Noah Clowney establishing himself as core piece for Nets with continued breakout

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Noah Clowney establishing himself as core piece for Nets with continued breakout

Erik Slater, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Fri, Dec 5, 2025 ·

4 min read

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The post Noah Clowney establishing himself as core piece for Nets with continued breakout appeared first on ClutchPoints .

While losses are piling up for the Brooklyn Nets this season, Noah Clowney continues to deliver breakout performances. With Michael Porter Jr . sidelined during Thursday's 123-110 loss to the Utah Jazz , Clowney poured in 29 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 from three. The third-year forward set career-highs in free throws made (10) and attempted (12).

Clowney is playing the best stretch of basketball of his career, drawing increased attention from opposing defenses, especially when Porter Jr. is sidelined.

"I know I've got to be more aggressive when [Mike's] not playing," Clowney said postgame. "In the three games he hasn't played, it's felt like I was a focal point of the other team, and they were treating me like a number one option. And I've haven't been a number one option since high school. So like I've never had to adapt to that. Even in Milwaukee [on Saturday], I think I shot three shots because I didn't know how to react to them just switching everything when I was involved. And I think I did better today."

The 21-year-old's performance following an injury-riddled sophomore campaign has been a breath of fresh air for the rebuilding Nets.

Noah Clowney continues breakout with 29-point performance vs. Jazz

After a slow start, Clowney has emerged as Brooklyn's No. 2 scorer behind Porter Jr amid a move to the starting lineup. The former first-round pick has averaged 16.9 points on .452/.392/.810 shooting splits over his last 16 games. His 64.0 true shooting percentage during that span ranks 12th among 102 players attempting at least 10 shots per game (minimum 10 games played).

Following a cold shooting start, Clowney has regained his touch from beyond the arc. He's converting 39.2 percent of his threes while attempting a career-high 6.5 per game. However, his development as a driver has been the most dramatic improvement of any Net in any area this season.

After converting just 41.4 percent of his two-point attempts last season, Clowney has shot 57.9 percent on twos over his last 16 games. Following an offseason body transformation , he's been a force driving to the basket — consistently finishing at the rim and drawing fouls at a career-best rate.

Clowney has become increasingly adept as a foul-drawer on drives to the rim. He's attempting 7.1 free throws per 100 possessions this season, more than double last year. His 4.0 made free throws per game since his move into Brooklyn's starting lineup ranks 38th in the NBA (minimum 10 games played).

"[A free-throw] is the easiest shot you're going to get outside of a layup," Clowney said after attempting a career-high 10 free throws vs. Utah. "Different people play me different ways. Smaller people, a lot of times they think my handle's weak, so they're going to reach when I drive their direction, so I'm going to rip your hands up every time… I was watching them when Danny [Wolf] spun earlier, and I saw them try to flood on his spin move… As soon as he turned his back, they turned. So, there's one where I spun, and I knew he was going to be right there, so I just grabbed his arms up. It's really that. Most of my fouls are on the rip-ups. There aren't that many in the air. So, yeah, I try to get to the line. I'll say that."

After an uninspiring defensive start this season, Clowney has shown flashes as a perimeter defender and rim protector in recent games. He blocked a season-high three shots vs. the Jazz. While he has much room to grow as a defensive rebounder, he's grabbed seven boards in two of his last five games.

General Manager Sean Marks has said he "is looking for the next Nets" this season. While Clowney will need to sustain his production for an extended period, his early-season breakout will go a long way towards solidifying his place as a core piece in Brooklyn moving forward.

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