Nothin' But Nets

THE NETS CAN LEARN FROM THE KNICKS

As the cross town teams prepare to square off tomorrow night, I can't help but think back to Sunday, December 6th, when I attended the last meeting between these two teams at Madison Square Garden. At the time, the teams appeared to both be heading to disappointing seasons. In the Nets case, they had recently moved Kiki Vandeweghe into the coaching chair and their team was beginning to get healthy. Fast forward twenty some odd days and the Knicks are a totally new team with a new swag. The personnel didn't change but the commitment to team defense and playing as a team has improved. Unfortunately one of the fan favorites, Nate Robinson, has been relegated to the bench during the metamorphosis but if you ask any Knick fan, Nate can chill on the bench as long as they're winning.

The Nets on the other-hand can't seem to stop anybody from scoring. Defense wins games and when you're offensively challenged it becomes even more important. The Nets have to shake some things up. Perhaps their best player Devin Harris needs to come in off the bench much like Al Harrington does for the Knicks. Rafer Alston is competent enough to start but he isn't consistently a spark off of the bench because of his erratic shooting. This brings me to what appears to be the team's biggest problem besides the aforementioned lack of defense and swag, there's very little production coming out of the shooting guard position. Courtney Lee is no Vince Carter and his 11.6 points a game average reflects that clearly. Oh and I can't necessarily give Devin Harris a pass as his scoring is down to 16.7 points a game and he's shooting a dismal 19% from the three-point line. In today's NBA, your point guard has got to be able to hit the three when the defense collapses.

The Nets have to get back to fundamentals which begins with defense. If you can stop people, you'll find a way to score especially with the Nets two big guys down low, Brook Lopez and Yi Jianlian. The time is now with a third of the season gone, we don't want to be taking bets in April on whether or not the team will win ten games this season.

NETS CONTINUE TO LOSS BUT INVESTORS ARE STILL DOWN

　

The New Jersey Nets lost again on Tuesday night, December 16th. This time it was to the Cleveland Cavaliers by a score of 99-89. As usual Brook Lopez brought his A-game which resulted in 22 points and 15 rebounds but he didn't get much support from his team. These games are starting to all look a like as the Nets try to compete early but start to fade in the 3rd quarter. Next up for the team is the Utah Jazz tonight...Don't be surprised if by tomorrow the team's record is (2-24).

On another note, while the team continues to lose it doesn't appear to have any effect on the investors who snatched up bonds for the new arena well in advance of the year end deadline. On Tuesday, Forest City Ratner Cos confirmed the completion of the sale of $511 million worth of bonds that will be used to construct the arena. The bonds for the $1.06 billion arena needed to be sold before the end of the year to qualify for tax free financing.

Brice Ratner, the chairman and chief executive of Forest City Ratner, said in a released statement, "The interest in the arena bond offering was beyond our expectations. Even more importantly, the overwhelming support from investors is a good sign of confidence in this project and in the city."

Let's hope the team doesn't alienate all of its fans before the move happens.

NETS LOSE TO A TEAM THEY SHOULD HAVE BEAT

Just as I was starting to get gassed on the new direction of the Nets under interim head coach Kiki Vandeweghe, I was reminded of an old adage. It goes, "As much as things change, they stay the same." It couldn't be more true with the Nets this season. On Friday night December 11th, they played an Indiana Pacers team that was without Danny Granger, their leading scorer (24.4 ppg). The Nets were almost at full force minus starting forward Yi JianLian and still got schooled 107-91. What's even more outrageous is that it was the Pacers young players that did the schooling. Roy Hibbert and Tyler Hansbrough posted career-highs with 20 and 21 points, respectively.

It wasn't lost on Vandeweghe that his team was out-hustled. He admitted, "For a lot of the game we got outworked and that's something we can't have happen....Sometimes when you lose your best player guys step up and have career nights." I wonder why that didn't happen when Devin Harris went down last month.

The Nets are now 2-21 with a date with the Atlanta Hawks tomorrow....

With 59 games left this season, let's hope the Nets can hit the double digit win mark.

IT TAKES TWO TO MAKE A TEAM FEEL RIGHT

Photo Courtesy of Chicago Tribune

The New Jersey Nets earned their second win of the season on Tuesday night, December 8th, by defeating the Chicago Bulls 103-101. This was probably the Nets biggest win of the season as they played a team at home which many have pegged for the Eastern Conference play-offs. The game was even more important because you could see the team galvanizing in front of your eyes. And when they really needed it, Devin Harris stepped up with 14.9 seconds and delivered. He proved his team could count on him and conversely the team knows that if they keep the game close they have a chance as long as Harris is on the court.

The win brings the Nets record to 2-19 but interestingly enough 2-1 under new interim head coach Kiki Vandeweghe. I was one of the people screaming loudly that the coaching change wouldn't make a difference but perhaps a former NBA star can motivate players better than his predecessor who never played basketball professionally. Frank's age also wasn't much help as he was relatively close in age to many of his players.

Let's hope the Nets have turned a corner. With Yi Jianlian's return about a week away, we're finally close to seeing what the Nets' official starting five can do against other NBA teams on a nightly basis.

THE NETS GET THE MONKEY OFF THEIR BACKS

Photo Courtesy of the Associated Press

The official start of the KiKi Vandeweghe era as Nets head coach was exactly what we've all been waiting for and more. Okay yes they did only beat the Charlotte Bobcats but they put an end to the worst start in NBA history. To be honest the Nets are better than most 1-18 teams but the fact of the matter is that injuries and inconsistent play have hampered their ability to perform at their best.

Vandeweghe didn't shake things up too much but he re-inserted Courtney Lee into the starting line-up and Lee made him look like a basketball genius by going for a career high 27 points. Brook Lopez kept up his consistent play with a 31 point, 14 rebound effort. But one of the unsung heroes was Keyon Dooling who in fifteen minutes had two points, three assists, two steals, and a rebound.

Well for the first time all season the Nets have the chance to start a wining streak. Unfortunately for them, their next opponents the New York Knicks are playing some good basketball and are coming off a week where they beat the Suns and the Hawks. Time for some high noon theatrics at the Garden.

A NEW STANDARD FOR FUTILITY

The New Jersey Nets are now officially off to the worst start in NBA history. After suffering a 117-101 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night, the team is now in the dubious position of being able to build on that record. Fortunately for the Nets their next two opponents, the Charlotte Bobcats (7-10) and the New York Knicks (4-15), are as beatable as it gets per NBA standards. If they don't get a win against either team, their schedule gets considerably harder with Chicago, Golden State, Indiana, Atlanta, and the Cleveland Cavaliers waiting in the wings.

I was fortunate or unfortunate depending on who you ask to have witnessed the Nets' latest milestone in person. The energy in the IZod Center is weird. It's like everyone is upbeat and having a good time courtesy of the cheerleaders, giveaways, and house MC Glorious, and the game just seems to be an after thought.. I myself was caught up in the good time of drinking brews and trash talking and some how less focused on the fact that the Nets were never in the game after the start of the second quarter. This bodes well for the franchise as their loyal fans still just want to come out for a good time but it seems to have less and less to do with what's happening on the court.

Let's hope that Mr. KiKi Vandeweghe, who officially takes over coaching duties today, can get us all to care again.

IS KIKI VANDEWEGHE THE ANSWER?

The answer is emphatically no...Rod Thorn and the rest of the New Jersey Nets' brass threw the fans and the team's supporters a bone by firing Lawrence Frank and naming general manager Kiki Vandeweghe interim head coach. The fact of the matter is that Vandeweghe has no prior coaching experience so how exactly is he suppose to turn the team around. What's even more interesting is that former Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers coach Del Harris is being brought in as lead assistant coach. Why not just give him the team? Why bother making Vandeweghe go through the motions?

This comedy of errors that is the Nets' 2009-2010 season takes center stage tonight when the Nets face the Mavericks with the potential of going 0-18 with a loss. That would set a new NBA record for the worst start of all time. Vandeweghe is no fool. He isn't officially taking over the coaching job until Thursday so he will not have the distinction of being the coach of record, if and when the Nets lose.

Despite the fact that no one thinks anything is going to change after this coaching switch, Vandeweghe did offer up his plans for the team. The former NBA star said, "You don’t have a training camp, you can’t make radical changes. What we might do is simplify things a little bit for the young players. We’re going to really focus on the development of our young players – keep them getting better and winning that way. On the court, I would expect we might play a bit quicker, might turn this into a 94-foot game. We have a very fast point guard, we have players who are athletic and can run. We want to get out and open up the court a little bit."

I guess everyone is avoiding the elephant in the room and that's the basic lack of the necessary talent to compete with the NBA's better teams.

LAWRENCE FRANK HAS LEFT THE BUILDING

 

Lawrence Frank (225-241) began his coaching career with the New Jersey Nets during the 2003-2004 season with 13 wins in a row after replacing Byron Scott. After 16 straight losses to start the 2009-2010 season, Frank was relieved of his coaching duties on Sunday, November 29th. His team went on to tie the mark for worst starts by an NBA franchise after losing to the Los Angeles Lakers Sunday night to hit the 0-17 mark. The team is now on course to break the record when they play the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday.

Frank, who was in the final year of his contract, had been saying and doing the right things but with some key injuries and a lack of a go-to-guy, the Nets wouldn't enjoy much success no matter who was coaching. The Nets as an organization had to do something but it was pretty clear early on that Frank would probably be the sacrificial lamb.

Frank was replaced by assistant coach Tom Barraise for Sunday's game and the organization will make an announcement today on who will serve as interim coach for the rest of the season. In addition to Barraise, assistant coach John Loyer and GM Kiki Vandeweghe appear to be the front runners but none of them have head coaching experience.

Rafer Alston said it best when he said that if they could fire players some of the guys would be out of a job too. He explained, "I think in this instance, if they could fire players, some of us would be fired too. But you can't fire all the players because you need guys to play, but when you're 0-16 I think if they could fire 15 players they would probably fire 15 players. I told these guys, 'Don't think for one second they're not looking at some of us to move too with our record and the way we've been playing.' When you're 0-16, players need to go, but the easiest thing to do is put it on the coach."

But one of the more insightful comments on the situation came from Lakers coach Phil Jackson who was offered a very lucrative contract to coach the Nets in 1999. Jackson said, "The offer was the best offer I've ever gotten as a coach, but they didn't have what a team needs to succeed; a heartland, a fan base and an energy source. I don't even know if New Jersey has their own television station, they get most of their feeds from New York and Philadelphia."

I doubt Rod Thorne is ready to give the state of New Jersey a makeover so the move to Brooklyn is looking better and better everyday...

SWEET SIXTEEN

 

On Friday night the New Jersey Nets once again added another loss to their season tally which now stands at 0-16. The team dug themselves into a hole against the Sacramento Kings and simply didn't have the fire power to comeback in a game they basically lost in the first quarter. The loss ties the franchise record for consecutive losses at 16 which was set in 1978.

As the Nets face the Lakers on Sunday night, they'll be fighting to keep their names out of the history books again. A loss would bring the Nets to 0-17 and tie the league's worst start record which is now shared by the 1988-89 expansion Miami Heat and 1998-1999 Los Angeles Clippers.

Staying true to his positive attitude Coach Lawrence Frank told the New Jersey Star Ledger, "It’s just a different test. It’s a different type of test, and you have to embrace the challenge, and there are certain things we have to do in order to win games and that’s what we focus on."

He added, "There’s no doubt that it wears on you, but I think what you try to focus on is just today. You know don’t let the past determine your future."

Coach Frank isn't the only one keeping a positive attitude. Rafer Alston is also taking the team's current situation in stride. He said, "It would be easy to bail, and say I want to get sent to a contending team. But I want to be here and help these young guys understand what it takes to win."

Alston also added a ringing endorsement for his coach. He said, "Coach Frank has been great. I see and read all the talk about him and his job. He comes in every day and tells us that he takes full blame, and he’s not to blame at all. The players, we are to blame and we've got to understand that. He comes to work every day with a passion. He stays late, comes early, trying to figure out ways to get us going."

All this playing nice is cool but the bottom line is the Nets are easily on their way to an 0-18 start considering they play the Dallas Mavericks next week. Maybe it's time to put the pleasantries to the side and to incorporate move of an edge because nice guys finish last especially in the NBA. And that's word to AC Green....

FIVE REASONS THE NEW JERSEY NETS SHOULD BE THANKFUL

1. Brook Lopez
Through fifteen games, the seven footer is averaging 17.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.5 assists per game. That's an impressive stat line and he's only going to get better. Once Yi JianLian returns to the line up, Lopez will be freed up to increase his offensive numbers. This kid is the truth.

2. The Fans
Despite this horrible 0-15 start, the fans still do manage to show up. Don't get me wrong the star power is gone (haven't seen Jay and Beyonce court side) and they're many visible vacant seats but it's nothing like watching a Charlotte Bobcats game. If the Bobcats opponents are wearing red, they can get lost against the sea of empty red seats.

3. Lawrence Frank
Let's face it with an 0-15 start most coaches would have been out of here and by out of here I mean fired. Fortunately for Frank, it appears Nets management is fine with him coaching out the last year of his contract. Let's be honest, he's been saying the right things and taking the right approach with his young squad. Unfortunately injuries and the lack of a big time scorer have made it hard to compete.

4. The Bench
With all of the injuries this team has faced in this early season, guys like Sean Williams and Trenton Hassell have stepped up big time. These two delivered especially on nights Coach Frank only had eight available players. Najera, Simmons and Boone have also been consistent but haven't put up numbers in their limited minutes like Williams and Hassell.

5.The Schedule
The Nets have a chance to avoid tying the league record for worst starts at 0-17 by defeating their next opponent the Sacramento Kings on Friday night....Now let's just say the Nets lose. They face the Lakers and Mavericks next which could bring them to an 0-18 record but then they have the Charlotte Bobcats and a very winnable game.