.:: Official New Jersey Nets Thread ::.

[Andrew]

He may be 39 but he played all but one game for the Pacers last year and his athleticism is still fairly good given his age. He won't be spectacular but the Nets already have a star point guard at their disposal. All he needs to be is a solid backup now that Williams is set to miss some time.

[yosifun]

Lately I had the chance to watch some of the games of New Jersey (vs. Chicago, vs. Atlanta, vs. Boston and a bit vs. New Orleans) and I'm a little worried about the team's offense...

The Net's offense revolves around the big three, this means that the ball is passed along the 3pt arc and sometimes you will see a backdown play from Vince or RJ. The frontline of the team is barley used, although Krstic and Magloire are not Yao and Shaq, they got game too and they can backdown their men and create more opportunities in offense.

If Frank is not satisfied with his big men than he should trade for a quality player that he knows he can use like Brand or J.O'neal. It's a shame that this team is only playing with 3 players on offense, their plays are pretty much predictable.

Another remark, Jason Collins might be one of the best one-on-one defensive big men in the league but can't the coaches work with him on a little offense? a bit of mid-range shooting when he's open of a couple of back to the basket moves could help a lot...

[Its_asdf]

It's wishful thinking, Yosifun. Kristic is solid, but Magloire isn't at the double-double all-star level he was a few years ago anymore.

Jason Collins is just a waste of life. I admit he's a pretty good defender, but he's such a liability on offence that I don't think that he can make up for it. You can be the best defender on the planet, but it doesn't necessarily equate to anything if you can't help your team put any baskets on the board yourself.

I like the play of Antoine Wright though. He struggled in his first start of the season, but I think the Nets made a mistake in not extending him.

[NNpF]

Am I the only one who's extremely impressed with Sean Williams?

Also the Nets play so much better team basketball without Vince, I don't think I'm ever going to accept the contract we gave him.

[yosifun]

@Its_asdf, Krstic isn't used as much as he should and even though Magloire's best years are behind him, he's still a solid player and I would happily accept his averages from last year at Portland. About Collins, he is a good defender, but he has no place in the starting lineup whatsoever. He should only come in to the game for some minutes of "dirty" defensive work and pick up some fouls maybe for the starters. Antoine Wright is playing great, if he continues this way he should get an extension next season but even if he won't he is not a starter so he could be easily replaced.

@NNpF, Sean Williams is a good shot blocker, that's my first and only impression because I haven't seen much of him.. I hope he develops into a solid player (he also needs to balk up a bit). As far as Vince, he is their best player IMO and there is no doubt that the team is better with him, the main problem is the front court (or Frank's usage of the front court).

[NNpF]

@NNpF, Sean Williams is a good shot blocker, that's my first and only impression because I haven't seen much of him.. I hope he develops into a solid player (he also needs to balk up a bit). As far as Vince, he is their best player IMO and there is no doubt that the team is better with him, the main problem is the front court (or Frank's usage of the front court).

Sean Williams is exactly the kind of player we need, great shot blocker, great hustle which leads to him grabbing a lot of offensive rebounds, and just a great overall energy guy.

Also, Krstic still isn't 100% so I'm hoping we see his minutes go up a lot as he gets better, I really like his play.

And it's true that Vince is their best player. However, pay attention to how they play with him and how they play without him. I'm not talking about W-L but they move the ball around a lot more and in my opinion they look better defensively. With Jefferson healthy and Antoine Wright developing I really think the Nets should have traded him when we had the chance.

Now I don't know what they could have gotten for Vince, I'm not saying we could have solved all our problems trading him away, but we defintiely could have explored our options. It's really tough to say I don't know exactly what goes on around the league in terms of who wants who and such, and I'm sure a lot of teams would hesitate to trade for a guy who's basically resorted to firing up threes from all over the court and is injury prone.

Either way I can't accept the contract we gave him, I think Jefferson could do perfectly fine taking his place. He takes much smarter shots and knows that taking the ball to the basket should always come first and then look for your jumper, which seems to be improving every season.

To be honest, if there was any possible way to pull off some sort of trade to bring Kenyon Martin back by trading Vince away I can't say I wouldn't like that trade. The only thing I would worry about is that he may never return to the level at which he played when he was with the Nets.

[mvpshaq32]

Another triple-double for Kidd and he even matched Howard on the boards. A career-high 19 boards....very impressive for a 6'4 guy.

[Dan's Brain]

A 34-year old getting career highs in anything is impressive, let alone a 6'4 point guard smashing his previous rebound high by 3.

He could keep going til 40. He really could. He hasnt taken a single step backwards.

[yosifun]

The Nets are playing just horrible Their offense is one of the worst is the league and if you don't put points you get them on the other end of the court.

I know Carter is the best offensive player in the team but can't the other guys step up? Since he got hurt I have only seen good numbers from Jefferson and Sean Williams (I'm starting to LOVE this guy) and maybe Kidd when he is 100% healthy.

I wonder if the Nets are thinking about making some changes and maybe trade for a good player like J.O'neal or someone in his level, I wouldn't mind even sending Marcus Williams because Armstrong is playing pretty good and Boykins is still a free agent for everyone to take. As long as the big 3 and Sean Williams stay along with Krstic/Magloire I'm satisfied.

I wish Carter would come back quickly, I can't wait to see how this team will look with Kidd, Carter, Jefferson, S.Williams and Krstic/Magloire on the court. It's a pretty well balanced team that can run on offense and defend well (thanks to Sean of course).

[benji]

Not just one of the worst, THE worst, beating out the Bulls by a hair. Arguably the worst team in the league.

Nachbar and Krstic have been worthless. Magloire, Collins and Allen as well. Carter a huge disappointment pre-injury.

[TheMC5]

Nachbar is worthless, though. So is Magloire, Collins, and Allen. And Vince got paid, of course he's been a disappointment. Any Raptors fan could have told you that. Kristic will get better once he's back to 100% and has re-adjusted to the pace and physicality of the NBA. I hope that doesn't happen, though.

[yosifun]

Man, you Raptors fans are all about hate hate and hate...

[TheMC5]

Man, you Raptors fans are all about hate hate and hate...

I actually like Kristic, and I'd root for him to get back to where he was last year if he played on any other team but the Nets. However, the Nets could potentially be playoff competition for the Raps, so of course I don't want them to do well.

And yeah, I fucking hate Carter. Don't worry, Nets fans will start to hate him soon, too.

[yosifun]

So the Nets could potentially be playoff competition, so what? It's not like I have to hate every team in the Atlantic (like Boston and Toronto) or in the East (like Orlando or Detroit) or in the entire league for that matter because I'm a Nets fan.. I'm supporting my team and if my team isn't good enough, too bad.

I have said it before and I will say it again, Raptors fans are living in the past, Carter has played some of his best years Toronto and now he's gone.. that's how this league is, deal with it. Even though I dislike most of the Raptors fan because of that issue I still like their team because I'm a basketball fan FIRST, you can't say the same thing about some Raptors fans..
And don't worry, Nets fans won't hate Carter, they are loyal fans who appreciate what players have given to them.

[TheMC5]

Have fun when Vince bails on your team, then. I look forward to your continued blind loyalty.

I also love your contention that I somehow hate every other team just cause I'm a Raptors fan, and that all Raptors fans are like that. All Nets fans make stupid assumptions about Raptors fans! (See how ridiculous that looks?)

You're just bitter cause you know Vince will be balls now that he's gotten paid. And guess what, he fucking bailed on Toronto. He forced a trade just cause he's a whiny, entitled bitch. So yeah, I hate him as a player, much like I hate Kobe for being a whiny entitled bitch, or any other player who isn't man enough, or doesn't show enough LOYALTY (ironic, no?) to even bother trying once they get discouraged.

[Its_asdf]

.... I like Vince Carter.

Really, I do. No bullshitting there. Maybe it's my unrelenting love of athletic swingmen...

[yosifun]

I'm a big Vince fan, I'm all for his success wherever he goes, even if it won't be with the Nets (I don't see him leaving anytime soon anyway).

I didn't meant you hate every other team, I just found it funny that you want the Nets to fail because they might be a threat to the Raptors in the playoffs.
I'm not bitter at all as far as Vince's game, I know what he is worth and I know it's just a slow start for him before he starts to put his real numbers (17.0 PPG 5.5 RPG 4.5 APG is still nice although he can do much more), saying that he plays bad because "he gotten paid" is a stupid remark by a person who is ignorant as far as basketball.

Both Vince and Kobe (who I dislike for other reasons) didn't give up once they got discouraged, Vince has played for many seasons until he fad up with the club for not bringing any help so he decided he wants to give it a try in another place, I'm not trying to justify the way he did it, but he had good reasons. The Kobe situation is similar, it's not his first season leading this team without Shaq so you also can't say the same about him.

[Its_asdf]

Then again, Vince also campaigned for salary cap chugging moves such as resigning Davis, Alvin and Jerome to massive deals (Vince was also a free agent at the time). He also campaigned for the signing of Hakeem. It was these moves that caused the Raptor management salary cap hell with an extremely small amount of wiggle room for those few years of Raptors mediocrity.

Every single one of these moves Glen Grunwald made without a single thought to cater to Carter's need. When those very players that he wanted the Raps to resign got injured and deteriorated quickly, Carter goes to blame management for their undoing.

I admit I used to hate on the guy for leaving, but I got my panties up in a bunch because of obvious reasons. I actually like the guy now, but I don't like to think the guy's not guilty for doing some of the things he's done.

[yosifun]

Vince is back for the Nets as they win in Portland, he gave a solid game coming off the bench with 13 points in 27 minutes.

Nachbar was great in the finish with 23 points along with a good game by Kidd and Jefferson, I just wish Frank won't cut down Sean Williams minutes because of Nachbar (who I think should be the backup SF) and guys like Allen and Collins (I wonder when Krstic and Magloire will start playing good basketball again).

[J J]

Someone should really convince Kidd to go to the Lakers, he's exactly what the Lakers need. What better way to develop Bynum than Kidd dishing out excellent passes and alley oops to the kid. Then again, he's exactly what 80% of the teams in the league needs.

[fizz]

But if Kidd is traded to the Lakers the Nets are going to want in return an all-star caliber player, or someone like Bynum. So that won't work until Kidd becomes a free agent or becomes worthless to the Nets, which I don't think is going to happen until he retires.

[J J]

The Lakers can trade away Vujacic/Crittenton/Mihm/Ariza/Brown/Radmanovic...

BTW, Where's Kwame?

[Andrew]

Kwame's out with a sprained knee.

[SpaceFlare]

The Lakers can trade away Vujacic/Crittenton/Mihm/Ariza/Brown/Radmanovic...

BTW, Where's Kwame?

I wouldn't give away Kidd for that.. If you're trading away a future Hall-of-Famer and one of the best players in the league, you'll want young talent with a lot more upside.

Only Crittenton and Ariza fit the bill on young players with upside. Brown is an expiring contract and would be an acceptable piece in the deal.

I really doubt the Nets would give up Kidd if they aren't receiving Bynum in return. They need the young big with upside more so than the young guards with upside. As they have all the talent in the wings.

[SpaceFlare]

Bumping this thread for some Nets discussion.

Has anybody seen the Nets play after the Kidd trade? I've loved what I've seen from Devin Harris in the two Nets games I've seen, which are the 117-115 win over the Jazz, and the 125-114 loss to the Nuggets earlier. I think I'm ready to start supporting the Nets as my team in the East again.

There were times though that he made bad decisions and ended up pulling up for jumpers but I loved it when he controlled the tempo and was attacking the basket and setting up his teammates. I think that Dallas' style of play actually held him back from playing at this level. The talent is obviously there and he's cashing it in as a New Jersey Net.

The only thing the Nets seem to lack is depth and defense. They've shown that they can score but that offense is only stable when Harris, Carter, and Jefferson are out there. No, not even Marcus Williams; I've seen the Nets offense sort of stumble when they took out Harris and put in Marcus. Williams needs to have more confidence that he can come in for Harris and continue pushing the tempo like Harris did. The Nets also need someone who can come off the bench and score. They came back from down 17 against Denver earlier and they ran out of gas as Denver would build that lead up again. I lost track how many dunks Camby and Martin scored in the game earlier. I think Martin got around 5 dunks, 3 of those being alley-oops.

And the one thing that puzzles me is why does Sean Williams rack up fouls so much? I think he picked up 3 fouls in 6 minutes in the first half against Denver...