Brooklyn’s triumph over Golden State is an example of Fernández’s leadership abilities

No matter the opponent, Jordi Fernández and the Brooklyn Nets have proven that ingenuity is better than resources.

Nic Claxton, Dorian Finney-Smith, Noah Clowney and Ben Simmons sat outside. Cam Johnson injured his ankle midway through the game. Brooklyn trailed the Golden State Warriors by 18 points in the third quarter. Top scorer Cam Thomas did not play in the fourth game.

But it didn’t matter. When the final buzzer sounded, the Nets prevailed against all odds.

Fernández, who has already proven he is a top player in just 18 games, has instilled a real culture that has led to outstanding performances for a Brooklyn team that was supposed to be rebuilding.

Instead, they defeated the Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics all the way to the finish and beat the Sacramento Kings and Golden State on the road.

“Keep fighting and control the mistakes you can,” Fernández told his team before the brilliant comeback. “It was an absolute team effort.”

The Nets are now 5-1 in six games against the Western Conference. 8-10 overall. And they haven’t been at full strength once this season.

Day’Ron Sharpe and Bojan Bogdanovic have yet to play for the 2024-25 season. Simmons does not typically perform the second act of a consecutive performance. Claxton was broken all year.

Any other franchise would almost certainly be well away from the 500 mark. But Brooklyn is different.

It has Fernández at the helm.

Having completed almost a quarter of his first expedition as a leader, it is obvious that the performances that the Nets have shown are no coincidence. They have a rockstar head coach and a group of players who bought in early.

Amid a two-game winning streak, Brooklyn looks to complete its undefeated West Coast road trip with a victory over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday at 9 p.m. EST.

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