Confused, Brooklyn Nets search for answers wherever they can find them

Gerald Wallace thinks he knows why the Nets have fallen from 11-4 to 13-12. In a word, scouting. Teams figured out what they were doing early and adjusted. Here's what Rod Boone reports Wallace said Wednesday night.

"We came out the first part of the season, nobody knew what to expect with all of us guys together," he said. "So we got on a kind of run and kind of got going. But now we're midway into the first half of the season and we've been scouted. Teams have figured out what we do and they are scouting against that. So we just have to come out and be more mentally prepared.

"At this point in the season, it's all mental. It has nothing to do with physical. You've got to execute your plays offensively and defensively and stay in tune to what you are doing as a team."

But is it only about the offensive "system"? Certainly, it's about the second half offensive system. The Nets dropoff between first and second half scoring is a dramatic 7.1 points, the biggest disparity in the league.

John Schuhmann notes the problem this month is actually more defense than offense. He breaks it down statistically in a series of tweets and an analysis piece. He notes that despite complaints about the offensive "system," the Nets are in the top 10 offensively overall this month. Defensively, however, they're 28th.

"The Nets' defense has been awful (108.6 pp100p) in December & it's been at its worst w/ Williams & Humphries on the floor together (114.5)," he noted, adding, "Somehow, Joe Johnson is a plus-6 as the Nets have gone 2-8 in December. Deron Williams is a minus-73. Blatche: minus-21. Watson: plus-15."

• Nets search for answers amid losing ways - Rod Boone - Newsday
• No Easy Answers For Brooklyn Malaise - John Schuhmann - NBA.com