**Nets’ Preseason Finale Offers Glimpse Into Regular Season Struggles**
*TORONTO* — The finale of the Brooklyn Nets’ preseason gave fans an early look at what to expect this regular season: a team that plays hard, plays sloppily, and ultimately comes up short. On Friday night, the Nets fell 119-114 to the Toronto Raptors, plagued by turnovers and falling into a deep hole before a late fourth-quarter rally narrowly missed.
Michael Porter Jr., despite being a game-time decision battling jet lag, delivered a standout performance with a game-high 34 points and 10 rebounds, shooting an efficient 6-of-11 from three-point range. However, his defensive struggles were evident as he finished the game with a minus-8 rating.
Defensive specialist Ziaire Williams contributed an encouraging 20 points on 4-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc — a promising sign heading into the season. Meanwhile, Cam Thomas struggled offensively, managing just seven points on an uncharacteristic 1-of-10 shooting night, including 0-of-4 from deep.
The most glaring issue for the Nets was turnovers. The team committed 23 giveaways, which directly resulted in 34 points for the Raptors. In the first half alone, Brooklyn turned the ball over 16 times, handing Toronto a sizable early advantage. This costly trend dug an 18-point deficit in the third quarter, forcing the Nets to expend significant energy trying to claw back into the game.
“Handling their physicality, obviously, was what we struggled with in the first half,” said Nets head coach Jordi Fernández. “But then we responded and had seven turnovers for three points in the second half, held them to 47 points.”
Fernández praised his young point guards’ resilience in the face of adversity. “Happy with the adversity that especially our young point guards had to deal with. And happy with how they responded. And I want all of them to keep being positive and play, take advantage of the next opportunity because it will happen.”
Early in the game, Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf struggled, combining for just one point, two assists, and six turnovers in 13:20 of ineffective play during the first half. Egor Dëmin stood out in contrast, scoring 14 points and playing over 10 turnover-free minutes before halftime.
Saraf found his rhythm in the second half and helped ignite a 16-1 run in the fourth quarter that briefly gave Brooklyn the lead. However, it wasn’t enough to complete the comeback.
On the roster front, Grant Nelson made himself available after signing an Exhibit 10 deal. The 23-year-old undrafted forward from Alabama received a training camp invite and will look to earn a spot and playing time.
“I think mainly just come out here and compete every day because I’m really still competing for a spot and competing for playing time,” Nelson told The Post. “So really, they’re just telling me to continue what I’m doing and just keep coming and showing up every day and doing everything I can to keep making the guys better on the team and also make myself better.”
Nelson participated in the Las Vegas Summer League with the Nets and was expected to sign his Exhibit 10 contract shortly after. However, a nagging injury sidelined him temporarily. “It was like a small, little minor injury that held me out of training camp. And then I feel like I did everything I could. I caught the injury really early, so I wasn’t out long. But it worked out perfect. So now I’m back healthy, feeling 100 percent,” he explained.
Nelson’s signing came after the Nets waived Zeng Fanbo. Coach Fernández was noncommittal about whether Zeng would continue with the Nets’ Long Island G-League affiliate, noting, “We haven’t discussed that. It was great having him. I haven’t got the details of what’s next.”
“He’s done a great job being part of the group in training camp, and we had a great experience in Macao in the two games we played, not just him but the whole group.”
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*Stay updated with the latest NBA standings and Nets stats as Brooklyn prepares for the regular season ahead.*
https://nypost.com/2025/10/18/sports/nets-struggle-with-turnovers-again-in-preseason-finale-loss/