Author Archive

The Nets host Toronto for the final time in the regular season tonight. (AP)

BY SAM LACHOW

The Brooklyn Nets host the Atlantic Division-leading Toronto Raptors, hoping to even up the season series at two games apiece.

... MORE →

Joe Johnson & the Nets host Memphis for the only time this season. (AP)

BY SAM LACHOW

The Brooklyn Nets host the Memphis Grizzlies tonight in Brooklyn, for a chance to go over .500 for the first time this season.

 
Projected starting lineup: Mike Conley, Courtney Lee, Tayshaun Prince, Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol
... MORE →

Jimmy Butler & Joe Johnson got into a scuffle last time these teams played. (AP)

BY SAM LACHOW

 
Projected starting lineup: Kirk Hinrich, Jimmy Butler , Mike Dunleavy, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah
... MORE →

The Nets face the Bucks tonight, who are not very good. (AP)

BY SAM LACHOW

Projected starting lineup: Brandon Knight, Nate Wolters, Khris Middleton, Ersan Ilyasova, Zaza Pachulia

The Bucks are the worst team in the NBA, so let that inform the rest of your reading.

It’s fair to say that the Bucks are looking forward to late June and the NBA Draft. Brandon Knight is shooting 41.8 percent and leads the team in scoring. Ersan Ilyasova and O.J. Mayo are underperforming. Larry Sanders is an off-the-court letdown and injury prone. The Bucks have few offensive weapons, arguably the worst defense in the league, can barely rebound, and rank fourth in turnover percentage.

Get excited!

The lone bright spot on the Bucks may be the rise of Giannis Antetokounmpo. While his numbers aren’t great, Giannis has made some big-time plays this year. Considering he’s only 19, Bucks fans have a lot to be excited for. (Just not this year.)

Even throughout the tumultuous Nets season, they have still managed to beat up on the Bucks. The Nets are coming off destroying the Nuggets in their last game. Even though they will be without Kevin Garnett, the Nets should still be able to take care of the Bucks with ease.

Stephen Curry & the Warriors host Brooklyn in California. (AP)

 
Projected starting lineup: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, David Lee, Jermaine O’Neal

Last time out: Nets 102, Warriors 98. Kevin Garnett was the man again.

This the Warriors have to pace themselves as they compete in the brutal Western Conference. They're currently 11 games over .500, but it only puts them at the 7th seed in the Western Conference.

Led by Curry, Thompson and Lee on offense, Mark Jackson’s squad is 10th in points per game at 103.5, and 10th in assists per game at 22.7 per game. On the defensive end, the Warriors are second in the league in rebounds per game, and the addition of Andre Iguodala and re-emergence of Andrew Bogut has pushed the Warriors to a top-10 defense. Bogut is listed as "doubtful" with a shoulder injury.

Everyone knows that the Warriors shoot the lights out. Curry and Thompson have proven to be two of the best shooters in the league, and Curry may be one of the best shooters the NBA has ever seen. Here's how Curry performed in Golden State's last game:

The Warriors play an incredibly up-tempo offense as well. Golden State is in the top eight in the league in PACE or possessions per game at 98.8. The pace means they're a bit turnover-prone, but they shoot so well it's a minor quibble.

David Lee is a player to look out for. While his defense may be mediocre, Lee still crashes the boards consistently. Seeing as the Nets are one of the worst rebounding teams in the league, Lee may be in for a huge night.

The Warriors are a nightmare matchup for the Nets, in the sense that they can hit the three and the Nets have a hard time defending the three. Still, since the start of 2014 the Nets have been playing better in all facets on defense. Aggressive defenders Alan Anderson and Shaun Livingston will have to make a difference. The Nets need to step up on the glass, as Bogut and Lee will be crashing the boards the second Thompson, Curry, or Iguodala put up a shot.

BY JAKE HENSON

What will Marcus Thornton bring to Brooklyn? (AP)

What will the Brooklyn Nets get with Marcus Thornton?
... MORE →

BY SAM LACHOW

Paul Pierce & the Nets are in Utah tonight. (AP)

 
Projected starting lineup: Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward, Richard Jefferson, Marvin Williams, Derrick Favors

New Commissioner Adam Silver might sue if I said that the Utah Jazz were “tanking,” but whatever language you want to use, the Jazz are focused on the future. While their 19-33 record is not as bad as some expected and they've won three straight games, the Jazz have an average offense coupled with one of the worst defenses in the NBA. Still, they should be somewhat content with their season given the improvements of Alec Burks and the skilled play of rookie Trey Burke since coming back from injury.

Despite their record, the Jazz has a lot of fun offensive weapons, and can surprise. This was evident recently when the Jazz upset LeBron James and the Miami Heat. They've moved center Enes Kanter to the bench and start a small-ball lineup similar to Brooklyn's, with Marvin Williams and former Nets forward Richard Jefferson next to other former Nets forward Derrick Favors inside. The Nets, you might remember, traded Favors, the pick that became Kanter, Devin Harris, and a later pick to the Jazz for one Deron Williams.

The Nets and Jazz last played on November 6th, and the Nets won a 104-88 laugher in Brooklyn. But the leading scorer from that game was Brook Lopez, who dropped 27 points on 10-13 shooting in the win. They won't have him tonight.

For Utah, Gordon Hayward is a player to watch. While Hayward has proven that he is a capable scorer and overall offensive threat, he's averaged just 13.5 points per game and shot 34% from the field in his last ten games. Hayward's matched up with a slumping Joe Johnson.

A win on the road against a bad team would be a good start to this six-game west coast trip. The NBA season is a series of momentum shifts, and one of the most important is how a team starts off the second half. It wouldn’t surprise if Deron Williams came out firing against his former team, and particularly his rookie assignment Trey Burke.