Weekly Wind Up: Nets fall just short of a perfect week

It seems like the Nets have dug themselves in a hole so deep that even after a solid week, they're still near the bottom looking up at the Eastern Conference.

Obviously it's still early with three quarters of the season left, but with every loss, it feels like the walls continue to close in on them and the already slim chances.

Still, they won more than they lost this week, and for that alone, we'll call it a successful week in Brooklyn.

Where we stand:

The Nets are now 7-16 on the season after going 2-1 this past week. They picked up the two wins against the Rockets and 76ers, with the lone loss coming against the Clippers to finish off the week.

They handled their own against Houston and sent them home unhappy yet again, but just barely hung on to defeat the one-win Sixers in a very ugly matchup.

They once held a 16-point lead, but the Sixers climbed their way back and took the lead at the end of the third quarter. Brook Lopez was struggling and the Nets looked lost against the leagues worst. It was alarming.

But with Lopez's struggles, another unlikely hero came in and changed the game: Andrea Bargnani. He scored 13 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and helped the Nets go on a 30-17 rally in the fourth with Lopez watching for the final five minutes of the game.

It wasn't exactly storybook, but with the way things are going this season, the Nets will take any win they can get.

Prior to the Clippers loss, the Nets were 5-5 in the last 10 and had improved to six wins in the last seven games at home. They've been playing well, but they stand in 14^th place in the East and are the fourth worst team in the NBA.

Game of the Week:

The Joe Johnson bobblehead wasn't the only thing Nets fans got vs. the Rockets. They got a win and it was a good one indeed.

The two teams took it down to the wire with Marcus Thornton -- not James Harden or Dwight Howard - but Marcus Thornton serving the Nets a taste of vengeance after he played with the team for less than a half season back in 2014.

Thornton scored 32 points on the night and 17 in the fourth quarter, leading a late charge in which the Rockets cut an 11-point deficit down to three with 35 seconds left. But despite the struggles this season, Joe Jesus rose up and anchored the Nets to victory with 15 of his own in the fourth.

The next night, Houston beat the Wizards in a shootout with James Harden going off for 42. The Nets held him to nine the night before. It just goes to show what they're capable of doing on any given night. Unfortunately it doesn't happen consistently.

Still, we'll take it for what it is and "it" resulted in a sweep over the Houston Rockets - the first since Jason Kidd's first year in New Jersey back in the 2001-2002 season.

Weak of the Week:

The Nets won two straight prior to the game against Los Angeles. The guys were feeling good and finally there were some happy faces at Barclays Center.

Until, the Clippers came to town.

The Nets were getting dominated in essentially every aspect of the game. Lopez finished with a double-double, but failed to score at the efficient rate we're used to with the big fella. With that, the Clippers took advantage and led by double digits for most of the game.

The Nets started to use the hack-a-Jordan strategy at the five-minute mark of the fourth. Jordan, a 39 percent free throw shooter, struggled yet again and the Nets were on the comeback trail with Brook Lopez looking on for a second straight game. They cut an 18-point deficit down to two with less than two minutes remaining.

But without the hack-a-Jordan strategy, the Nets defense was nonexistent. The Clips scored on three straight possessions and closed the book on Brooklyn's fairytale ending to the night and the week.

They fought, they battled, but the NBA doesn't compile wins and losses on either.

Who's Hot:

Bojan Bogdanovic was inserted into the starting lineup following the injury to Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and he looked like the Bojan we all expected to see this season.

Bogdanovic averaged 15 points on 49 percent shooting and 41 percent from deep. It was a small sample size, but Bogdanovic finally looked confident and aggressive with his offensive game. He also burned the Rockets for the second straight time this season with 19 points Tuesday and 22 points back in early November.

"It's not always about the minutes," Bogdanovic told NetsDaily. "It's about the shots and how aggressive I am when I step on the floor."

Who's Not:

It's not that Brook Lopez has played bad, it's just that he wasn't himself this past week. He averaged 15 points and nine rebounds, but coughed up 16 total turnovers in three games.

As mentioned above, Lopez lost crunchtime minutes in TWO games this week because of foul trouble and his inability to get into an offensive rhythm. He lost his minutes to Andrea Bargnani, who came out firing on all cylinders in the fourth quarter of the two games.

Thing is, even when Bargnani's hot, his offense rarely covers up for his poor defense and dreadful box-outs down low. So for that, Brook should never be sitting on the bench behind Andrea Bargnani.

This is HIS team. They rise and fall with Brook.

Highlight of the Week:

As Tas Melas said: "CLINT CLAPPED!"

Markel Brown approved:

Last call:

As a Nets fan watching this Golden State parade, isn't it crazy to think the Nets were inches - maybe less - from ending the entire fiesta before it even started? The Warriors won their 24^th straight victory before the Milwaukee Bucks finally knocked them out on a second night of a back to back.

We're all basketball fans here and we appreciate the legacy we get to see right in front of our eyes.

That being said: Does it get any more Nets than a missed tip-in that eventually led to a team setting a historical  record? I think not.