First the Nets lost their best scorer. Then they lost a heartbreaker to basketball’s best team.
Hours after finding out Cam Thomas will miss the rest of the season, Brooklyn was edged 115-113 by defending champion Boston in front of a sellout crowd of 18,016 at Barclays Center.
The Nets (22-45) have dropped 10 of their last 11 games. Their prior four — against Chicago, Cleveland, Charlotte and Golden State Warriors — had been a combined 16 points because of struggles in the second half. This was even closer.
Cam Johnson — who had 23 points — hit a 3-pointer to pull Brooklyn within one with 4.5 seconds to play.
But Payton Pritchard (22 points) one of two at the line, and a last-ditch heave by Johnson failed to beat the clock.
Brooklyn has the fifth-best lottery odds, moving half-game ahead of Philadelphia and two ahead of the seventh-place Raptors.
Keon Johnson, starting at off-guard in place of Thomas, had 21 points.
The Celtics (49-19) were led by Kristaps Porzingis (24 points) and Jayson Tatum (20 points)
Brooklyn was already without Nic Claxton, Noah Clowney and Trendon Watford when they got hit with the news of hamstrung leading scorer Thomas being lost for the rest of the season.
The Nets surrendered a 24-5 first-half Celtics run.
Jalen Wilson (15 points) had hit a 3 to spot Brooklyn to an early 27-26 lead with 1:33 left in the first quarter. But they coughed up that extended run that stretched midway through the second.
Brooklyn trailed by 18 after Payton Pritchard’s 3-pointer capped the run.
The deficit swelled to 55-34 on a Tatum hook shot with 4:12 remaining in the half.
But the Nets had one last run in them, a late 13-5 blitz to get back into the game.
Down by 12 with 1 ½ minutes left in the third, Wilson’s 3-pointer pulled the Nets within 90-86 with 9:21 to play.
Little-used Maxwell Lewis (15 points, 6-of-7 shooting) made the most of his minutes, and his 3-pointer off a Wilson feed cut it to 92-89.
And the Nets clawed within 94-92 on Johnson’s 3-pointer with 7:59 remaining. He got them within one in the waning seconds, but no closer.
