New Jersey Jolt

[pegs]

Marty Burns of Sports Illustrated ranks the off-seasons of the NBA’s Atlantic Division and while he notes the Nets may not have scored big time, “few teams had a better draft night than did the Nets” and the roster shake-up should bring “a jolt of much-needed energy”. Still, “their ‘D’ got weaker”, their front court got younger and their biggest problem is that “so many other Atlantic foes made bigger moves”. Only the Celts get a lower mark, Burns writes.

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Tide rapidly rising in the Atlantic - Marty Burns - Sports Illustrated

Our D got weaker? Hahahaha. Good one.

Yeah, we had Marcus Williams, Richard Jefferson, Boki Nachbar, (injured) Nenads, and an injured Vince Carter on the team. How could our defense get worse than that?

 

[Netted]

Yeah I don't see how our defense got worse. Adding Najera and Dooling was definitely an upgrade.

Replacing RJ with Simmons would be a downgrade if RJ played defense up to his capability, but he didn't last year.

 

[ghoti]

Simmons has been a better defender than RJ since 2004 and is a much better defender now. Even when RJ was considered a "good" defender he was overrated.

 

[pegs]

They lost Nenad and Nachbar.
Dashing their hopes of bringing them back for short-term deals that would not compromise that cap room in '10, the Nets saw key players Nenad Krstic and Bostjan Nachbar leave via free agency for better offers in Europe. Krstic's departure looks especially damaging, leaving the center duties to unproven Josh Boone and the rookie Lopez.
Their 'D' got weaker.
The loss of Jefferson cost New Jersey its best perimeter defender, a problem for a team that already features Vince Carter on the floor. Neither Simmons, Hayes nor Yi are known for their ability to stop people. It will be interesting to see how beleaguered coach Lawrence Frank, a stickler for defense, handles this apparent problem.

Wow, that's like a double contradiction. First, they say we lost Nads and Boki...and then our D got weaker. Then, they say Jefferson is our best perimeter defender, and disses Vince's defense. Then, says Simmons can't defend.

Fail.

 

[danxcr]

hehe... damn i cant wait for this season to start so i can stop reading all these assumptions and predictions regarding our NETS...

 

[#1_War_Poet_ForLife]

Boone is unproven? We all know what he is. An 8/8 guy when starting. Simmons doesn't defend, but Jefferson does?

 

[Kidd Karma]

So the Nets add a defensive power forward, subtract a defenseless center and point guard. Add one of the top defensive PG's in the league....and the defense is worst? I think Yi's lateral quickness will quickly have Frank in love with his ability to defend the paint.

 

[reganomics813]

This is a thoughtless article. RJ and Kidd are gone so they're gonna be crappy, done, submit to get published. Oh no not Boki too! Whatever will we do?

We might lose our fair share of games because the talent we're facing is greater but after last season's pathetic excuse for defense, half the time sleepwalking through it or just plain watching their defenders beat them, it's near impossible to be worse. We have fresh legs who are eager to defend and are thinking team first and foremost. That's an upgrade any way you look at it.

 

[NJNetz]

We might lose our fair share of games because the talent we're facing is greater but after last season's pathetic excuse for defense, half the time sleepwalking through it or just plain watching their defenders beat them, it's near impossible to be worse. We have fresh legs who are eager to defend and are thinking team first and foremost. That's an upgrade any way you look at it.

Good post; I pretty much agree with you. And seeing as how we have young guys on the team, the #1 rule should be, you either play D or you don't play at all. It's pretty easy to get discouraged and stop playing defense. But good defense creates good offense, so we'll have none of that.

 

[danxcr]

This is a thoughtless article. RJ and Kidd are gone so they're gonna be crappy, done, submit to get published. Oh no not Boki too! Whatever will we do?

We might lose our fair share of games because the talent we're facing is greater but after last season's pathetic excuse for defense, half the time sleepwalking through it or just plain watching their defenders beat them, it's near impossible to be worse. We have fresh legs who are eager to defend and are thinking team first and foremost. That's an upgrade any way you look at it.

nice post... why do u have a KG picture? BOOO KG BOOO!!!

 

[reganomics813]

nice post... why do u have a KG picture? BOOO KG BOOO!!!

Because i'm still working on my VC one.

 

[Petey]

CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

New Jersey Nets

What went right:

They got some new blood.
Continuing a shakeup that began with last season's trade of Jason Kidd, GM Rod Thorn shipped Richard Jefferson to the Bucks for Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons. He also signed veteran free agents Jarvis Hayes, Eduardo Najera and Keyon Dooling. The new faces, along with point guard Devin Harris (who came over in the Kidd trade), should at least bring a jolt of much-needed energy to New Jersey.

They had a solid draft.
Few teams had a better draft night than did the Nets. First, 7-foot Stanford center Brook Lopez, projected as a possible top-five pick, slid down to the Nets at No. 10. Thorn then added two more quality prospects in 6-10 Cal forward Ryan Anderson (No. 21) and 6-7 Memphis guard Chris Douglas-Roberts (No. 40). All three were considered excellent picks for where they went on the board.

They paved the way for LBJ?
By shedding Jefferson's remaining contract (three years, $42.4 million), the Nets continued to clear cap space for the summer of 2010. That's when LeBron James, noted buddy of Nets part-owner Jay-Z, can become a free agent. If nothing else, it gives Jersey fans something to dream about while the rebuilding continues.

What went wrong:

They lost Nenad and Nachbar.
Nenad Krstic and Bostjan Nachbar left via free agency for better offers in Europe. Krstic's departure looks especially damaging, leaving the center duties to unproven Josh Boone and the rookie Lopez. The Nets had hoped to bring Krstic and Nachbar back for short-term deals that would not compromise that cap room in '10.

Their 'D' got weaker.
The loss of Jefferson cost New Jersey its best perimeter defender, a problem for a team that already features Vince Carter on the floor. Neither Simmons, Hayes nor Yi are known for their ability to stop people. It will be interesting to see how beleaguered coach Lawrence Frank, a stickler for defense, handles this problem.

The comp got better.
New Jersey's biggest problem this offseason was that so many other Atlantic foes made bigger moves. The Sixers (Brand) and Raptors (O'Neal) appeared to solidify themselves as the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in the division. Even the Knicks underwent a dramatic front office shakeup that should have them headed upward soon.

Grade: B-

The loss of Jefferson will hurt in the short term. Carter and Harris will need to stay healthy and have big seasons.

I've never seen the bolded part by anyone else on Ryan Anderson. Had anyone else?

-Petey

 

[cpawfan]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

Their 'D' got weaker.
The loss of Jefferson cost New Jersey its best perimeter defender, a problem for a team that already features Vince Carter on the floor.

Proof enough they don't know what they are talking about

 

[Celtic Fan]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

Proof enough they don't know what they are talking about

if it's so wrong, how come so many news outlets say this?

they're all wrong, but the nets fans are right?

or do the Nets fans have a bias/resentment towards RJ?

I mean one or two sites, but I've seen 4-5 different write ups saying RJ was the best wing defender and there is always a Nets fans saying the article got it wrong.

I only saw the Nets a few times so I can't say I'd know myself.

I'm just wondering...

 

[ToddMacCulloch11]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

RJ was a very good defender, but over time he seemed to be doing it less and less

 

[cpawfan]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

if it's so wrong, how come so many news outlets say this?

they're all wrong, but the nets fans are right?

or do the Nets fans have a bias/resentment towards RJ?

I mean one or two sites, but I've seen 4-5 different write ups saying RJ was the best wing defender and there is always a Nets fans saying the article got it wrong.

I only saw the Nets a few times so I can't say I'd know myself.

I'm just wondering...

Camby was given the DPOY

Doc Rivers was given COY

Steve Nash was given 2 MVP's

I have tons of examples of the media being stupid and wrong

 

[ghoti]

Jason Kidd was 1st team defense in 2007.

 

[Netted]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

if it's so wrong, how come so many news outlets say this?

they're all wrong, but the nets fans are right?

or do the Nets fans have a bias/resentment towards RJ?

I mean one or two sites, but I've seen 4-5 different write ups saying RJ was the best wing defender and there is always a Nets fans saying the article got it wrong.

I only saw the Nets a few times so I can't say I'd know myself.

I'm just wondering...

Media is going by reputation and Nets fans go by watching all 82 games.

RJ at his best was a good defender sporadicaly (when he got up for the challenge).

Harris is by far the best perimeter defender.

RJ even admitted his defense was sub-par after the trade.

How can you help the Bucks defensively?

Richard Jefferson:
I think right now it’s an area in which I need to improve. I think the last few years people have criticized my defense a little bit. I’m still a person that believes in it. I understand that every good team I’ve ever been on we’ve had good defense. It’s an area, because of my role expanding the amounts of minutes I’ve been playing and the amount of scoring I’ve been asked to do, it has gone down.

 

[reganomics813]

Re: CNNSI's take on the Nets offseason.

RJ was a very good defender, but over time he seemed to be doing it less and less

Simple but to the point, good post.

That is pretty much the gist, RJ became more concerned about his scoring numbers and stopped really digging in on defense like he used to. He used to have his ankles as the bail out excuse but for everybody watching it was painfully clear that he just stopped giving a shit on the defensive end. Often times the guys Kidd and RJ were guarding were the guys tearing us a new one because they just watched guys buzz past them as they tried to get steals.

Replacing their defensive non contributions with even the slightest bit of effort and young legs will be a huge upgrade to this team. The Nets weren't easy to watch the past couple seasons so it's understandable that's the last time they saw Kidd and RJ was the last time they tried on D, for us anyways.

 

[SportsTicker]

In my most hopeful dreams, I see the Nets as this year's Blazers, a young team that developed quickly and even if it didn't make the playoffs, it got better and was a decent TEAM that fans appreciated for their spunk. (Of course, the Nets don't have Oden and Fernandez joining them next season, like the Blazers do this year. Damn, Kevin Pritchard is good.)

I really don't care what pundits say (other than Hollinger, whose accuracy on predictions re the Nets scare me).