The Nets came into their final preseason game Friday night at Madison Square Garden riding a five-game losing streak to the Knicks, including the preseason opener, when they blew an early 15-point lead and allowed two-way player Allonzo Trier to rack up 25 points while center Enes Kanter dominated inside with 22 points and 20 rebounds.
In truth, the first three games of the preseason amounted to a red flag for an injury-plagued team that was shooting an anemic 24.5 percent from three-point range, averaging 24.0 turnovers and being outscored by 10 points per game.
Referring to the Knicks’ 4-0 sweep of last season’s series, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said: “Last year, they kind of physically overtook us in all the games.