1. Opening Night 2013-14
Opening night 2013-14 (projected) C – Brook Lopez, PF – Kevin Garnett, SF – Paul Pierce, SG – Joe Johnson, PG – Deron Williams
It’s hard to imagine that a team with a projected starting lineup boasting 35 All-Star appearances wouldn’t be picked by most experts to finish in the top 5 of the NBA, but that’s exactly where we are with these Brooklyn Nets.
For starters, 25 of those All-Star games come from Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, who have never played on the Nets, are a combined 73 years old, and have 33 NBA seasons under their belt. Add to that a rookie head coach, the failure of the Lakers 2012-13 all All-Star starting lineup, Deron Williams’s balky ankle, and a talent-laden NBA, and you can see why some pundits are a bit skeptical of the Nets in their sophomore season in Brooklyn.
As a Nets fan, though, you have to be downright ecstatic at what is the best starting five, top to bottom, on paper in franchise history. How will Pierce fit into the system? Is KG one ritualistic pre-game head butt from a career-ending concussion? Will Brook continue to develop? I’m incredibly excited to find out.
WFAN sports talk radio pope Mike Francesa talks with nostalgia every spring of the renewed hope for all baseball fans: their team starts 0-0, exactly like everyone else. Everyone’s in first place. In the case of the Nets fan, that boilerplate hope is at least backed up by a stacked roster.
Will the Nets beat the Heat? Probably not, but as KG says, “ANYTHING IS POSSSIBLEEEEEEEEEE!”
Let’s start with beating the Cavaliers on opening night, when everyone starts the season at 0-0.
