Inside The Nets

As he regains old offensive form in Paris, Lonnie Walker IV is thankful and ready to aid sliding Nets

Lonnie is finally regaining the touches he's been looking at, which can absolutely help the Nets stop their bleeding.

Marin Gabric

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It was an uphill climb for Lonnie Walker IV after being inactive for such a long time. But as he was able to receive a full green light from the Brooklyn Nets, he didn't hold back from performing at his best.

Upon seizing his first full maximized exposure after being out for over a month due to his hamstring issues, Lonnie sparked it up against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the previous 2024 NBA Paris Games. For 20 minutes of play off the bench, he went off with 20 points, three boards, and two assists with a sizzling 66.7 percent shooting from the field (4-of-5 threes).

As a microwave scorer, this has been a usual type of performance that Walker IV has been fulfilling on a nightly basis before going down. As such, this recent strong showing he made against Cleveland hands optimism that he'll finally be back performing at a high level once again.

Thankful for the redeeming

As he enjoyed the recovery of his offensive touches and normal condition last week in the City of Light, Lonnie felt relieved that he was able to do so through the help and trust of the team.

As the Nets couldn't generate shots in the first half, it was he who sparked the Nets’ second-half barrage to get closer against the Cavs down the stretch.

“I was ready,” Walker said about his display against the Cavs. “The only difference was the bump-up in minutes and finally being able to play and catch the rhythm. It felt good. I’ve been playing with confidence. My teammates have been giving me the confidence, teammates and coaches have been allowing me to play, knowing I got some game.

“It felt good, especially a game like that, when you’re starting to get your tail whooped and you kind of fight back, fight back, fight back, and it kind of gets to the grit and the grind, a couple of techs, you live for games like those. It felt good to be in the midst of a battle. We lost that fight, but there’s plenty more to go.”

A promising sign

As the Nets' bonafide sixth man, Lonnie averaged 14.6 points in 17 games of play. As he became unavailable from there, it severely affected the team's upward direction throughout December.

Though their defeat against the Cavs served up as the 12th one of their last 15 matches, what Lonnie still performed on the losing effort gives coach Jacque Vaughn ample positivity as Brooklyn continues its search to claim their season groove.

“That’s huge for us, for [Walker’s] confidence, for him to get back in the groove where he left off before he was injured,” Vaughn said. “He was playing high-level basketball from all three levels. We got a chance to see that, his attack at the rim, his ability to defend multiple positions that we need, then his ability to make shots for us. The most minutes he had played since being back, so we’ll continue to monitor that.”

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Marin Gabric
MARIN GABRIC

Marin's love for writing developed in high school but was furthered in college when he took a number of creative writing courses. Doing sports writing felt like an extremely natural continuation, as it furthered his passions in both writing and basketball.  Marin loves the feeling of looking at stats after a game and analyzing what each team could've done better or what they excel in compared to the rest of the league. And the ability to do so for his favorite team, the Brooklyn Nets, is quite special in itself. 

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