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 →
Alan Anderson. (AP)
AP
It's only been one month, but the Brooklyn Nets have already suffered their fair share of injuries. Here's the team's current injury report, as it stands today, December 2nd.
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Paul Pierce will miss the next 2-4 weeks with a shooting hand injury. (AP)
Brooklyn Nets forward Paul Pierce will miss 2 to 4 weeks with a non-displaced fracture of the third metacarpal in his right (shooting) hand, the Nets announced today.... MORE →
See that chart above? That's a visualization of the career PER arc of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, the former Boston Celtics that the Brooklyn Nets traded for this offseason in the hopes of erasing their spacing and defensive issues that doomed them last season. But both Garnett and Pierce have stumbled out of the gate, and even though a decline isn't unexpected (Pierce is 36 years old and Garnett 37), this type of decline is stunning and immediate.
PER is one of those all-encompassing stats that doesn't tell the full story, but it's safe to say this is an accurate representation of how badly these two new Nets have looked this year. The Nets currently sit at 4-12 and 13th in the Eastern Conference, ahead of only the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks.
If you don't see the visualization above, refresh the page. If that doesn't work, click here for the non-interactive image.
With under ten seconds left, the game within one possession, and the Nets out of timeouts, rookie coach Jason Kidd pulled a veteran move, instructing second-year guard Tyshawn Taylor to run into him and spill his drink to cause a stoppage in play. The stoppage allowed the Nets (and Lakers) to huddle up and draw up one final play despite not having an official time-out.
So what did Kidd take the risk for?
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Brooklyn Nets small forward Paul Pierce has been teammates with Kevin Garnett since the summer of 2007, and knows him about as well as anyone. That's why when Pierce calls him the most selfless teammate ever, it's not the words of an under-informed outsider: it's from someone that's spent years in close quarters with Garnett.
Unfortunately, Garnett's selflessness hasn't turned into production: though he's gladly taken a step back in Brooklyn's offense to allow other players to shine, he's shooting a career-low 34.1% from the field and not producing his usual defensive impact. But if the Nets hope to turn it around, it all starts with Garnett, the epicenter of this team's championship hopes and culture change.
Jason Kidd reflects during Brooklyn's 108-98 loss. His team did after. (AP)
BROOKLYN, N.Y. -- Following Monday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Brooklyn Nets engaged in some roster-wide "reflection," reflection that kept roughly 40 media members out of the locker room, pushed back into a far-off hallway, well out of earshot. Whatever words were tossed around the lockers, it was clear the team didn't want anyone to hear.
After reporters were allowed in, some 30 minutes later, we were introduced to a room filled with... MORE →
The Brooklyn Nets sat five players Saturday night in their 110-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, and it looks like they may have the same lineup tonight.
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Joe Johnson was the Nets' only starter in uniform Saturday, leaning on the remnants of the roster to assist. (AP)
LOS ANGELES, C.A. -— No player, coach, or GM will ever tell you openly that a team's priorities lie anywhere other than squarely on winning a game on any given night. Saturday the Brooklyn Nets tiptoed carefully along that line, bolstering the suspicion that they're playing the long game: less concerned with nightly results and fixated instead on the holistic process.
Ask any of the Nets about their 110-103 defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers, and he'll stress that this was a process loss, with the obligatory lip service that a win is a win and a loss yields nothing.
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In an interview with YES Network, Andrei Kirilenko lists off his top 5 NBA nicknames, first noting that he's not a big fan of Kobe Bryant's Black Mamba. He says he'd call him "Killer Instinct," which for some reason he likes better.
Kirilenko also lists two of his new teammates from the Boston Celtics, though he says he prefers "KG" to "The Big Ticket." When told that Dirk Nowitzki's nickname is "Big Mummy," Kirilenko smartly says "I have my own opinion on that," laughing.
Oh, this is too good to be true. Brooklyn Nets forward Paul Pierce crosses up ex-Nets forward and future Hall of Famer former Nets amnesty victim Travis Outlaw and throws it down with authority. It's the 36-year-old veteran's second big dunk this year.
