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Goodwin, LeVert lead Nets in blowout of Pelicans

By Bryan Fonseca
NBA: Dallas Mavericks at Brooklyn Nets Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

It’s only Summer League but damn!

The Brooklyn Nets pounded the Pelicans by 29 points in Las Vegas Monday behind the strong efforts of the familiar faces you’ll see more of moving forward.

All-around, it was the strongest outing from the summer Nets, who shot a line of 45/34.5/81.2 in the blowout win, while also dishing out 21 team assists in the 95-66 victory.

Just 24 hours after drawing Tony Allen comparisons from former New York Knick savior Isiah Thomas, Archie Goodwin churned out his most buttery act yet: 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-3 on three-point shots, as well as a team-best eight assists in 20 minutes.

Goodwin, who’s come off the bench in all three Summer League games, upped his shooting percentage to 62.5% overall. His scoring and assists averages now reside at 12.7 and 3.7, respectively.

In a post-game interview, Goodwin was asked if he had set any goals for himself this summer.

“I haven't really set anything for myself,” he said. “I just want to come in and be the best that I can be, play as hard as i can, leave it all out there. If I didn't leave it all out there, I really didn't do my job.”

Caris LeVert entered as the Nets leading scorer, and much to our collective delight, the potential-packed prospect netted 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting. He began with a hot 2-of-3 from beyond the arc before missing his final three attempts from downtown.

LeVert has struggled with his jumper in Summer League, having gone 0-of-10 from three prior to Monday’s win, but LeVert has found his way within the perimeter, making 16-of-23 from two-point range in Vegas.

CL Smoove (TM) also shot 9-of-15 (60%) on free throws, and has pulled down seven rebounds per contest (eight in total against NOLA.)

We needed a lot more aggressiveness from not only LeVert, but Isaiah Whitehead, as well. Coney Island’s best is one of two Nets (Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is the othe) who played with Brooklyn’s Summer League entry last year.

Whitehead scored 8.8 points per game throughout five contests last year, all of which were starts. In 26 minutes per, The Brooklyn Cyclone shot 36.2% from the floor, though he drilled a superb 41.7% from deep.

This go around, Whitehead has poured in 12.3 points per contest, logging about 23 minutes per. Against New Orleans in particular, Whitehead shot 62.5% from the field (5-for-8), putting his field goal percentage at about 37%. From three, Whitehead was 2-of-9 in the three games, making his lone attempt on Monday.

Along with his 11 points against New Orleans, Whitehead had five rebounds and four assists.

Y’all are dying to see Rondae Hollis-Jefferson become a knock down shooter, I know, I know. This time out, he still wasn’t Ray Allen, but he was a very efficient 5-of-8 overall.

RHJ also finished with 11 points, while grabbing eight rebounds. He's pacing the team with 8.7 boards over the three games, playing 24 minutes per contest.

The Hyphen’s scoring average for the three-game stint is also 8.7 points per game. In his previous two SL stints. In his rookie year, RHJ averaged 10 points and 6.9 boards in the 10 games he played in Orlando and Las Vegas. Then last year, he put up 10.4 points, 6.6 boards and 3.2 steals over five games, all in Vegas.

Spencer Dinwiddie had his least effective game overall. After entering Monday night with 53 minutes and one turnover, the soon-to-be fourth year guard had three giveaways over 16 minutes of play vs. the Pels. He finished with two points and one assist after coming into Monday averaging 10.5 points (which matches his career SL average), 3.5 steals and two assists.

Toledo-alum Nathan Boothe received the starting nod after a couple of decent showings, and scored eight points in 13 minutes in place of Prince Ibeh, who got a July DNPCD (Did not play, coach’s decision.)

Elsewhere, Jeremy Senglin, who the Nets signed to a partial guaranteed deal, scored 14 points in 19 reserve minutes. Senglin’s offense was firing on all cylinders, shooting 5-of-10 from the field and 3-of-7 from three-point range. He was the leading three point shooter in college ball this season.

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Overnight, a Turkish team announced that Boothe had signed with them for this season. Boothe will play for Sakarya. He had played in Italy last season. He will presumably leave Las Vegas soon.

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