The Nets lost to the Heat 106-97 despite Brooklyn getting 22 points and six assists out of D'Angelo Russell along with 22 points and three steals from Keon Johnson. The Nets began

After the Los Angeles Lakers traded Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks to the Nets last month in exchange for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton, he dropped 22 points off the bench in his season debut with Brooklyn in a 130-113 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 1.

In the crosstown rivalry game, New York nearly let up a fourth-quarter comeback, scoring just 15 points in the final 12 minutes. However, Brooklyn's 20 fourth-quarter points weren't enough. The Nets had relatively even scoring across the board,

Russell has struggled to stay on the floor since joining the Nets in a Dec. 29 trade from the Los Angeles Lakers. He's missed six of the team's last 13 matchups while battling shin and hamstring ailments. The veteran point guard has shouldered a much heavier on-ball burden than with the Lakers during the first half of this season.

Cam Johnson and D’Angelo Russell returned Tuesday night for the decimated Nets, though Nic Claxton got added to their long injury list.

The Brooklyn Nets aren’t interested in winning too many games — nor should they be — but their starting point guard might throw a wrench into those plans.