By Samindra Kunti – Brooklyn, New York. The Nets sneaked a win against the Dallas Mavericks, 107-106 as they extended their winning streak to four games, improving their over -all record this season to 19-22. Mirza Teletovic starred and personified the steady progress of the Nets in 2014.
M. Prokhorov, perhaps a classic New York character, was absent again on Friday to see his franchise take on the much-praised Mavericks. Mr. Prokhorov is an elusive figure, both for media and fans. In fact, Mr. Prokhorov has only attended two games of the Nets this season, the last one being in London when Brooklyn took the Atlanta Hawks apart.
Mark Cuban, the ever-present owner of the Dallas Mavericks, snapped at Mr. Prokhorov’s demeanor. Mr. Cuban was very much implying that a NBA franchise needs to be closely monitored and run by the owner in order to get positive results.
But at the end of the forth quarter, it was surely Mr. Prokhorov who was sniggering, be it far away. Andrei Kirilenko bucketed the crucial free-throws with 8.1 seconds left on the clock to secure another key win for Brooklyn.
Mirza Teletovic emerged as an unlikely hero to propel the Nets the victory. The lanky Macedonian was instrumental in Brooklyn’s relatively confortable win. The Nets took the lead early in the first quarter and never gave it up, with the Macedonian scoring imperious three-pointers from downtown.
“Europe thought me a lot. I got better at defense and rotation,” said Teletovic. While his all-round play was impressive, Teletovic excelled offensively.
“With Joe Johnson in one corner and Paul Pierce in another, they’re like, ‘O.K., let’s leave the guy from Europe open,” said Teletovic cheerfully. He came on in the second quarter and showed great form, eventually resulting in a game-high of 34 points.
The ball gravitated towards him and a telepathic understanding with his teammates ensured he got the ball at the right time, and in the right place. The ball movement of the Nets was swift, very much the way Jason Kidd would want to see it on a more consistent basis in the future. That is, with or without Prokhorov in attendance.