Acquiring Kevin Garnett (center) and Paul Pierce (right) has not paid dividends in Brooklyn. (AP)
The Nets made colossal moves this summer expected to alter the Eastern Conference landscape, acquiring future Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from the Boston Celtics and transforming their lineup into a potential championship contender.
So far, that hasn't worked out.... MORE →
Former Nets forward Gerald Wallace (AP)
Boston Celtice small forward Gerald Wallace spent about a year and a half with the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets, never shy about giving his honest opinion. Speaking with The Boston Herald on Sunday, Wallace was asked about the Nets' struggles so far this season. Here's was he had to say:
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Former Brooklyn Nets forward Gerald Wallace said at Nets shootaround that he doesn't care about last season, but made it clear that he's still harboring some feelings about signing a four-year extension and then being traded within a year to a team that couldn't be more obviously tanking, according to the New York Daily News.
“(The Nets) have to point the finger at somebody like I was the guy to take the blame,” Wallace told the Daily News before Brooklyn’s 82-80 victory. “And that was the reason I was traded."
Wallace goes on to say that he was upset that the Nets didn't bother to call him before trading him -- they couldn't even let him know it was a possibility.
Wallace, now a member of the Boston Celtics, simply said: "after 13 years in the league, you need to move on."
New York Daily News -- Celtics' Gerald Wallace says he was Nets scapegoat
Keith Bogans, MarShon Brooks, Kris Humphries, and Gerald Wallace (not pictured) have a fresh start in Boston. (AP)
After their morning shootaround at Barclays Center, Gerald Wallace and MarShon Brooks were involved in a shooting contest, the final shot from about 35 feet out. As they were playing, Kris Humphries and Keith Bogans iced down various parts of their body, as is commonplace for veterans after practices.
The weird part: unlike last season, the four wore green uniforms, visitors in the Brooklyn arena for the first time in their careers. ... MORE →
In our collection of highlight mixes and reels this season, it looks like the one we made of Gerald Wallace -- not his crashes! -- got lost in the mix. Enjoy 2 1/2 minutes of reckless Crashbandon.
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By the numbers: 69 G, 68 GS, 30.1 MPG, 7.7 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.4 SPG, .7 BPG, .397 FG%, 637 FT%, .490 TS%, .448 eFG%
Advanced: 11.6 PER, 101 ORtg, 104 DRtg, 14.5 USG%, 3.9 ORB%, 14.3 DRB%, 9.1 TRB%, 13.3 AST%, 2.5 STL%, 1.7 BLK%, 3.1 estimated wins added
Do you remember the feeling you got when you played Rollercoaster Tycoon and created the most amazing, insane and physics-bending rollercoaster that seemingly cruised along with relative ease until the track suddenly ended and all the pixellated guests went up in fiery destruction?... MORE →
Game 7. (AP)
No one said it better than John Schuhmann: tonight's Game 7 is a "referendum" on all things Brooklyn and all things Nets. In their first playoff series in the borough, the Nets have a chance to win a Game 7 at home for the first time in Brooklyn history -- and that includes the Dodgers.
In honor of Game 7, here's seven things I'm keeping a close eye on heading into tonight.
The franchise
Deron Williams signed with the Brooklyn Nets in July knowing that this was coming: perhaps not a Game 6, but an opportunity to lead the Brooklyn Nets past the first round of the playoffs in their inaugural season in Brooklyn and for the first time since the 2006-07 season. Williams has had a sometimes-scintillating, sometimes-quiet first round: Williams has had two excellent games (1 and 4), three solid games (3, 5, 6), and one awful shooting night (1-9 in Game 2) in this series. He's had a game-defining dunk and disappeared for the better part of an entire half. Williams's performance in Game 7 could be a career-defining moment.
The two-man tandem
Andray Blatche. (AP)
The big man
Key to that two-man tandem is Brook Lopez, the team's steadiest contributor all season. He hasn't skipped a beat in the playoffs, scoring 20 points in each of his first five playoff games before a 17-point performance in Game 6. Offensively, Lopez hasn't done anything special or different in these six playoff games: he's finding open space in the paint, backing down Noah in the post (though Nets interim head coach P.J. Carlesimo called curiously fewer post-ups for Lopez in Game 6), and supplementing easy points near the rim and put-backs with his 18-foot jumper. Lopez's defense has been surprising this series: while he's still struggled to defend pick-and-rolls, Lopez has keyed in more defending the paint, and the numbers reflect it: the Bulls shoot 48.2% in the paint with Lopez in the game, compared to 58.7% with him on the bench, and Lopez has had multiple blocks in five of six playoff games (including a seven-block explosion in Game 3).
One indictment of Lopez's defense: through six games, Joakim Noah leads the playoffs with 24 offensive rebounds on one foot. He's taken advantage of weak team defense to slip to the rim for easy points. He's without a doubt been limited -- he's shooting just 38% from the field in the playoffs -- but Noah's been a key cog in non-scoring offense for Chicago.
The Nets need Lopez to do what he's always done, plus just a bit more, to ensure sealing the deal tonight.
Nets starting small forward Gerald Wallace, in the midst of one of the worst shooting seasons of his career, told the New York Post on April 8, "My confidence is totally gone."
Not anymore.
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