It probably would not have mattered.
The Nets — on the second night of a back-to-back, playing in the thin air of Denver without much of a chance to become accustomed to the atmosphere, facing the reigning NBA champions and probably the league’s best player — likely were going to lose regardless of their lineup options.
But their injuries, particularly to Lonnie Walker IV, were felt and have begun to take their toll.
The Nets were missing an offensive spark throughout a predictable loss to the Nuggets on Thursday, and an offensive spark was the exact role Walker had played until a hamstring strain knocked him out for six games and counting.
Another valued member of the second unit, Dennis Smith Jr., sat for a fourth straight game with an upper back sprain.
Ben Simmons, whose defense and ability to push the ball upcourt quickly has been absent, was out for a 17th straight.
In the first half against perhaps the best team in basketball, head coach Jacque Vaughn went 10 deep — partially to save legs that had spent plenty of energy beating the Suns a night prior — including significant time from further-down options such as Trendon Watford, Day’Ron Sharpe and Jalen Wilson.
During a second quarter in which the Nets scored 17 points and shot 0-for-7 from 3-point range, they needed a reliable threat on both ends who could bring some energy and preferably some points.
They needed players who were not available.
“Obviously we miss Dennis and Lonnie a ton,” Spencer Dinwiddie said after the blowout loss. “I think their spirit, their athleticism, their effort is something that we would love to have out there right now.
“But with what we have and the fact that … we’re getting healthy, we’re starting to come together a little bit.”
It is fairly stunning that the Nets can legitimately bemoan the loss of Walker, a sixth-year shooting guard who had never been a difference maker with the Kings or Lakers.
The 25-year-old signed for $2 million — the veteran minimum — this offseason and was a healthy scratch for the Nets’ season-opener, not yet in the team’s plans.
But injuries opened the door for Walker, who has played with a burst that lets him consistently get to the rim.
He has not started a game but has been one of the best sixth men in the NBA, averaging 14.6 points on 48.9 percent shooting while knocking down 46.3 percent from deep — those numbers are career-bests.
His best season has been sidetracked by a balky hamstring that will continue to sideline him through the remainder of the West Coast road trip, which swings to a game with the Warriors on Saturday and the Jazz on Monday.
The Nets’ bench has generally stepped up without Walker — non-starters outscoring their opponents by 30 total points in the six games he has missed — but issues of depth get exposed on long road trips and with unforgiving schedules.
“I just feel it was the emotional and physical drain from [Thursday], for sure,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said after the Nets were beaten by 23 and trailed by as many as 28. “To get on the plane and get here and try to play against a high-quality team — tough task.”
Not many teams are going to beat the Nuggets while tired and shorthanded.
Maybe Smith — who also has been ruled out for the road trip — could have slowed Jamal Murray, who helped build Denver’s lead with 14 first-half points.
Maybe Simmons — out indefinitely since early November — could have presented a different look to throw at Nikola Jokic, who thoroughly dominated and finished with a triple-double.
“It’s a tough back-to-back,” Cam Thomas acknowledged. “I’ll say we were a little tired, but it’s our job. We got to suit up, play, try to get a win.”
That gets tougher when pieces the Nets had begun to count on are no longer in play.
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