Nets stay hot with new-look starting lineup

The Brooklyn Nets have been playing their best basketball of the season since head coach Lionel Hollins shook up the starting lineup. 

Brooklyn's strong play continued Friday by winning its third consecutive game with a 100-98 victory over the Orlando Magic. The win was the Nets' sixth in their last seven contests and moved them to .500 on the season with a 16-16 record. 

Orlando made things scary in the fourth after the Nets nearly blew a 26-point lead, but Joe Johnson sunk a pair of free throws with under 30 seconds remaining to seal the deal for Brooklyn. 

The Nets have gone on a 6-1 run since Jarrett Jack took over as the starting point guard. Jack received two starts after Deron Williams sat with a calf injury and has remaining in the starting lineup in five games since. 

Oft-injured big Brook Lopez has also found himself out of a starting job, as Hollins has elected to go with second-year center Mason Plumlee instead. Jack and Plumlee have both answered the call, putting up big numbers with increased playing time. 

Plumlee was at it again Friday, scoring a game-high 18 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field while hauling in nine rebounds. But the Nets received a lift from the bench, too, with Williams and Lopez playing their best games since they were bounced out of the starting lineup. 

Williams scored 16 points - converting on 3-of-3 shots from long range - while dishing out seven assists. Lopez, meanwhile, also put up 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and hauled in eight rebounds. 

Hollins deserves credit for sticking with what's working and not caving to the fact that Williams and Lopez are two of the team's highest-paid players. Only Johnson is making more per season than the duo. 

Williams and Lopez will likely find themselves coming off the bench again when Brooklyn looks to make it four in a row when it visits the Miami Heat on Sunday.