The Nets are coming off their biggest win of the year and now have their first legitimate chance at a winning streak as they take on the Wizards (the Nets also have a chance to put themselves on pace to get the ever important 10th win).  The Nets have gotten their last two wins after multiple days rest, but I think this back-to-back is actually beneficial for the Nets.  Their game in Boston (and what made them successful) is fresh in their minds, and hopefully they continue to do the things that got them their win in Boston.  Onto the lineups:

Devin Harris vs. Randy Foye

Randy Foye has put together a pretty nice season this year, but he is just an average player.  Not too quick. Doesn't have great size.  On the other hand, Devin Harris has regained his All-Star form.

Advantage:  Devin Harris

Keyon Dooling vs. Mike Miller

My guess is that unless Courtney has a remarkable recovery, he is going to be out for tomorrow.  He seemed to roll his ankle pretty bad, and he was unable to put a ton of pressure on it as he was helped off the court.  Keyon Dooling is probably going to get the start at the 2.  He brings in his shot-making ability and his good decision making.  Dooling's threes yesterday were key in the win.

Advantage:  Push

Trenton Hassell vs. Al Thorton

Trenton Hassell gave the Nets some good minutes yesterday, but I am expecting to see CDR get a good chunk of the SF minutes tonight (If Hayes is still out).  Not only because he played very well yesterday, but because Hassell has logged a bunch of minutes, so you can expect to see fatigue setting in.

Advantage:  Push

Yi vs. Andray Blatche

You might remember Blatche as the man who went off on the Nets in their first meeting.  Eduardo Najera isn't on the Nets anymore, so you can't expect him to put up the same numbers, but Blatche has been playing well since the trade, so you can expect him to get some things done against Yi, who is still struggling.

Advantage:  Andray Blatche

Brook Lopez vs. JaVale McGee

Brook Lopez could be poised for a big game against the Wizards now that Brendon Haywood isn't on the team anymore.  I think Haywood has done the best job on Brook all year, so seeing him in Dallas is pretty refreshing.  McGee is a long athletic center, but I don't think he has the strength to match up with Brook on the inside.

Advantage:  Brook Lopez

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

For their final match-up at the Izod Center (and we can safely say "ever" now when it comes to the Izod Center), the Washington Wizards feature a considerably different roster compared to the last time we saw them. Here to explain some of the changes, and the future of the organization is Kyle Weidie, from the fantastic TrueHoop Wiz blog, Truthaboutit.

NAS: Obviously, Josh Howard's ACL injury probably affects your answer, but overall, how do you think the Wizards fare in their big deadline trades of Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler, DeShawn Stevenson and Brendan Haywood? Does Washington have any worthwhile building blocks now?

I was disappointed that the Wizards had to give up Brendan Haywood to "get rid" of Caron Butler and DeShawn Stevenson. It just seems like a commodity like Haywood, an expiring contract and a defensive big man sorely needed by most teams, should have been able to fetch more. The insult is that the Wizards couldn't manage a pick from Dallas and they had to send cash considerations Mark Cuban's way. Even Mavs fans were surprised at that one.

On the other hand, you got to commend Ernie Grunfeld for the Jamison trade. Although Antawn was sent to Cleveland ... sure, the "rivalry" between the Wiz and the Cavs is dead, but that doesn't mean Wizards fans hate LeBron and the Cavaliers any less ... Grunfeld was able to net the returns of: 1) getting out from the over $28 million owed to the 33-year old Jamison over the next two seasons; 2) Cleveland's 2010 1st rounder, which will likely be the last pick in the first round, but Grunfeld has a decent history of late-draft finds (Andray Blatche - 49th, Keith Bogans - 43rd, Flip Murray - 42nd, Michael Redd - 49th); 3) Emir Predlzic -- Who? Exactly. He's Bosniak whose rights were previously owned by Cleveland and is a decent prospect; and 4) Al Thornton. Clippers fans were no longer enthusiastic about the former All-Rookie First Teamer (2008), but he has seemingly found new life in D.C. with his hustle and energy.

Worthwhile building blocks? Who knows. Andray Blatche has been great since the trades, but it's too early to tell if he's really turned a corner. JaVale McGee has shown some nice promise too and is certainly a talented athlete whose natural skills and size are matched by few, if any, in the league. Otherwise, the Wizards don't have much that shows valid promise for the future, i.e, someone who could be a star like Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans or Kevin Durant (who is already a star). Obi-Wan Kenobi ain't coming, so the Wizards' only hope is effectively using the cap space they've created and finding a young Jedi via lots of luck in the draft.

NAS: How much of a makeover do you expect the Wizards to go through once the season is over?

Makeover? Uh, probably a decent bit since the Wizards only have six guys under contract next season. This is assuming, safely, that Josh Howard's $11.8 million team option won't be picked up and that Quinton Ross takes his $1.15 million player option. That leaves Andray Blatche, JaVale McGee, Al Thornton, Nick Young and Gilbert Arenas.

Who knows what will happen with Arenas. Recent remarks by Ernie Grunfeld suggest that the team might be open to taking him back, he is under contract after all. But Grunfeld might have been making those comments to preserve Arenas' trade value, if any exists, which, you know someone might take the bait on if teams with cap room don't succeed in their Summer '10 free-agent endeavors. I highly doubt the Wizards will try to void Arenas' contract.

Randy Foye, if extended the qualifying offer, will be a restricted free-agent. He's still auditioning for his job with the team, so he could be an additional player on the roster. You also have to consider the following: the Wizards might try to sign Josh Howard to a new contract on the cheap, as he will be coming off a knee injury, they would like to retain Mike Miller (although, I'm sure he will want to go play for a winner, perhaps taking less money to play with LeBron), and James Singleton is certainly looking like a player worthy of contract consideration.

The Wizards will be players in this Summer's free-agent market, we're just not sure how large. I'd like to see them be patient and build with young prospects and cap space, i.e., not do anything stupidly crazy like throw a bunch of money at Joe Johnson or Carlos Boozer. So, you'll likely see the team just try to sign some worthy fillers this summer and save some of the cap space for 2012.

In any case, the makeover has already happened when various parts were shipped out of town. Now it's all about finding quality players who will form the foundation for the rebuilding project.

Mark Ginocchio

Tweet

Brook Lopez is thinking what all Nets fans are thinking after yesterday's shocking victory against the Celtics: “To finally break through against a good team like this shows us what we’re capable of,” Brook Lopez said after leading the Nets with 25 points.

Kevin Garnett, on the other hand, is saying what all Celtics fans are saying after last night: "I've got nothing to say," Kevin Garnett said. "I feel disgusted."

Speaking of Celtics fans, Zach Lowe of CelticsHub has some fun with video entitled how to lost to a five-win team.

Fred Keber of the New York Post, talks with Courtney Lee about his ankle injury: "It's stiff right now because I just iced it," said Lee, who hit one of the game's biggest shots — a jumper in the third quarter when the Celtics were charging and the crowd was roaring. "Usually, when I sprain my ankle it's something I can get over real quick."

Bobby Simmons is one of the most expensive benchwarmers in the league, but he at least has a good attitude about it during an interview with the Daily News' Julian Garcia: "It's not really embarrassing because it's out of my control," says Simmons, who plays less than any of his teammates.

Rod Thorn remains coy about his future with the organization, according to Al Iannazzone: "Not a thing going on," Thorn said. "Nothing at all. We’ll just see if and when Mr. Prokhorov takes over, he’ll do whatever he’s going to do. But until, as you’ve seen me quoted, I have nothing to say about any part of ownership. Period."

Mark Ginocchio

Tweet

Advanced Box Score | CelticsHub | CelticsBlog

The Celtics started yesterday's game by just slapping the Nets in the mouth.  The Nets looked real sloppy on offense and very weak on defense, leading to a 12-2 lead for the Celtics.  Kiki was forced to call a timeout, and it looked the Nets weren't going to be able to put a full game together.  Something funny happened after the timeout though, the Nets actually fought back, and they did it at the line.  I have been harping about how important it is to get to the foul line all year, and the reason is because getting to the line helps drags the Nets out of cold spells.  The Nets struggled from the field early on, but they were able to get their first 6 points at the line (The Nets shot 41 foul shots for the game).  By that time, it seemed like the Nets finally settled down, and they were able to claw their way back into the game and end the first quarter with a 2 point lead.  They would never look back.  The best part is that it seems the Nets finally get how important getting to the foul line is, as everyone YES showed in their postgame interviews talked about attacking and being aggressive.

There were a ton of great individual performances for the Nets yesterday (Devin, Courtney, CDR, Hump), but in my opinion the most impressive performance came from Brook Lopez.  Brook showed everything that makes him the great player that he is.  Brook might not have the best lateral movement for a big man, but I think he runs the floor with the best of them.  He just puts his head down, sprints right into the paint and puts himself in position to get easy buckets:

But where Brook really showed out was in the post.  Now, Kendrick Perkins is a fantastic defender.  He is physical, he positions himself well, and he has pretty good reaction speed.  Brook Lopez treated him like a little kid yesterday, absolutely dominating him:

Brook Lopez has the size and ability to do this every time out.  His problem is that he tends to rush things when he makes his catch.  Yesterday Brook was patient, surveying the situation before making his move.  If the double came, he didn't force it, he just found the open teammate.  My favorite clip is Brook's spin move towards the baseline, one that is starting to be his go to move (with good reason).

Perkins tried to be physical and upset Brook (Coach Rivers said that the strategy going in was to try and frustrate him), but he stayed cool under pressure (which is something that he struggles to do).  Even Kevin Garnett couldn't get Brook going.  As the buzzer for the first half sounded, the ball ended up in Brook's hands so he flung it at the rim.  KG caught the shot attempt (which happens all the time), but for some reason KG decided to scream at something at Brook.  Brook just shrugged his shoulders and laughed:

Some more thoughts after the jump:

... MORE →

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

After being out of pocket all day, finally got to catch up with the game. Sebastian will have a more in-depth look tomorrow, but given how little Nets fans have had to celebrate this season, I have this simple message to the Celtics and the wonderful fans of Boston:

Mark Ginocchio

Tweet

After the Celtics exploded to a 12-2 lead, the game appeared to be over.  However, the Nets took control from that moment forward and came away with a 104-96 win against the Boston Celtics (things got real hairy late).

• Courtney Lee put together his second straight 20+ point performance (first time as a Net) and played very well until he went out with an ankle injury.
• In addition to Courtney's 21, Brook Lopez chipped in 25, and Devin Harris put up 23.  This is the second straight time they all put up 20+.
• Kris Humphries only had 11 points, but he pulled in 10 rebounds and left Marv saying "This is his best game as a Net."
• The Celtics got the Nets' lead to 6 points when Ray Allen was given a wide open three.  He missed it, and the Nets were able to pull away.
• Keyon Dooling put in 11 points as well, including 3 threes (including a very timely one in the fourth).
• In the third quarter, the Nets took two charges on Celtics' fast breaks.
• CDR played a meaningful 27 minutes tonight, and maybe put this whole CDR-gate stuff to rest.  He didn't score a ton, but after Lee left the game, he played very good defense on Ray Allen.
• The only Net who had a poor game was Yi.  In the fourth quarter he had a turnover and a missed shot, quickly getting pulled in favor of Kris Humphries.

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

The Celtics come into this game really struggling.  Everyone is calling them old, and without Paul Pierce they don't really look fluid on offense.  Without Pierce, Marquis Daniels has been starting as the Celtics go small.  As for the Nets, they are coming off of a very good half of basketball against Portland and they have had 4 days off, 2 straight days without practice as well because of the snow.  The last time there was a long break in games, the Nets came out and beat Charlotte, so who knows what will happen.  Also, expect to see a lot of subs as Kiki manages minutes with a winnable game coming up tomorrow.  Onto the lineups...

Devin Harris vs. Rajon Rondo

With both of these guys at 100%, this is going to be real fun to watch.  These guys are just going to fly up and down the court back and forth.  Rondo has been playing real well as of late, but fatigue seems to be setting in with him late in games.  With Pierce out, Daniels who usually handles back up point duties is forced to start, and that means more minutes for Rondo.  You saw what happened in Cleveland, he just wore down.

Advantage:  Rajon Rondo

Courtney Lee vs.Marquis Daniels

Courtney Lee played great in the second half of the Portland game, but the biggest problem for him last year is consistency.  He has never really been able to put two or three games together, and if he can play well tonight, the Nets might have a chance.

Advantage:  Push

Jarvis Hayes vs. Ray Allen

After sitting out the last game, Hayes will be back.  Though you could see a fair amount of Trenton Hassell if Ray Allen starts to go off.  Since the trade deadline passed, that has been happening plenty.

Advantage:  Ray Allen

Yi vs. Kevin Garnett

It's funny, when Yi came back he was playing great, but the rest of the team seemed to be struggling.  Now, for the most part the rest of the team is playing well, but Yi is struggling.  If he can hit a couple jumpers and stretch the defense, that is all we need from him at this point.

Advantage:  Kevin Garnett

Brook Lopez vs. Kendrick Perkins

This right here is going to be the match-up of the night.  Perkins is a nasty person (it seems like that at least), and his play matches that.  He is physical and tries to beat the opposing center down.  Brook has struggled with physical centers in the past, but I think the 4 days rest could help Brook.

Advantage:  Brook Lopez

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

The Nets had a hard time dealing with the snow, including Keyon Dooling, who was involved in a minor car accident.

Courtney Lee was equally miffed by the weather, according to Fred Kerber: "This is pretty brutal," guard Courtney Lee said. "I've been in snow situations all my life, growing up in Indianapolis and then in Kentucky and this was probably the worst. [In Indy], we got snow like this once a year."

Is Tony Battie a buyout candidate?

Nets fans disappointed by the team's lack of activity at the trade deadline last week should hear what Marc Spears of Yahoo is reporting: Thorn said most of the teams talking to the Nets were focused on acquiring center Brook Lopez(notes) or guards Devin Harris(notes) and Courtney Lee(notes). Thorn considers all three to be key pieces of the Nets’ future – regardless of whether Thorn is around to call the shots after the team’s sale is completed. The New York Knicks, meanwhile, made deals to allow them to potentially sign two top-tier free agents.

Mark Ginocchio

Tweet

Over the past 10-15 games, the Nets have been competitive in every single game in spurts.  The most glaring example of the Nets' Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde act was their game against the Portland Trailblazers.  In the first half, the Nets were down 19 points and only scored 37 points, that's pretty bad.  In the 3rd quarter, the Nets scored 33 points and cut the lead to 7.  That's pretty good.  Since we usually focus on the bad (we don't do it intentionally), I want to focus on the good of the third quarter for the Nets, showing what they did (and need to do moving forward) and how they did it.

Offense

On offense, the Nets came out of the gate clicking.  The biggest thing is that they were running their sets all the way through.  We know the Nets sets, some of them are pretty good and some of them aren't, but the biggest problem for the Nets isn't the actual set.  It is that the Nets' players seem to get antsy when running things, and plays never get run correctly, or all the way through.  Look at this video though.

This is a play that the Nets run at least 10-15 times a game (not exaggerating), and I think that this is the best they ever ran it.  The first thing is Brook, look how he sets up Devin's man for the screen.  He fakes a seal, spins, and hits a screen.  Trenton Hassell remains patient knowing the play is developing and waits for Devin to get open.  Devin gets open, and knocks down the jumper.  If the Nets ran all of their sets as hard as that, they would get so many more open jumpers.

... MORE →

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

Basketbawful, which, believe it or not, is not a nickname for njnets.com, designed a new logo for the Nets.

Kiki Vandeweghe reminds reporters that the organization is still giddy to have Brook Lopez: "We had him somewhere in the top three in the draft, and we thought there was going to be a 99 percent chance he wasn't going to be there [at No. 10]," Vandeweghe said. "It was a very easy decision. If he's there at No. 10, you take him.

NBA.com ranks the Nets as having one of the most interesting coaching vacancies this summer.

Mark Ginocchio

Tweet

Courtney Lee has been a tough player to evaluate.  He has really been feast or famine, either going for 20+ points or less than 10, and nothing really in between.  Also, since Lee was the big piece (and maybe the only piece that finishes the season as a Net) acquired in the Vince Carter trade we like to keep an eye on how he has been playing.  We did one of these updates after game #17, and another after game #38.  With a little lull in the schedule, I thought now would be a good time to look at Courtney's numbers again.

All data from Hoopdata.com

Offensive Game

Usage & Turnovers

Courtney Lee's usage dropped a touch yet again, going from 17.96 to 17.81.  Now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, since the big talking point going into the season was as Courtney's usage increased, his numbers would drop.  It is good to see the Nets keeping his usage as a manageable rate, because my fear was (and still is to a point) that Courtney's usage would increase to over 20, making him inefficient.  Lee's Turnover Rate continues to rise (it is now sitting at 7.75), but it is still well below league average, so that means he is still doing a fantastic job of taking care of the basketball.

Courtney's Shot

Courtney Lee's shooting percentage is returning to the level he is shooting last year (he is actually shooting better this year from 10-23 feet), except for two key locations, the three point line and inside 10 feet (not at the rim).  I personally think that this is due to the fact that he is being defended differently here in New Jersey than he was in Orlando last year.  Last year, as the 5th or 6th option on that Magic team, Lee didn't have defenses focus on him, this allowed him to get off a lot of open threes (we have discussed this in the past), but he was also able to get a lot of shots in the lane because teams would rather let Lee shoot than double off of Rashard Lewis, Dwight Howard, or Hedo Turkaglu.  This year, Courtney has settled into the third option, and with that he isn't getting nearly as many open threes or runners in the lane.

These two locations are the main reason for his inconsistency.  If Courtney Lee is hitting his three pointers and runners, he is going to have a big game.  If not, he is going to have a game where he really struggles.

Defense

What has really impressed me about Courtney Lee is that no matter whether is his having a good game or an off-night, he brings it on the defensive end.  In my opinion, Courtney Lee is one of the better defenders in the NBA, and the numbers back him up.  Lee gets more rebounds this year, he gets more steals, blocks more shots, and takes more charges.

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet

Continuing from yesterday's post where we looked at the four factors for the Nets in wins and losses.  I thought it would be interesting to also look at the four factors for the Nets opponents in both wins and losses.  While yesterday's post was more focused on what the Nets did on offense (remember in wins the Nets excelled at keeping their turnovers down - TOR - and making shots - eFG%), today's look at the opponent four factors will tell you what the Nets did on defense in both wins and losses.  So here is the chart:

The Two Key Factors

Just like the Nets' Four Factors, the key factors in the Nets opponents Four Factors are eFG% and Turnover Rate.  In wins, the Nets' Opponents eFG% was 47.76%, well below league average, while in losses, teams had an eFG% of 52.23%.  Naturally, this means that the Nets are getting in their opponents' faces and playing tough defense in wins (rocket science, I know).  This also leads to a higher opponent Turnover rate.  Their Opponent Turnover rate in wins is 15.89 (well above average), while in losses it is 13.55.  That is a pretty big drop-off.

Offensive Rebound Rate

Something that this chart tells you is that the Nets are really bad at securing the defensive rebound. Even in wins, the Nets allow their opponents to grab offensive boards at an above average rate (in losses it is even worse).  Despite Brook Lopez, it kind of makes sense, the Nets are small-ish everywhere else.  Yi plays small, Jarvis Hayes is more of a shooter than a rebounder or defensive stopper.  Courtney Lee boards pretty well for his position, but that is about it.

Sebastian Pruiti

Tweet