Nets drop opener to Hawks despite putting up fight literally and figuratively

ATLANTA — Just because the Nets aren’t fighting for a championship in coach Jordi Fernandez’s debut season, that doesn’t mean they can’t show some fight. They might have shown a little too much in his first game as coach.

The Nets momentarily lost their poise in Wednesday’s season opener, and then lost 120-116 to Atlanta at State Farm Arena.

“I loved our physicality. We’ve been talking about Brooklyn grit, right? You saw it with 32 fouls,” Fernandez said. “The only thing is, we got to be smarter. Our technique has to be better. We have to lead with our chest and show our hands. They sH๏τ 21 more free throws.”

A shorthanded six-point underdog on the road — and projected by the sportsbooks to win a league-low 19.5 games — few expected the Nets to win this one.

Onyeka Okongwu, who scored 28 points, blocks Dorian Finney-Smith’s sH๏τ during the Nets’ 120-116 opening-night loss to the Hawks on Oct. 23, 2024.

Dyson Daniels of the Atlanta Hawks reacts towards Nic Claxton of the Brooklyn Nets during the fourth quarter at State Farm Arena on October 23, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Yet they led late in the third quarter, and trailed just 90-89 with 8:22 left when they allowed a 12-3 run — aided by a pair of frustration fouls, including a Flagrant 2 by Nic Claxton that got the center ejected.

“Yeah, that was clearly a foul,” Fernandez said. “You know, we don’t want anybody to see anybody get hurt. I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean to.”

It marred the debut of Fernandez, the first Spaniard to become an NBA head coach and just the third European.

“For sure. It’s definitely an honor to be one of 30. It’s an honor to represent the basketball that I come from, right, to come from Spain,” Fernandez said before the game. “I grew up in a FIBA environment, and then I came to the NBA working for 15 years. So the journey is really cool. I thought about it a lot. And like I said, I’m extremely proud and very happy.

“At the same time, the most important thing is you appreciate that, and then you keep going; because my goal is not just to coach in the NBA. My goal is to sustain it, to build a winning program, to be compeтιтive, to be in the playoffs, to fight for a championship. It’s always the next step. Otherwise, if I don’t see the challenge, I’ll be in my hometown, probably living a great life. So I have to have a reason to live with this crazy schedule and do what we do on a daily basis.”

In truth, the performance wasn’t victorious but it was solid.

After all, Nets owner Joe Tsai and general manager Sean Marks have embarked on a rebuild, tanking for the top pick in the draft.