Brooklyn Nets: Biggest strengths and weaknesses for 2017-18

Strength No. 2: 3-point shooting 

In today’s NBA you need to hit the 3-point shot to have a legitimate chance of dethroning the most elite teams. Atkinson knows this and responded accordingly, having the Nets put up just under 32 3-pointers per game.

The Nets hit those outside shots at an abysmal 33.8 percent rate last season. Despite their poor percentage, they still made more than 10 3-pointers a game just off the sheer volume of 3-pointers attempted. In 2018, their 3-point percentage is very likely to increase with the addition of D’Angelo Russell.

Russell and Atkinson are a match made in heaven from a basketball philosophy standpoint. In 2017, 37.1 percent of Brooklyn’s offense came from the 3-point line. During that same season, Russell shot 35.1 percent from deep, and attempted a career-high 6.1 threes per game.

His willingness to take and make big 3-point shots will help the floor-spacing tremendously. Brooklyn already did a decent job spacing the floor, but now they can field lineups that are a lot more potent since their roster is almost entirely composed of wing players.

All of Brooklyn’s guards can hit the 3-point shot at a decent rate. The ones who can’t, like Caris LeVert (32.1 percent from 3) and Isaiah Whitehead (29.5 percent) are young enough for those figures to improve over time. They both shot at least two 3-pointers per game lasts season, showing they at least understand they need to keep defenses honest with the outside shot.

Next year the Nets will continue to be one of the better 3-point shooting teams in terms of volume. But if Russell and Brooklyn’s crop of young wings hit even a slightly higher percentage of their 3-pointers this season, the Nets could see a decent spike in their win percentage.