NEW YORK _ Superman did not walk through that door.
Nor did Batman, Spiderman, Darkwing Duck or Luke Cage.
The Nets needed a superhero to drag them back from down 30 to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night. No such hero emerged. Brooklyn lost, 118-79.
And the Barclays Center crowd let the Nets have it, booing them off the court after a poor performance in a winnable game.
Wednesday was the second game of a back-to-back, one day after LeVert put on his cape and hung 51 points on the Celtics in Boston to pull the Nets back from down 21.
The Nets couldn't have expected him to put on an encore, and the way they played (14 points, 6-19 shooting), it would have taken a 51-point night from someone on the roster. Spencer Dinwiddie was not up for the challenge: He scored four points on 1-of-9 shooting without making any of his seven attempts from three and was a team-worst minus-22 in 27 minutes.
The Nets are an eighth seed that just got destroyed by another eighth seed, and the disparity between the two teams couldn't be more apparent.
The Grizzlies were also short several key players. Rookie of the Year runner-up Jaren Jackson Jr. sat out with left knee soreness. That's a 40% three-point shooter and post-up threat averaging 17 points per game that wasn't on the floor. The Grizzlies were also short rookie Brandon Clarke and playmaker Justise Winslow.
There were no excuses on their front. The Grizzlies pounded the Nets on the glass, 55-41, made 20 threes and enjoyed five players scoring in double figures with another two scoring nine. By the end of the game, Memphis reserves were toying with their opponent, like a Harlem Globetrotters performance _ or a video game matchup against a lesser opponent.
Only three Nets players made a three-pointer: Joe Harris, Taurean Prince and Chris Chiozza, the second-year guard who followed one impressive game in Boston with another against the Grizzlies.
Chiozza was not the superhero the Nets needed. Batman and Robin are out until next season.
If the Nets are going to win games and hold onto their standing as a playoff team, they'll have to be perfect for the rest of the season. Shooting 7-of-42 from three-point range is far from perfect.
For a team without its two most potent offensive weapons, shooting poorly from downtown is harakiri.
The Grizzlies didn't need their superhero to get by the Nets. Ja Morant finished with just 15 points on 15 shots. Memphis' heroes were in the paint: Jonas Valanciunas and Gorgui Dieng combined for 30 rebounds alone.
After a feel-good win over Boston, the Nets are back to square one, now losers in six of their last eight games.
Who will step up and keep this team in the playoff hunt?
