Ben Couch, the great blogger/reporter for NJNets.com put out two great articles out, one about Yi and one about Bobby Simmons. In each, there are some interesting quotes.
Couch’s Yi article talks about how Yi was about to break out before the injury:
In the middle of January, Nets forward Yi Jianlian shot his way into a hot streak, launching 38 shots in three games despite connecting on only 13 of them, finally breaking through on January 5 with and 8-of-14 shooting performance, part of a 22-point, 13-rebound, three-assist, two-block final line against the Sacramento Kings.
And he followed it up two days later, dropping 20 points (7-13 FGs), six boards, three assists, two steals and a block on the Memphis Grizzlies. The outburst marked the first time in Yi’s two-year career that he had scored 20-or-more points in consecutive games.
Two days after that, Yi was at it again: 25 minutes into the Nets’ matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks, the big had tallied 16 points, four rebounds and two assists while shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range and 6-of-12 overall. But late in the third quarter, Yi swiped at a ball on defense and broke the pinkie finger on his (right) shooting hand.
Couch then goes on to talk about what the offseason looks like for Yi. I encourage you to go on and read it.
In the Bobby Simmons article, Ben Couch talks about how Simmons developed into a terrific three point shooter (5th best percentage in the NBA). Included is this quote:
“I never thought of that (being possible), I never knew my role was exactly going to be ‘shoot three-pointers.’ As far as looking at it now, you want to be the best at what you do, and if it was making shots for our team and our ballclub to win games, that’s what I wanted to do.”
That last part of the quote excites me. He is still comitted to helping the Nets win, even though his playing time has been inconsistant. Many people (including myself) have considered the biggest thing Simmons does for the Nets is that he is an expiring contract. I am looking forward to seeing Bobby prove me wrong.
