Nets Are Scorching

SI.com’s NBA writer Chris Mannix has just posted his write-up from USA’s Las Vegas minicamp, and like John Schuhmann, his piece included praise for both Devin Harris and Brook Lopez:

Devin Harris: Harris was the most vocal player in camp and showed flashes of the skills that made him an elite defender in Dallas. Harris is ultra quick on offense but the lack of range on his jump shot may inevitably hurt him.

Brook Lopez: The most offensively-skilled center in Vegas, Lopez was impressive in the scrimmage, scoring 18 points on an economical 7-8 shooting. Lopez didn’t get a lot of touches in practices; but if he takes another step forward next season (Lawrence Frank said he plans to make Lopez a big part of the offense in ’09-10), he could emerge as a dark horse candidate.

Devin Harris playing defense?  I know most Nets fans will be surprised to see that, but if Devin can get back to playing defense like he did in Dallas, he will become a complete player.  Also, I have been reading everywhere that Devin was very vocal during this minicamp.  It looks like the Nets found their new leader, and that Devin has already embraced the role.  Oh and reading that Brook will be featured more in the offense (it makes sense, there are going to be a lot more shots avalible to other players now VC is gone) makes me smile.

It is real good to see some Nets get praise in the media.  Mannix still has both Nets listed in his “The possibilities” category, and I agree with Mannix when he says that this upcoming season will be key for both players when it comes to making the US Team.  If they both play well, it is quite possible that the Nets will have two members on the National Team.

Update: Fred Kerber is reporting that both sides are denying the rumor:

There are reports that the Nets and Celtics are working on a sign and trade for Glen “Big Baby” Davis and that it could happen real soon with the Nets surrendering Yi Jianlian.

That’s news to both sides.

People in Boston and New Jersey both squashed the notion. Nets insiders confirm that there have been inquiries about Davis “to see what’s up and what they’re looking for,” one source said. Both sides insist they have not been working on a sign and trade.

The on again off again Glen “Big Baby” Davis rumors are once again heating up, but this one is a little different.  There are many reports coming out of Boston (nothing out of NJ papers/blogs yet) saying that the Nets are thinking about moving a player for Big Baby in a sign and trade.  Justin Poulin who runs CelticStuffLive, says that the move is “close to a done deal.”  There is no word on who the player the Nets would be shipping to Boston is, but Tom Halzack from the CT Post says gives us three names he thinks it is narrowed down to; Yi Jianlian, Eduardo Najera, and Sean Williams:

It could be Yi Jianlian for Baby straight up, as Alex suggests. The Nets have been hot and cold on him since they got him. They know he needs playing time to develop, but even on a rebuilding team, he wasn’t getting consistent minutes. While many will debate who is the better player, it will be swapping a lottery pick for a second rounder.

Before everyone thinks it’s a complete coup, remember the rumors were Yi would be a Celtic now, if the Celtics didn’t trade the pick as part of getting Ray Allen. But getting him back with a second round pick is savvy on Danny’s part anyway – unless you think that Davis will be the better player over his career.

Davis has better inside numbers, though Yi is a better outside shot. Yi has shown some ability to be a passer, and is athletic, but has zero post game (.465 eFG% inside).

The other option would be hard working, but oft injured energy guy, Eduardo Najera, possibly straight up, or possibly with a second rounder throw in. Even more remote, Sean Williams and Eddie together. Their salaries are $4.7 combined. Eddie’s recovered from sports hernia surgery on March 13, and is playing ball for Mexico in the FIBA Americ’a Cup.

I like Najera. With limited skills, he plays a nice game around the hoop, is a team guy, and will try to do anything you ask of him. A bad jump shooter (.321 eFG%), he’s strong around the hoop (.657 eFG%) and offensive rebounds very well - 17.5% of all possibilities in last year’s injury abbreviated season (27 games).

Sean Williams – If the Cs get Sean and Marbury to go with Rasheed, I hope that Doc Rivers has a blood pressure machine near by. I’d love to be a fly on the wall at those practices. Williams has been considered an attitude problem. A terrific shot blocker, he has to learn to play the game. Kind of a 6? 10? Gerald Green, I’d guess. He is reported to not be more than 6? 9? either. After some D-league time and tough love with the Nets, maybe he’s going to mature. Maybe.

Saying that, he does bring a nice skill to a second unit. It is one skill that this Big Three version of the Celtics hasn’t had. A shot blocker on the second unit.  But he could be POB all over again, if he doesn’t play team defense and so far…. he doesn’t.

If it’s Williams, there is either another player involved or a first rounder thrown in, I’d say.

There has been no mention of a third team involved. It’s straight Nets/Celtics deal.

In conclusion, I’d take any of the players mentioned in a fair deal. Yi is a project in my opinion. Najera would be a good Celtic right now. Williams – who knows.

I find it funny that Celtics fans are already trying to put a positive spin on a Big Baby/Yi deal saying that it is a lottery pick for a second rounder.  While this is true, Big Baby in my opinion has shown that he could be a very solid player, and he has been consistent for the Celtics.  Consistency is a word that has never been used for Yi, but if he eventually “gets it,” he still has a chance at becoming a great player.

Another name that could be in this deal that Tom didn’t mention is Keyon Dooling.  He said the reason being that the C’s are probably going to end up re-signing Stephon Marbury.  However, if the C’s want a real solid back-up point they should look up Dooling.  With the addition of Rafer Alston to our roster, he has become expendable, and while he played great last year, he is coming off of surgery and he is getting up there in years.  Now would be a perfect chance to get a high return for him.  Plus if we get Big Baby for Dooling, we can have a pretty solid Big Baby/Yi split at the 4 spot, with Big Baby starting.  Big Baby tends to get in to foul trouble a lot, so it would be nice to have Yi ready to go in for him if that does happen.

I wouldn’t understand why the C’s would trade for Eduardo or Sean Williams straight up (Eduardo is coming off of major surgery and Sean Williams has been a mental problem ever since he became at Net), so if we can get Big Baby for either of those guys, I would do it in a heartbeat.  That being said, if I would have to guess right now, the deal would be Yi/Big Baby.  Yi has been someone the Celtics have been looking at for a little while now, and it is a deal that both teams are in favor of.

Yesterday, John Schuhmann took a look at the top 10 players that helped their stock during USA’s mini-camp over in Las Vegas.  Devin made number 5, and Brook came in at number 9:

5. Devin Harris, PG, New Jersey
Showcase stats: DNP

Harris turned his left ankle on Friday and was held out of the Showcase for precautionary reasons, but it’s relatively minor. Before the injury, he was right there with Rose in the first two days of practice and it wouldn’t be a total shock if he beat out the Rookie of the Year for the third point guard spot next year. One of the real veterans among the group, he showed leadership all week.

9. Brook Lopez, C, New Jersey
Showcase stats: 18 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 1 steal, 7-8 fg, 1-1 3pt, 3-4 ft

Until Saturday, none of the four centers in camp had really distinguished themselves. Greg Oden defended the rim well, but two steps behind offensively. JaVale McGee and Anthony Randolph showed flashes, but got pushed around by the bigger guys. And Lopez just never got a rhythm going. But he did in the Showcase, benefitting from the penetration of his teammates, rolling to the basket well and finishing strong (he had two and-ones). When he didn’t play well earlier, it was often because he was hesitant with the ball.

It is good to see Devin being competitive with some of the top point guards in the league.  I really think he has a shot to make the team next year as the third point, and if he does he could turn some heads.

As for Brook, it should have been expected that he would be hesitant early on.  I mean he is a young guy playing on a real big stage.  From what I read, he had a great game and the fact that he was playing well off of penetration is a good sign for Nets fans.  This is because we are going to be using the dribble-drive offense, so Brook will have plenty of chances coming off of dribble penetration.  It was good to see him go 3-4 from the line as well.

All in all, it was great to see the Nets players represent in Las Vegas.  I know the national media likes to bash the Nets any chance they get, so it was good to see them get some props.

Kiki Vandeweghe has been with the Nets for 18 months now, so Ben Couch decided to sit down with the Nets’ General Manager and ask him a few questions.  It is broken down into two parts (part 1 and part 2 here) and it is a great read for any Nets fan.  Ben Couch also put together a complete list of all the moves Kiki has been involved in.  Ben asked some great questions, and some of Kiki’s answers really got my wheels spinning (These are bits and pieces from Kiki’s answers.  Again to see the complete answers check out Part 1 and Part 2 of Ben Couch’s interview):

NJNets.com: Looking back at the past 18 months, how do you feel about where the team is now — and where it could go — relative to its position when you joined back in December 2007?

It’s difficult to replace great players, but our players were getting older. And in 18 months, we’ve gone from a sort of older team that did not have any cap flexibility and no real good way to improve to a team that has four or five really good young players who can play together for a long time, great cap flexibility – probably as much or more than anybody in the league – some extra draft picks. We also lowered the cost of the team and moved all the real big long-term contracts. We’ve got shorter term contracts at lower numbers, which is where you need to be if you want to improve, so I would say we’re as well-positioned as anybody in the league to improve in a very short time.

I like our young players very much: Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Jarvis Hayes, Yi Jianlian, Brook Lopez, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Terrence Williams and Josh Boone, who are all young and all have big upside; they’re good players now, but they can continue to improve. I like our veteran group: Rafer Alston, Eduardo Najera, Keyon Dooling, Bobby Simmons, the addition of Tony Battie, Trenton Hassell. I like our group, we’ve got a nice mix of players.

Improving in these challenging economic times, it’s about flexibility, and I would say we’ve got as much flexibility as anybody. We’ve done a 180 and we’ve done it about as quick as I’ve seen it done. And it’s been great working with Rod — I’ve learned a ton already. It’s a tremendous opportunity for me to be a part of this. To me, the way I personally look at it, the real work begins now because you’ve created the opportunities to improve. Now you’ve got to take advantage of those opportunities: you’ve got to use your extra draft picks wisely, you’ve got to use your cap space wisely. That doesn’t come around all the time. But these are opportunities and I think that if history is any indicator, with rod and myself, we’ll be able to do some good things.

I know that fans want their teams to be competitive every year, but it is the GM’s job to pay attention to the future.  Kiki is a great GM that understood Nets weren’t going to reach their ultimate goal with the current roster they had, so he (along with Rod Thron) decided to rebuild.  It is also comforting to know that Kiki and Rod don’t think the job is done, and that there is work to do.  I think they have made a ton of great personel decisions so far (I still think we have the best young core in the NBA), and I hope they continue to draft well for the next couple of years and add that one free-agent who will be able to put us over the top.

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