The Brooklyn Nets are back from a joyous, inspiring road trip. Following a brutal loss at the hands of an indescribable 3-pointer from Luka Doncic, the Nets won their final three games on the road, capped off by a 109-107 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night to move to 3-2 on the season.
Yet Saturday’s contest, the first at the Barclays Center since Opening Night, felt like a brace-for-impact situation. Despite how well (and fun) the Nets played over their first five games, they were facing as big of an uphill battle as you could draw up for a regular-season matchup.