts focus to Saturday's home matchup with the Miami Heat at 6 p.m. EST.

To access the final box score from the Nets' loss to the Suns, click here.

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