Shirt game Brook Lopez.

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Jamaal Franklin (AP)

Jamaal Franklin confirms he will workout for Dallas (13) and Brooklyn.Still omitted with a sprained ankle.

— Probasketballdraft (@Probballdraft) May 16, 2013

Franklin, a 6'5" junior guard from San Diego State, averaged 16.6 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game this past season, shooting 40.4% from the field. He measured out at 191 pounds with a huge wingspan of 6'11.25", but only shot 27.9% from beyond the three-point line this season.

Here's what DraftExpress had to say about his game in April:

While playing primarily as a jack-of-all-trades combo forward for the Aztecs, Franklin projects to be a shooting guard at the NBA level, with good size for the position at 6'5”, to go along with a solid build and what appears to be a long wingspan. He also stacks up very well athletically, and should have an easier time than most NBA rookies adjusting to the NBA game from a physical standpoint.

Playing as San Diego State's primary playmaker and shot-creator, Franklin carried a large load for the Aztecs as a junior, and he displayed tremendous versatility, leading the team in scoring, assists, rebounds, and steals per game.

His best asset, however, may be his outstanding motor, as he appears to be a great competitor, playing with major intensity and toughness on both ends of the floor.

This is on display on the offensive end, as he always seems to be in attack-mode, using his quick first step and aggressiveness to make his way towards the basket in transition and in the half-court, where he's able to finish effectively at the rim and get to the free throw line at a high rate.

Despite his strong scoring instincts and ability to create off the bounce, Franklin struggles to score efficiently (48 2P%, 28% 3P% as a junior), as he too often settles for long range jumpers and difficult shot attempts. He also turns the ball over a high rate (4 times per-40), as his aggressive mentality causes him to over-penetrate and get a bit out of control at times.

Some of this may be attributed to a large burden he carried for the Aztecs offensively, but he'll need to play more within himself and show better decision-making in order to find a role at the NBA level, where he'd likely be more of an opportunistic scorer.

DraftExpress has Franklin projected as the 21st pick in the draft. The Nets pick 22nd.

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Now that the inaugural Brooklyn Nets season has come to a close, Billy King's next major step comes on June 27 during the 2013 NBA Draft, hosted this year at Barclays Center. The Nets currently have the 22nd pick in the draft, and King attended this year's NBA Draft Combine in Chicago to scout.

"You're just trying to see guys' skill level," King told Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. "You've already seen a lot of them at college. So at this point, you're seeing how they interact, how they take instructions from the coaches, and see how hard they play."

King said the combine is not a "make-or-break" for most potential draftees, but an added component to consider when looking at a player's body of work. He said he puts more stock in their season performance and individual team workouts. He also did not tip his hand about potential players, positions, or roles he's looking to fill, or if he's looking to draft based on talent or need.

"This is good for the measurements you get, for the interviews ... this can't be the only thing you base your decision on, this is only a part of it," he added. "You get to learn about them as people."

Watch: NBA.com -- Billy King on Draft Combine

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In honor of Brooklyn's inaugural season, we're rolling out analysis, highlights, and more on each Brooklyn Nets player, one per day. Welcome to Mirza Teletovic Day, AKA #Fearza.

Nets Pistons Basketball

Brooklyn Nets power forward Mirza Teletovic (33), of Bosnia, shoots against the Detroit Pistons in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Auburn Hills, Mich., Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

By the numbers: 53 G, 0 GS, 9.4 MPG, 3.5 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 0.4 APG, 0.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG,  .384 FG%, .818 FT%, 47.4 TS%, 46.2 eFG%

Advanced: 12.3 PER, 105 ORtg, 107 DRtg, 19.4 USG%, 7.8 ORB%, 14.8 DRB%, 11.2 TRB%, 7.7 AST%, 1.4 STL%, 1.2 BLK%, estimated 0.9 win shares.

The 2012-2013 season was supposed to represent a new beginning, the Brook Lopez revenge tour, the Deron Williams revival tour, the Andray Blatche traveling circus, etc. But there’s one pre-season storyline that people forget about. This year was supposed to be the Year of the Mirza.

After rumors swirled about the foreign star verbally agreeing with Brooklyn for 3 years & $15 million, the Bosnian signed with the Nets for the mini mid-level exception (three years, $9.68 million), hoping Teletovic would be the reliable source of outside shooting that the Nets had in Anthony Morrow. Yet, much like most early expectations in Brooklyn, everything pertaining to Mirza Teletovic went out the window quickly.

Mirza, lauded for his quick-trigger sharpshooting, couldn’t find a place in Brooklyn’s rotation as said sharpshooter. Sometimes he shined, but often he frustrated. Mirza would often over-rotate on defense or not rotate at all, getting completely lost in the process and allowing an easy lay-up. He infamously airballed three shots in a row against Detroit, giving the majority of Nets fans major PTSD of their historically bad New Jersey teams.

But, then, sometimes, Mirza Teletovic made you think that he had a bright future in the NBA, no matter how fleeting the moment was. There was the early January game in Brooklyn against Sacramento where Mirza dropped 14 points, 6 rebounds and had two athletic blocks in 21 minutes; all capped off by a dunk that gave us the nickname “Air Mirza.” (See below.)

Or, there was that game at the end of year against Washington -- a game for all intents and purposes mattered very little, the same one that Tornike Shengelia dominated —- where Mirza tallied 15 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a block, shooting 50% in 25 minutes. In the moments in which Mirza Teletovic played the best, it wasn’t difficult to see him finding his NBA niche; unfortunately, those nights were hard to find in Brooklyn this year.

Presumably, Teletovic was signed by the Brooklyn Nets with the intention to use him as the back-up PF behind Kris Humphries, a man that would stretch the floor and open things up on the block for Brook Lopez. But when things went south with Humphries, it was Reggie Evans who received most of the minutes, eventually taking over the position completely.

On March 1^st, things looked up for Teletovic. Then-interim head coach P.J. Carlesimo said that the rotation would be tightened in order to get Mirza more minutes (which translated to kicking Humphries to the bench completely). In that stretch between the 1^st and 18^th of March, Mirza received double-digit minutes of playing time in nine straight games, culminating in a revenge game versus Detroit that lead the announcers to exclaim: “Not only did he hit the rim this time, but he made it!”

That night, Mirza went a perfect 4-4 from the field with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal and one block.

But Teletovic struggled from the field, the Nets went 5-4 over that stretch, Kris Humphries rejoined the rotation, and Teletovic’s minutes bottomed out again, this time for good.

Moving forward, Teletovic needs to work on his defense, his offense wasn’t what placed him at the end of a short bench all year. Teletovic often brought energy and hustle, but struggled with rotational help and positioning, leading to miscommunications and frustratingly wide-open attempts for the opponent.

For all of Teletovic’s frustrations or shortcomings this year, there were few Nets players as exciting as Mirza. Every time he touched the ball, it had a fair chance of going up. Eventually dubbed MT3, Teletovic had a funny way of embodying most of Brooklyn this year: frustratingly confusing at his worst, entertaining at his best.

Next year will be the real Year of the Mirza, hopefully. This summer, Teletovic should hit the court and work exclusively on his defense, because it’s really the only thing holding him back from a more consistent role.

Besides, we know that he’s shooting every ball he catches -- and he’ll never want it any other way.

Low Point: When you type “Mirza” into YouTube’s search engine, “Mirza Teletovic airball” is a top three result. So that. This was certainly Mirza’s low point, aside from the inconsistent playing time. In front of an oddly strong contingent of Bosnian supporters, Mirza airballed three shots in a row against Detroit.

High Point: The Sacramento game. I was lucky enough to actually be in attendance that night in Brooklyn; and it is undoubtedly the moment that I fell hopelessly in love with that perfect jumper. Two incredibly athletic blocks topped off by Air Mirza? Teletovic’s best game this year, by far.

Honorable Mention: His twitter handle is @Mirza46479432, and the last thing he posted was a picture from March of him after building a snowman. Mirza Teletovic, ladies and gentlemen.

HIGHLIGHTS:

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In honor of Brooklyn's inaugural season, we're rolling out analysis, highlights, and more on each Brooklyn Nets player, one per day. Welcome to Mirza Teletovic Day, AKA #Fearza.

The post Mirza Teletovic: Highlight Mix appeared first on The Brooklyn Game.

After meeting with Bucks, HOF coach Jerry Sloan decides he's not interested in Milwaukee job. Story up soon on NBA.com.

— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) May 16, 2013

Sloan is reportedly a candidate for the Brooklyn Nets head coaching position, and both he and Deron Williams have said publicly that they would not mind a reunion. Sam Amick of USA Today reported earlier this week that a Nets-Sloan union is "not on the horizon."

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The Nets lead the Knicks in Oculus, but not in fan equity, study finds. (AP)

When looking at brand equity, or "capturing the size and intensity of a team’s fan base," the Brooklyn Nets were ranked 30th out of 30 NBA teams for the second straight year, according to a study done by Mike Lewis & Manish Tripathi of Emory University. The New York Knicks rank first, also for the second straight year.

The study focuses solely on the difference between predicted home revenue and actual home revenue, calculating predicted home revenue with a number of factors, including market size, winning percentage, and all-star players. The study does not consider television revenues or corporate presence in the cities.

The study adds that the Nets ended last despite having the 5th-largest improvement from last season of any team, which gives you an idea of the brand identity crisis the franchise had in New Jersey in the first place. "The Brooklyn Nets are a fascinating example, given the hype that surrounded the move to Brooklyn, and Jay-Zs 'ownership,'" Lewis & Tripathi added in the article.

The Nets don't seem to put much stock in the methodology.

"With all due respect to Emory University, that is a seriously flawed study," Barry Baum, Chief Communications Officer of the Brooklyn Nets & Barclays Center, told The Brooklyn Game.

Read More: Emory University -- Which NBA Team has the Best Home Fans? And Who has the Worst? Hint: It’s New York!

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1) Indiana closing it out. After splitting the two games in New York and then sweeping the two-game home stretch in Indiana, the Indiana Pacers hold a commanding 3-1 lead on the New York Knicks and are one more road victory away from guaranteeing a spot against the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. Outside of a dominating 105-79 victory over the Pacers in Game 2, the Knicks have looked exceedingly vulnerable, a chilling contrast from their record-setting start to the season -- fewer three-pointers, Carmelo Anthony at small forward instead of power forward, and a lot of one-on-one offense. In Game 4, the Knicks shot just 35.6% from the field, and 61 of their 87 field goal attempts came from three players (Anthony, J.R. Smith, and Raymond Felton). If the Knicks continue their freakish stagnancy, they won't last beyond tonight.

2) Golden State staying alive. This is a personal choice. I'm a big fan of the Golden State Warriors and want to see them survive. They're down 3-2 to the San Antonio Spurs, but this is their last stand at home to force a Game 7. Earlier in the playoffs, Zach Lowe of Grantland called the Warriors' new offense -- particularly, Stephen Curry's new role thanks to the absence of David Lee -- "a glitch in the program." There's few things I enjoy more than watching a shooter dismantle a team from afar. Here's hoping Stephen Curry can do that tonight.

3) Golden State's Backcourt. On the heels of my gushing over Curry, I'd be remiss not to mention his partner in crime, Klay Thompson, whose production has plummeted since his 34-point, 14-rebound career night in Game 2 -- 17 points in Game 3, 10 points in Game 4, and just 4 in Game 5. The Warriors will need another great night from Thompson along with Curry to extend the Warriors' season to Game 7 -- will they get it?

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Doc Rivers, once considered a long-shot candidate to become the next coach of the Brooklyn Nets, will return to the Boston Celtics to coach next season, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe.

Rivers, who has two years left on his contract with Boston, said after the season that he would take some personal time to figure out whether or not he wanted to return to coach again. Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge downplayed Rivers's decision to mull over his future, saying that he's "always unsure" and only needs a few rounds of golf to recharge and get ready for the next season.

Rivers, who has six consecutive winning seasons with Boston including a championship in 2008-09, was reportedly someone the Nets would have been interested in had the Celtics granted him permission to seek other employment.

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