2008-09 New Jersey Nets Preview
Sports Network | October 21, 2008
Only three players who started last season with the Nets remain in New Jersey: Vince Carter, Josh Boone and Sean Williams.
New general manager Kiki Vandeweghe and head coach Lawrence Frank will try and build the club around point guard Devin Harris, who was acquired in the Kidd trade.
The talented Harris averaged 14.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in 64 games for New Jersey and Dallas last season and it will be his responsibility to run the show and get the explosive Vince Carter back on track.
"It's so wide open," Harris said of his responsibility. "There's no set down- picks and cross-screens. It's pretty much reading off of what I do when I start the offense. It's me getting in the lane. It's pretty much predicated on what I do."
2007-08 Results: 34-48, did not qualify for the playoffs.
ADDITIONS: Keyon Dooling (G) - Trade with Orlando; Jarvis Hayes (F) - Free Agent; Eduardo Najera (F) - Free Agent; Bobby Simmons (F) - Trade with Milwaukee; Yi Jianlian (F) - Trade with Milwaukee.
SUBTRACTIONS: DeSagana Diop (C) - Signed with Dallas; Richard Jefferson (F) - Traded to Milwaukee; Marcus Williams (G) - Traded to Golden State; Darrell Armstrong (G) - Free Agent; Nenad Krstic (C) - Signed to play in Russia; Bostjan Nachbar (F) - Signed to play in Russia.
2008 DRAFT PICKS: 1. (10) Brook Lopez (C, Stanford); 1. (21) Ryan Anderson (F, California); 2. (40) Chris Douglas Roberts (G, Memphis).
PROJECTED STARTING FIVE:
PG- Devin Harris SG- Vince Carter SF- Bonny Simmons PF- Yi Jianlian C- Josh Boone
KEY RESERVES: Keyon Dooling (G); Jarvis Hayes (F); Brook Lopez (C); Eduardo Najera (F); Sean Williams (F/C); Ryan Anderson (F); Chris Douglas- Roberts (G).
FRONTCOURT: You can't underestimate the loss of Nenad Krstic, who signed to play overseas. Krstic, although never the same after a knee injury, was a legitimate NBA big man and the Nets will now have to rely on a pair of youngsters to main the pivot, Josh Boone and Sean Williams. Boone isn't going to wow you but is the safer pick and the more consistent player. Williams is a spectacular athlete that can change a game with his shot blocking ability but had maturity issues in college that make it tough to count on him.
Simmons is a bit of a poor man's Jefferson. He isn't the kind of athlete Jefferson is but he offers some of the same skills and can be a consistent scorer.
Yi has a huge upside but still has a long way to go. At 7-foot with good movement skills, you can project 15 and 10 somewhere down the line but Yi is still learning the NBA game and his on-court demeanor reminds you more of Carter than Moses Malone. He should be much more comfortable in the shadow of New York, which has a large Chinese population, and that may help.
BACKCOURT: Harris could be on the verge of stardom. Despite struggling with ankle injuries in New Jersey, Harris averaged over 15 points, six assists and 1.5 steals a game. If healthy and able to regain his quickness, Harris will be one of the top point guards in the East.
The enigmatic Carter has all the talent in the world but has been on the trading block forever. Clearly, something is missing and most point to a lackadaisical worth ethic. When properly motivated, Carter is one of the top five scorers in the NBA and very difficult to stop.
BENCH: Vandeweghe and team president Rod Thorn did a good job rebuilding the bench by obtaining Keyon Dooling for the backcourt and Eduardo Najera and Jarvis Hayes up front.
Dooling should offer a nice option as a third guard. The former Orlando Magic player is a good on-ball defender with a solid handle.
Najera brings all-out defensive intensity and great energy every time he hits the floor, while Hayes can swing between the three and four and give you a solid 10-to-15 minutes a night.
The Nets also added three solid rookie prospects in center Brook Lopez, forward Ryan Anderson and guard Chris Douglas-Roberts.
Lopez needs to be more aggressiveness inside to compliment a nice mid-range jumper, while Anderson is a nice standstill jump shooter.
Douglas-Roberts dropped in the draft but offers a good defensive temperament along with some slashing ability.
"With all the new guys we have, with our youth, you need to have a great attitude, you need everybody be ready to go and everybody be supporting each other," said Thorn.
OUTLOOK: The Nets pulled the trigger and have started to rebuild. They are clearly behind Boston, Toronto and a much-improved Philadelphia team in the Atlantic and the playoffs are a long shot unless Carter has a spectacular year.
The real plan here is to open up cap space for 2010 to make a run at LeBron James.
"We're going to surprise some people," Harris said. "We have some smart veterans to go along with young guys who play hard, guys who can do different things."
