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Bruce Brown defies easy definition.
A shooter who doesn’t really shoot? A center of 6 feet 4 inches?
More and more, the Nets are calling Brown indispensable. In a team with Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, his glue-guy type game was irreplaceable.
“Bruce is remarkable,” coach Steve Nash said after Brown led the Nets to a 127-118 victory over the Kings on Tuesday. “The guy mostly played point guard last year, and he’s playing – what do you call him? Our center? He picks up and rolls and ends with two big ones in the lane. His willingness and ability to do so is remarkable.
“He did a 3, but for me, that’s all the rest. It’s activity, defense, deflections, all those other things. You add it all up and you had a big impact on the game before you even hit the points. “
Brown had a career-high 29 points on an 11-for-13-for-a-plus-20 shot. He had eight runs in the deciding 14-1 inning of the fourth quarter, topping it with three straight runs. For a player hitting 23.1% from a 3-point range this was unexpected, but it boosted confidence.
“Kyrie comes to me all the time. He sees me working on my shot and I know I can shoot, it’s just confidence right now, ”said Brown. “So he tells me ‘one per game’ before each game, then I gave him one. If you’ve seen us, he looked at me and said one, and I gave him two, so that was pretty cool.
But it wasn’t just Brown’s shot that helped the Nets climb within half a game of the Eastern Conference lead, it was his, well, everything.
The Pistons treated Brown, 24, in November because of his limited offense, but the Nets wanted his defense and courage. And his insertion into the roster on Feb.10 coincided with their best seven-game NBA-winning streak in Thursday’s game against the Magic.
“He does a bit of everything. He’s a guy that goes out there and goes head to head every night, and big things are happening for him, ”said Harden. “He sets up screens and rolls to the basket, he’s an incredible cutter, and he’s shown he’s capable of knocking down 3-ball.
“He does everything. He works his butt, and when you work your cock and keep creaking and pushing, good things happen. I am happy for him and proud of him.
The Nets are 18-6 when Brown registers at least 13 minutes, but only 3-6 when he doesn’t.
“He’s always in the right defensive position, active, making it difficult for that end,” said Joe Harris. “He does the little things that people don’t realize.”
Brown often keeps the best threat in the opponent’s backcourt, and Nash has found ways to mask his offensive flaws while building up his strengths. Although the guards are almost exclusively ball handlers in the pick-and-roll, Brown has excelled as a rolling man.
“Bruce makes it look easy. It’s not easy being a 6-3 goalie and picking, rolling, catching, finishing, ”Nash said. “Bruce is special. It’s not a normal thing to ask a 6-3 guard to be the roller skates, so his ability to do it and finish and have the timing – and the will, right? A lot of guards would laugh at you in the gym if you asked them to pick-and-roll.
As a roll man, Brown’s 71.4 percent shot is 14th in the NBA, and his 1.39 points per possession is seventh, better than Rudy Gobert and Bam Adebayo. Of the six men in front of him, Hornets forward Miles Bridges is the only one under 6-11.
“I think I played 1-5 in AAU, that’s about it. Maybe in college I played 4 at one point, but never [center]Brown said. “I’m pretty good. I love the role and just try to do anything [takes] for us to win. I have to do it, then I will.
Is it sustainable? Perhaps. Is it fun? Certainly.
“He’s playing hard, and that skill is weird,” Nash said, finally finding a way to describe Brown. “He’s a winner.”
Nets second half schedule
March 11 vs Boston, 7:30 a.m.
March 13 vs., Det, 7 p.m.
March 15 vs Knicks, 8 p.m.
March 17 at Indiana, 7 p.m.
March 19 at Orlando, 8 p.m.
March 21 vs Washington, 7 p.m.
March 23 at Portland, 10 p.m.
March 24 at Utah, 10 p.m.
March 26 at Denver, 7 p.m.
March 29 vs Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.
March 31 vs Houston, 7:30 p.m.
April 1 vs Charlotte, 7:30 p.m.
April 4 at Chicago, 2 p.m.
April 5 vs Knicks, 7 p.m.
April 7 vs New Orleans, 7:30 p.m.
April 10 vs Lakers, 8:30 p.m.
April 12 at Minneesota, 8 p.m.
April 14 at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
April 16 vs Charotte, 7:30 p.m.
April 18 at Miami, 3:30 p.m.
April 20 at New Orleans, 7:30 p.m.
April 21 at Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
April 23 vs Boston, 7:30 p.m.
April 25 vs Phoenxi, 3:30 p.m.
April 27 at Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
April 29 at Indiana, 7 p.m.
April 30 vs Portland, 8 p.m.
May 2 at Milwaukee, 3:30 p.m.
May 4 at Milwaukee, 7:30 p.m.
May 6 at Dallas, 7:30 p.m.
May 8 at Denver, 10 p.m.
May 11 at Chicago, 8 p.m.
May 12 vs San Antonio, 8 p.m.
May 15 vs Chicago, TBD
May 16 vs Cleveland, TBD
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