Quick Recap: New York Knicks 93, New Jersey Nets 89
Oct 16, 2009 2009 Preseason, Quick Recap
The New York Knicks (2-2) defeated the Nets (0-5) 93-89 tonight in Madison Square Garden, keeping the Nets winless to start their preseason.
- The Knicks took off in the second and third quarters tonight, outscoring the Nets 52-30. The Nets were able to close strong in the 4th, cutting the Knicks lead to 4 before the end of the game.
- This was probably Yi Jianlian’s finest preseason game to date finishing with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Most importantly, Yi didn’t pick up his first foul until the fourth quarter and he was active and aggressive around the rim throughout, even attempting a dunk on David Lee.
- Terrence Williams proved my criticism was premature earlier this week, putting together an all-around good game with 21 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. He also sunk two 3s down the stretch, keeping the Nets within striking distance.
- Courtney Lee continued his strong preseason with 17 points.
- There was a Sean Williams sighting in the 3rd quarter. Williams chipped in with 2 points, but played some good defense while he was in there.
- The Bobby Simmons power forward experiment wasn’t a smashing success. He finished with 0 points on 0-8 shooting with a +/- of -12. On the positive side, he did have 3 steals.
- Lawrence Frank still likes running Iso plays, even when he doesn’t have the personnel available to do so.
- We miss Devin Harris.
- Brook Lopez is hilarious when he’s angry.
- Sebastian and Mark met each other and survived the experience.
Preseason Game 5 Open Thread
Oct 16, 2009 2009-2010 Open Threads, 2009-2010 Preseason
Alright guys, this was successful enough that we are going to run it again. Mark and I are going to both be at the game…together, so we are going to try and tweet from our phone…if we can figure it out.
http://www.twitter.com/NetsRScorching
Play nice guys…
Nets on the Net: 10/16/09 Edition
Oct 16, 2009 Bobby Simmons, Brook Lopez, Brooklyn, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Jarvis Hayes, Nets on the Net
The Star-Ledger recaps a Wall Street Journal story that talks about how Bruce Ratner’s abilities to sell bonds in time for a Dec. 31 groundbreaking of the Barclays Arena is a “toss-up.”
Lawrence Frank says Terrence Williams at PG is only during practice right now. Didn’t look that way Tuesday night.
Expect tonight to be about some experimentation with the bench.
Sam Smith at Bulls.com lists Brook Lopez as a potential “Bust Out” this season and Yi Jianlian as a “Bust.”
Atlantic Yards Report is recapping a radio interview Newark Mayor Cory Booker gave on WBGO radio. Booker is as adamant as ever about getting the Nets in Newark.
No Land Grab wonders where was the New York Times coverage of the Atlantic Yards hearings on Wednesday.
Jarvis Hayes and Bobby Simmons question their role with the team, while Rod Thorn tells Dave D’Alessandro that he’s not in a position to make any trades as of right now.
Oddsmakers in Vegas give the Nets 66-1 odds of winning the Atlantic Division. So you’re saying there’s a chance …
True confessions on Twitter. Chris Douglas-Roberts tells a story on Twitter about a stalking incident and a delusional fan from last season.
Rory at Slippery When Nets talks about backcourt depth, and how quickly depth can disappear.
MTA Straphangers head Gene Russianhoff outlines his opposition of the MTA’s sale of the Atlantic Yards property to Bruce Ratner.
Preseason Game 5 Scouting Report
Oct 16, 2009 Nets vs. Knicks, Opponent Scouting Reports
Preseason Game 5 vs. New York (1-2)
Projected Starting Lineup
1. Chris Duhon: 6′1″ | 185 lbs | 36.8 MPG | 11.1 PPG | 7.2 APG | 42.1 FG% | 39.1 3% | 85.6 FT%
Pure point guard, looking to set up his teammates at all times. Can’t leave him open though, hits open shots. Streaky shooter…if he starts hitting, watch out.
2. F. Wilson Chandler – 6′8″ | 220 lbs. | 24.3 MPG | 13.3 PPG | 2.0 APG | 41.7 FG | 27.8 3 | 45.5 FT
He is a physical 2/3 hybrid who is a solid shooter but is more comfortable attacking the basket. You can beat him offensively with quickness.
3. Al Harrington: 6′9″ | 250 lbs | 35.0 MPG | 20.7 PPG | 6.3 RPG | 44.6 FG% | 36.2 3% | 80.4 FT%
A guard in a big man’s body. He can handle the ball, he is a good shooter, and he can run on the break. I would like to see CDR covering him, as I think his lankiness will disrupt him a bit.
4. F. Jarred Jeffries: 6′10″ | 240 lbs | 23.0 MPG | 5.3 PPG | 4.4 RPG | 43.2 FG | 24.2 3 | 58.6 FT
Big guy who feasts from the wing and the baseline at around 15/20 feet. Awful free throw shooter, and if he is attacking the lane, just foul him. Poor 3 point shooter very good 3 point shooter against the Nets.
5. David Lee: 6′9″ | 240 lbs | 34.9 MPG | 16.0 PPG | 11.7 RPG | 54.9 FG% | 0.00 3% | 75.5 FT%
Another offensive rebounding machine. Brook should be able to handle him though. Likes to live around the basket (which results in the ridiculously high FG%). Must be physical with him and push him away from the basket. On offense, we need to take advantage of his lack of size (for a center). Brook should be able to muscle in on him and get some easy baskets.
Projected Bench
G. Nate Robinson: 5′9″ | 180 lbs | 29.9 MPG | 17.2 PPG | 4.1 APG | 43.7 FG% | 32.5 3% | 84.1 FT
Crazy athletic. Shoot first mentality and also a streaky shooter. Taller guards must take advantage of him in the post. Must look out for him on the fast break…either in terms of attacking the basket or spotting up on the wing.
G/F. Danilo Gallinari: 6′10″ | 225 lbs | 14.7 MPG | 6.1 PPG | 2.0 RPG | 44.8 FG | 44.4 3 | 96.3 FT
Hurt a lot of last year. Has a feathery touch around the basket and is a fantastic shooter built in the Dirk mode. Not tough or exceptionally quick though. Can be pushed around when on offense and when on defense whoever he is guarding needs to go after him. Hard.
G/F. Larry Hughes: 6′5″ | 185 lbs | 27.5 MPG | 11.2 PPG | 2.6 RPG | 39.0 FG | 38.5 3 | 79.4 FT
Streaky shoot first guard. Doesn’t attack the basket, and he shoots in bunches whether he made the last 10 or missed the last 10. Terrific defender despite losing a step, great on and off the ball defending and gets a good number of steals.
G. Toney Douglas: 6′1″ | 200 lbs | Rookie: No professional Stats
Hybrid guard who can play both guard spots. Strong with the ball and can get into the lane. Streaky shooter and a bunch scorer. Willing to find his open teammates though.
F/C. Darko Milicic: 7′0″ | 275 lbs | 17.2 MPG | 5.5 PPG | 4.0 RPG | 45.4 FG | 0.00 3 | 58.8 FT
Another poor foul shooter. If he has a lane, might as well foul him. More of a shooting big man than a banging inside big man, and he is effective on the break.
Jordan Hill: 6′10″ | 235 lbs | Rookie: No professional Stats
Jordan Hill is an offensive rebounding machine. I would like to see the Nets zone rebound (box out areas rather than players) to deal with him and David Lee, because I think Hill will eat Yi alive. Guards really need to help and pinch on him when boxing out. Offensively he can he the 10 footer, but that seems to be the limit of his range. On defense he is tough inside, but slow, Yi can take advantage of him on the outside.
G. Gabe Pruitt: 6′4″ | 170 lbs | 7.4 MPG | 2.0 PPG | 0.8 APG | 32.1 FG | 28.3 3 | 78.3 FT
Last name close to mine so awesome. Other than that generic back-up PG.
G. Sun Yue: 6′9″ | 205 lbs | 2.8 MPG | 0.6 PPG | 0.2 APG | 27.3 FG | 0.00 3 | 0.00 FT
TALL generic PG…from China…
F/C. Chris Hunter: 6′11″ | 240 lbs | Rookie: No professional Stats
Coming from the NBDL
G. Ron Howard: 6′5″ | 200 lbs | Rookie: No professional Stats
Coming from the NBDL…not to be confused with Richie Cunningham
G. Joe Crawford: 6′5″ | 210 lbs | Rookie: No professional Stats
Coming from the NBDL…not to be confused with official Joey Crawford
Warren Carter: ?? | ?? | Rookie: No professional Stats
Doesn’t have a NBA player page. Not related to Vince Carter…I think…
Marcus Landry: 6′7″ | 230 lbs. | Rookie: No professional Stats
Undrafted Rookie. Brother plays in the NBA…Marcus plays exactly like him…except he wears Recspecs…
G. Cuttino Mobley -
Out
C. Eddy Curry -
Out, Fat Very Fat
Offensive Tendencies:
This team likes to run, and will try to out score you rather than stop you. A lot of ball-hog type players who shoot first…keep them from getting hot and we should be ok…
Defensive Tendencies:
They don’t have any good defenders besides Larry Hughes. Undersized pretty much everywhere, so we need to take advantage of the size.
Keys To Victory:
Keep them from scoring over 100 points, if we can do that, they are so poor defensively we can outscore them. We need to keep them off the offensive glass and prevent their streaky shooters from getting hot. We also need to take advantage of their size and try to score inside.
Scouting the East: Charlotte Bobcats
Oct 16, 2009 Scouting the East
Team: Charlotte Bobcats
Last Year’s Record: 35-47 (4th, Southeast Division)
Head Coach: Larry Brown
Comings: Tyson Chandler, Gerald Henderson, Derrick Brown and Ronald Murray.
Goings: Emeka Okafor.
Blogger’s Talk: Brett Hainline of Queen City Hoops:
Bad offense, good defense means an average year for the Bobcats. And by average, I mean average for the Bobcats – mid to high 30’s in wins, no playoffs.
Hainline on the Nets:
Two building blocks in Devin Harris and Brook Lopez and another potential one in Terrence Williams. Beyond that, Courtney Lee is a solid rotation player, but let’s see a season of production first. After that – ugh, this will be a rough season in Jersey.
NAS Interview: Eminent Domain Legal Expert William Ward
Oct 16, 2009 Brooklyn, Interviews
While it’s still far from a slam dunk that team owner Bruce Ratner will eventually be able to move the Nets to a new arena in Brooklyn, one legal expert who has more than three decades of experience working on eminent domain cases, believes it’s doubtful that Atlantic Yards opponents did enough in Wednesday’s oral arguments in Albany to prevent Ratner from getting the property he needs for development.
William Ward, who runs the legal blog, New Jersey Eminent Domain Blog, said the justices at the Wednesday hearing before the New York State Court of Appeals asked fair and tough questions to both sides in the case. But working against the petitioners is legal precedent that will likely result in another instance of forward progress for the Atlantic Yards development.
“In this case, the petitioners have a very tough road ahead of them if they’re going to prevent this project from going forward,” said Ward, who has prior experience as a deputy attorney general in New Jersey, litigating cases for the Department of Transportation, and as secretary and general counsel for the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.
During the arguments on Wednesdays, petitioners argued that the scope of “public use” in acquiring land through eminent domain for projects like the Atlantic Yards site, needed to be paired back and limited. However, legal precedent has demonstrated that “public use” has been broadened over time, not narrowed.
Ward said he was unaware of any cases where the scope of “public use” had been narrowed to what the petitioners were requesting in Wednesday’s hearing.
Another roadblock for the petitioners was the timing of their complaint. Essentially, according to New York State’s Eminent Domain Procedure Law, petitioners had to file their complaint within a 30-day limitation contained in the statue. Instead, they unsuccessfully pursued their cased in federal court and relied on a six-month grace period to support their application that the action was timely filed. If the Appeals Court wants to avoid a controversial decision, they could potentially throw the case out without ruling due to this technicality, Ward said.
One aspect of the case that could work in the petitioners’ favor was the idea of how the proposed development area was considered “blighted” by the Empire State Development Corporation. While all sides conceded that the Atlantic Rail Yards are indeed blighted, the justices questioned whether or not the ESDC condemned other properties as blight in an effort to push the whole development forward.
In this, the worst case scenario for Ratner is the court orders the ESDC to do further study on the blighted properties, which would lead to further delays for a groundbreaking. However, even with this possibility, “it remains a long shot” for the petitioners, Ward said.
While there are still other lawsuits floating around that could impede progress on the Nets move to Brooklyn, Ward believed if the Appeals Court finds in the developer’s favor, the petitioners won’t be able to challenge the ruling. Instead, the next round of legal haggling will likely focus on such things as the value of the land and relocation costs for those who have been condemned.