Brooklyn Nets HC Jordi Fernández Reacts to Philadelphia 76ers Loss

The Nets’ head coach broke down his team’s Saturday night defeat to the Sixers.

Jan 1, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez applauds his players after calling a time out against the Toronto Raptors in the first half at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images / Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

The injury-riddled Brooklyn Nets fell to the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in what head coach Jordi Fernández hopes to use as a learning experience for his young squad.

“We gotta keep showing the fight, which we did, but with purpose,” he said. “That’s good that it happens now. That’s how we build and that’s how we learn.”

Brooklyn was coming off a surprise win against the Milwaukee Bucks and had gotten off to a solid start against Philadelphia. However, the Nets were quickly overmatched by the Sixers, who picked up the 123-94 road win behind Joel Embiid's 28 points and 12 rebounds.

“We compiled a lot of mistakes,” Fernández added. “A mistake is always okay because you always have a chance to get it back, but it’s always hard when you make a mistake, you’re thinking about the mistake and making another one.” 

Still, the Badalona native emphasized that his team fought despite the ultimate blowout. The Nets, in his words, were trying to do the right things. 

Fernández elaborated: “I thought the guys fought, but the purpose, the focus and compiling those mistakes, that was what we have to be better at. It’s one more in the NBA. Move on and be better the next one, which we’ll be excited to play the next game.” 

Keon Johnson, who finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists against the Sixers, echoed his head coach’s message. The 22-year-old is averaging 10.7 points on 35.7% from the field since entering the Nets’ starting lineup on Dec. 2.

“I think dudes came in and still competed to the final buzzer,” Johnson said. “It’s just something coach Jordi mentions a whole lot on the bench and then even outside of here at the Barclays. We just gotta come in and fight and take every moment and just continue to grow with it.”

The Nets’ next two games will be at home. First, Brooklyn hosts the Indiana Pacers on Monday. Then, the Detroit Pistons will visit the borough on Wednesday.

Fernández will be without the two Cams — Johnson and Thomas — for that upcoming slate of games. Johnson is expected to miss the next three games with a right ankle sprain, while Thomas will be reevaluated after the Nets’ west coast road trip, which begins Jan. 10 against the Denver Nuggets. The Nets will wrap up that trip at Oklahoma City on Jan. 19 before returning to New York for a cross-city contest against the Knicks on Jan. 21 at the Barclays Center.

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