Nets on the Net: Blueprint for Greatness

Posted on: June 30th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 4 Comments

 

Well, now the Nets have gone and done it. Earlier this week, Al Iannazzone hinted that "big things" were afoot with this organization, and while the biggest dreamers in us might have thought it was going to be a major trade, I suspect it was in fact something a little more gleeful. Like, say, a 225-by-90-foot mural of Mikhail Prokhorov and Jay-Z on 34th Street and 8th, which is adjacent to some building the Knicks play in... can't remember the name ... it used to be an important part of New York sports culture but it's hard for me to remember things that happened 20 years ago.

Still, despite the chatter focusing more on Miami and Chicago, and with the Nets firing a shot across the bow attracting attention of their own, the Knicks still believe they are major players for LeBron James.

Meanwhile, Dave D'Alessandro rolls out the team's itinerary over the next few days. Interestingly enough, outside of Bosh, the team hasn't scheduled anything (yet) with the other bigs out there, Carlos Boozer, Amare Stoudemire and David Lee. That's not to say they won't, but it seems pretty clear this team is aiming for the biggest fish first. Love the aggression.

Still, Steve Politi of the Star-Ledger has to throw cold water all over us mouth-foaming Nets fans and remind us that with Rod Thorn stepping down, but not "retiring," it just doesn't look terribly good for the organization right now.

NAS Interview on WCWP Sports Tonight

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Devin Kharpertian 6 Comments

 

Tonight at 6:30, our very own Devin Kharpertian (that's me) will be interviewed by WCWP Radio in New York about all things Nets. Topics sure to come up include the draft, impending free agency, Devin's likes and dislikes in a partner, and today's Yi trade. (Just kidding. We won't talk free agency!)

You can find the interview at 6:30 on http://wcwpsports.blogspot.com. Check it out!

Update: Yi Jianlian On The Way Out

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Devin Kharpertian 50 Comments

 

Update: Sure enough, NJ.com is reporting that Yi Jianlian will be traded to the Wizards for Quinton Ross. While the other player in this deal would normally be irrelevant, Ross is a great defensive player who fits the Avery Johnson mold of "guys who work their butt off on the defensive end." This is both a good salary move and a good basketball move. Today is a great day in Nets history.

Now John Wall can have his soul slowly sucked out of him as he throws beautiful alley-oop passes to Yi that he can't finish.

See ya, Yi!

Today, Al Iannazzone is reporting that the Nets may finally be close to ending their professional relationship with Yi Jianlian:

They are working on a deal with the Wizards that would send Yi and cash to Washington for a player who makes “significantly less” than what the Nets’ power forward earns. Three sources confirmed this could happen.

The player could be Quinton Ross ($1.14 million) or one of their draft picks. Yi makes $4.05 million this season. Either way, the Nets are close to getting Yi’s salary off their books.

The Nets would do this to get as far under the cap as possible so they potentially could sign two max players. Yi for Ross would save the Nets close to $3 million and put them around $30 million.

Obviously, this would be a fantastic move. The failed Yi experiment can finally be over and the Nets are able to clear up even more cap space. While they would still be a little short for two max contracts, every dollar counts in this year's free agency and they still have the potential of moving Kris Humphries's $3.2 million contract (he picked up his option yesterday). I was originally a supporter of the Yi experiment, but after watching Yi stumble over his own two feet for the past two years, it's safe to say that any value we can get for him is certainly good. His hopefully imminent departure represents more than just a poor power forward leaving: it's a mark of both erasing an idea from the Kiki era and a statement that the Nets, while attempting to become a global brand, are looking for talent over global marketability.

Nets FA Targets: Amare Stoudemire

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 18 Comments

 

Amare Stoudemire

Age: 27

Height: 6-10

Position: PF

Key 2009-10 Stats: 23.1 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 22.69 PER

What to Like About Stoudemire: Simply put, Stoudemire is an offensive beast and would fill two critical holes for the New Jersey Nets: scoring and stability at Power Forward.  With his various injuries over the years (microfracture on his knee and retina surgery for his eyes), Stoudemire’s demise has been long projected and proven to be greatly exaggerated. His Player Efficiency Rating (PER) of 22.69 last year was fourth best among qualifying power forwards and 11th best in the entire NBA. He’s an outstanding finisher around the rim, shooting 67 percent from up close last season according to Hoopdata. He’s not too shabby away from the rim either, shooting 54 percent from 10-feet and in, 44 percent from 10-15 feet and 42 percent from 16-23 feet, all amongst the top percentages for a PF. And for someone who is so effective at the rim, his 77 percent from the free throw line last season is good enough. The presence of Stoudemire helped turn Robin Lopez, Phoenix’s Center, into an effective player in the middle. Imagine what it would mean for Brook Lopez, the superior twin in the family. Finally, you also have to like his performance in game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Lakers – a must win for the Suns: 42 points on 14-22 shooting.

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Damion James Can Help Defensively Right Away

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Sebastian Pruiti 12 Comments

 

When the Nets traded their two late draft picks in the NBA Draft last week a lot of people were left scratching their head. The Nets gave up a chance at getting a shooter or a point guard to trade and get a guy like Damion James. I think most Nets' fans were reacting at the trade of the picks rather than James himself, and I was in the same boat.

After taking a few days to watch Damion James' play, I gotta say, I understand why Avery Johnson said the Nets had him 12-13 on their big board. James brings toughness and attitude, which is exactly what the Nets lacked last year. In a chat a few days ago Rob Mahoney from TheTwoManGame (TrueHoop's Mavericks Blog) told me James is a perfect Avery Johnson type player. He should know, in addition to covering the Mavericks (the team Avery Johnson had his first coaching stint with) he goes to Texas University so he has been able to see James in action up close.

After getting my hands on some of Texas' games and watching them, I am totally convinced that Damion James will be able to contribute right away. More specifically, he will be able to help turn the Nets into a better team defensively. Here's how:

Chasing Shooters

Throughout the playoffs this year, we saw how important defending a shooter running off of screens. The Miami Heat did a poor job of it, and they allowed Ray Allen to go off, losing the series. The Lakers did a very good job of it (except for game two), and they were able to keep Allen in check which was part of the reason they were able to win the championship. Here is James doing the same thing defensively.

After watching Damion James work through screens off of the ball, I would totally be willing to have James on the court defending the opponent's best shooter. Working through screens off the ball is sheer want to, and it seems like James wants to do it real bad. Look at where he makes is man (Xavier Henry) catch the ball, initially it is a good 35-40 feet away from the basket. He forces his man to give the ball up, but his job isn't done. Henry goes to the post and then comes off of a downscreen set by Cole Aldrich. James is able to fight through it and contest Henry's three pointer.

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Nets FA Targets: Rudy Gay

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 14 Comments

 

Rudy Gay

Age: 23

Height: 6-8

Position: SF

Key 2009-10 Stats: 19.6 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 16.3 PER

What to Like About Rudy Gay: The Nets were one of the worst offensive teams in the league last year and Rudy Gay brings scoring punch and he brings it to a position (small forward) that the organization is desperate to fill this off-season.  His mid-range offensive game is fantastic for the position. He shot 48.3 percent from 10-15 feet according to Hoopdata, which would place Gay third among SFs who played in 40+ games and averaged 20+ minutes per game last season.  He finished in the top 20 (18th) in scoring last season and his 16.3 Player Efficiency Rating (PER), ranked him 10th among all SFs in the league, according to ESPN’s John Hollinger. Despite getting hammered before last season for his lack of defensive effort, those numbers weren’t that bad in 2009-10. Opposing SFs put up a PER of 16.2 when Gay was on the floor and the Grizzlie’s defense let up .2 points more per 100 possessions when Gay was off the court.  The bottom line on Gay is that he is young and athletic and wouldn’t even be 30 by the time his presumed contract expired.

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NAS Programming Note

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 2 Comments

 

So, with the entire NBA focused on the kick-off of free agency on Thursday, starting this morning, the Nets Are Scorching Fab Four will be breaking down the potential free agents, weighing the pros and cons and giving you our ultimate opinions. Obviously, we encourage you to debate our breakdowns and debate each other on who's the best long-term fit for this team, but when doing so, please remember our trusty commenting constitution. This is going to be a fun few weeks for the NBA and for the Nets, and hopefully when the dust settles, there will be some news we can all celebrate. But in the meantime, let's keep it clean.

Nets on the Net: Gearing for LeBron, Hump is Back

Posted on: June 29th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 4 Comments

 

As we all know, the Nets are readying their pitch for LeBron this week. Al Iannazzone goes over the Nets options in free agency: "I don’t know if they’re going to get LeBron, but they’re going to get two good players," one NBA executive said.

How long is LeBron going to take to make a decision, and how does that affect the rest of free agency?

Is the New York media finally coming to the realization that the Nets are a more attractive destination for LeBron than the Knicks?: "If it wasn't for Newark for two years, they [the Nets] would probably be the winner," the individual said. "But they probably have surpassed the Knicks. I think the Knicks hurt themselves with the draft."

Even Stephon Marbury wants LeBron to be a Net.

Julian Garcia reminds us that the Nets are also wooing Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.

In non-LeBron news, but a move that could affect the Nets pursuit of him, Kris Humphries picked up his player option yesterday.

Some evening News for Nets Fans

Posted on: June 28th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio No Comments

 

Well, we're officially in the busy season with rumors and speculation regarding free agency and the Nets GM vacancy, so here's a round-up of the day's news.

After some conflicting reports, Rod Thorn tells beat writing stalwart Dave D'Alessandro that it's "time for me to go." A replacement will be hired in a timely matter and should not impact free agency, Thorn said.

Mitch Lawrence mentions Raptors executive Maurizio Gherardini as a potential replacement for Thorn - sure to bring international flavor to the roster though if he had a hand in signing Hedo to that awful contract he has some 'splainin to do.  Dime runs down some other potential GM candidates.

Forget GMs. Henry Abbott and Marc Stein have separate pieces discussing the impact of good ownership on recruiting free agents. Both mention Mikhail Prokhorov as a major plus and lure for the Nets.

When discussing the Nets summer plans for recruitment, Al Iannazzone baits us all with this nugget: "There’s something else big that’s coming, too. Just wait."

Goodnight and good luck to Keyon Dooling. A class guy all the way who was officially waived today.

For you summer basketball junkies, the Nets released their summer league roster today.

What The Nets’ Defense Might Look Like – Part 2: Transition Defense

Posted on: June 28th, 2010 by Sebastian Pruiti 4 Comments

 

This is a continuing series spurred by this quote from Avery Johnson:

“More than anything, we are going to have a system.  The system is going to be laid out from game one.  How we play pick and rolls.  How we function in transition defense.  How we close out, and how we play the post.  There isn’t going to be a gray area.”

Part 1:  Pick And Roll Defense

Transition Defense

The Nets' transition defense may have been the worst aspect of their defense last year.  According to Synergy Sports, the Nets ranked 26th (the worst ranked aspect of their defense) in transition defense allowing 1.2 points per possession on 60.2% shooting.  With how bad their transition defense is, there are going to be some changes that need to be made, and I think we can look at Avery Johnson's Dallas Mavericks to see what those changes will be.

As the shot goes up, look at the rest of the Dallas Mavericks.  They are all positioned on the perimeter, and instead of crashing the boards they decide that it is not worth it and they make sure to get back on defense.  This is something the Nets didn't do a ton of last year.  You had guys like Courtney Lee or Terrence Williams crashing the offensive boards hard, even if there wasn't a chance to get a rebound.  This often lead to a lot of fastbreak opportunities.  It seems like Avery Johnson doesn't want that.  I feel like he is going to tell his guys, "You got a chance to get the board?  Great, go after it.  If not, get back."

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The Problem of Yi

Posted on: June 28th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 42 Comments

 

For the past two seasons, the Nets organization has blindly put their faith behind Yi Jianlian with very little to show for it in terms of statistical results. Now, as the front office gears up for one of the biggest off-seaons in the organization's history, they are seemingly being punished for their belief in Yi. The Chinese import has no role in the future of this organization with the drafting of Derrick Favors and Damion James and the team's reported desires to sign a top PF in free agency. Meanwhile, the $4 million and change they currently owe Yi for 2010-11 - because the front office just HAD to pick up his rookie option, sight unseen, despite two largely disappointing seasons to start his NBA career and reports that he's a few years older than his birth certificate says - has proven to be an obstacle in their chase for two max salary free agents.
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Nets on the Net: Lots of Free Agency Talk

Posted on: June 28th, 2010 by Mark Ginocchio 4 Comments

 

Marc Stein is reporting after the Nets meet with LeBron, they're recruiting contingent, which includes Mikhail Prokhorov, Jay-Z, Avery Johnson and Rod Thorn, will meet with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

Dave D'Alessandro runs through some misconceptions headed into free agency, including Rod Thorn's retirement status, the charm of Prokhorov, and whether Bosh or Rudy Gay are worth/will get max deals.

Is New Jersey a likely landing spot for David Lee?

Likely successors to Rod Thorn: Nets VP Bobby Marks, Thunder GM Sam Presti and Hornets GM Jeff Bower. Unlikely: fired Portland GM Kevin Pritchard and former Phoenix owner Jerry Colangelo.