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EspañolNEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets (15-45) are still looking for their first win coming out of the All-Star break, but they had a better chance of ending their losing streak with the Cleveland Cavaliers (38-24) missing Donovan Mitchell due to injury. Brooklyn came into the game dealing with two injuries to center Nic Claxton and rookie guard Egor Demin and it seems like the Nets could have used both of them.
The Netslost to the Cavaliers on Sunday 106-102 despite the fact that Brooklyn never trailed by more than 11 points as they had arguably their best effort since coming back from the break. Forward Michael Porter Jr. led the way for the Nets with 26 points and five rebounds while rookie forward Danny Wolf had 23 points and nine rebounds coming off the bench.
The main reason that the Cavaliers were able to emerge from this game with a victory was due to the efforts of guard James Harden (22 points, nine rebounds, eight assists) and center Jarrett Allen (20 points, six rebounds). Brooklyn was unable to come away from this game with their desired result, but they gave a much better effort. Here are three Nets takeaways from Sunday's loss to the Cavaliers:
Michael Porter Jr. Impacts Both Ends Of The Floor
Porter, who finished this game with 26 points (10-of-17 from the field, 5-of-8 from three-point land) and five rebounds, has clearly been the offensive engine for the Nets this entire season, but this game showed how impactful he can be on the defensive end when he's locked in. Porter used his length to get into the passing lanes and racked up three of Brooklyn's 10 steals against a Cavaliers team missing Donovan Mitchell.
Rookie Danny Wolf Impresses Off The Bench
Wolf has had some rough stretches this season while trying to provide some semblance of consistency off the bench as a rookie, but he has found his stride as of late. Coming off his best month of the season, Wolf had arguably his best game of the season against the Cavaliers after dropping 23 points, nine rebounds, and five assists in 27 minutes off the bench.
Grant Nelson Sparks Bench Unit
Nelson, playing in just his second game with Brooklyn after signing a 10-day contract with the club after spending the entire season in Long Island, came off the bench with quite the impact in his first stint on the floor. Nelson, who played 20 minutes for head coach Jordi Fernandez, dropped 11 points, four rebounds, one steal, and three blocks as he brought the kind of spark that the team is looking for in every game, especially one against a formidable opponent like the Cavaliers.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 106-102 loss to James Harden, Cavaliers