Hype
The Nets found themselves in a summer spotlight unlike any in team history this offseason; they beefed up their bench, re-signed Deron Williams and Brook Lopez, dealt for Joe Johnson, and most importantly, moved to a snazzy arena in the trendy new “city” of Brooklyn. Expectations were far higher here than expectations than in New Jersey, and when the team crumbled under then, Avery Johnson was the one considered culpable. An 11-4 start only added to the optimism, so the sudden December skid felt more catastrophic than ebb-and-flow.
