Nets Are Scorching

Well, in the pregame thread, I said that if the Nets let the Kings get going early, they were going to lose the game.  I hate to toot my own horn, especially in a loss, but that is exactly what happened.  The Nets gave up 33 points in the first quarter and let them shoot 60% from the floor.  The Kings remained hot for the entire game, shooting 54.9% from the floor for the entire game.  They were also 50% from three, hitting big ones anytime the Nets got close.

• Looking at the stats, it shouldn’t have been as close as it was, but the Nets took care of the ball 11 turnovers while forcing 15.
• 1st half Nets were outscored by 17.  They outscored the Kings by 4 in the second half, but dug themselves in a way too big of a hole.
• Brook had another big night, going for 24 and 11.
• CDR had a nice night as well, going for 21 and 8.
• In the second half, Devin Harris started to regain his All-Star form.  Though he is still getting a feel for finishing in traffic (it will come), he was able to get into the lane and draw fouls.  He shot only 6-22, but got to the line 17 times and that is the reason he got 25 points.
• Josh Boone played well too, going for 10 points and 7 rebounds.
• In the first half, the Kings killed the Nets on the boards out rebounding them 27-11.  The reason?  It might have had something to do with the Nets’ PFs logging only 11 minutes combined in the first half.  Against the Kings’ large front line, Hassell was playing the PF spot.  Frank stuck with the small lineup way too long, but give him credit, he did make the adjustment, and played Boone for most of the second half.  The Nets responded by winning the 2nd half rebounding battle 28 to 18.
• Beno Udrih wasn’t supposed to play and I really wish he hadn’t.  He came off the bench for 21 points, including three or four big shots after the Nets got the lead down to 6 a few times in the fourth.
• Courtney Lee really must not be even close to 100%.  10 minutes last game, and 3 tonight.

With the Lakers coming up on Sunday, the national media is going to be all over this game, because if we win, no more losing streak, but if we lose, we are breaking the record.  No questions asked.  If the Nets can win tonight, all of the jokes about the Nyets, being terrible, and stuff like that goes away.  Even though it is the same roster and everything like that, the jokes will be gone because the Nets won’t be breaking the record.

Before we continue to talk about the game, I wanted to point you guys to a great report by Chris Sheridan on the TrueHoop blog.  He takes a look at the three games the Nets should have won.  Those games?  The Minnesota game, the Miami game, and the Milwaukee game.  You have to go over there to read the whole thing, but his comments on the Bucks’ game were interesting:

Rookie Terrence Williams was on fire, hitting his final seven shots of the first half as New Jersey went to the locker room with a 48-41 lead. But rather than stick with the hot hand, Frank told the rest of the team at halftime to feed off the example being set by Williams. Bad idea. Milwaukee opened the second half with a 15-2 run before Frank put Williams back in with 6:35 remaining in the third quarter, and the rookie shot 0-for-6 the rest of the way.

Looks like I am not the only having issues with Lawrence Frank’s rotations at times.

Anyway, back to tonight’s game.  Like New Jersey, Sacramento is a young team, if you let them get going early and allow them to build a big lead and gain confidence, they can blow you out (Like they showed against New York on Wed.).  However, if you keep it close, you can stay in the game and the Kings will make mistakes to allow you to win the game.  The Nets have a chance to avoid infamy here, they need to come out like they did against the Blazers though, not like how they came out against the Nuggets.

Beno Udrih vs. Devin Harris:

If anything tells you about Lawrence Frank’s thought process going into this game, it’s his start of Devin Harris.  Devin Harris has been slowly added to the rotation more and more, and now he is finally starting against a team that the Nets have a chance to beat.  Beno Udrih is no slouch though.  He originally lost the starting PG job to Tyreke Evans, but with Kevin Martin’s injury, Evans slides to the 2-spot and Udrih is starting.  He is a quick guard who is at his best when he gets into the lane.

Advantage: Devin Harris

Tyreke Evans vs. Chris Douglas-Roberts:

Though I have been hyping up a Devin Harris vs. Tyreke Evans match-up (and it should happen at least a couple times during the game), the CDR vs. Evans should be just as good, if not better.  This battle of of former Memphis stars will be fun because both guys like to attack the basket, so they will be going at each other the whole game.

Advantage:  Push

Andres Nocioni vs. Trenton Hassell:

Nocioni is one of those guys you hate to play against, but when he is on your team, you love him.  He is one of those hard-nose types who will be physical to, and most of the times through, the whistle.  He uses his physical play to try and intimidate his opponents and take them out of the game mentally.  Don’t let all of this fool you though, he can play.  Nocioni can knock down the open three, and when he attacks the basket, he is very aggresive.

Advantage:  Andres Nocioni

Jason Thompson vs. Josh Boone:

Jason Thompson is like the anti-Josh Boone.  He is a tall athletic PF, who has ball skills.  He can handle the ball, hit the outside shot, and attack the basket.  Josh Boone can’t do any of that stuff.

Advantage:  Jason Thompson

Spencer Hawes vs. Brook Lopez:

What really impressed me about Brook’s performance on Wednesday was that he had a “give me the damn ball” attitude.  I have never seen that from him, and just by looking how he was posting up made me think he was trying to break the streak by himself.  Spencer Hawes is a big-boy, just like Oden, but in my opinion, Oden is more skilled defensively, and if Brook comes out and plays just like he did against Oden, he could be setting another career high.

Advantage:  Brook Lopez

Prediction

Current Record 9-6

I have predicted the Nets would win 6 times so far this year.  I have been wrong 6 times.  This is the Nets best chance at getting a win for a little while, so how can I not pick them?  Nets win.

This is your open thread, but I will be over at the Daily Dime most of the game, so join me over there.

Zach Harper of the Kings’ TrueHoop Network blog Cowbell Kingdom made up a real good highlight mix of Tyreke Evans game against the Jazz on November 7th.  This was the Kings’ first game without Kevin Martin, and he put up 32 points and 7 assists.

I have said it a bunch of times already but Evans vs. Harris (who is expected to start tonight) is going to be very entertaining.

Since NAS had so much fun reviewing John Calipari’s new book a few months ago, we thought we’d continue the trend of reviewing new books about the game as we get to read them. Because remember kids, reading is fundamental, even if it’s not always Nets-centric.

Bill Simmons, aka, ESPN’s “The Sports Guy,” has long been one of my favorite writers – with his fan’s perspective and irreverent sense of humor that often incorporates pop culture references galore, I love it – but he’s definitely an acquired taste for those who are looking for more serious, “insightful” opinions in sportswriting.

So I’m fairly certain that Simmons’ new book “The Book of Basketball,” is going to invite a whole range of opinions. There will be many who call the book overlong and self-indulgent, with way too much focus on the Boston Celtics, and an blatant disregard for some of the newer statistical metrics that have been embraced by many of us in the True Hoop Network. Those critics wouldn’t be wrong, but I enjoyed this book anyway, because it reads exactly how I would expect a 715-page magnum opus about basketball written by Bill Simmons to read.

It’s uneven and rambles a bit, and can’t say I learned a whole lot about the game, except the fact that Michael Jordan is a deadly, cold-blooded assassin (duh), and that Bill Russell was clearly better than Wilt Chamberlin (I’m too young to have seen either of them play, so it’s an argument I could care less about). But again, I don’t think you ever read Simmons to learn anything new. A Simmons column is the equivalent of going to a bar with a bunch of sports-obsessed buddies and talking about the game for hours – with the conversation devolving into such things as Rocky movies or OJ Simpson references as more and more drinks are consumed. You read Simmons, because you’re just as much a fan of the game as he is. This is the mentality that got me into sports blogging in the first place. While a game recap in a daily newspaper is usually informative, I’ve always found the best insight comes from fan observations.  Fans are the ones who complain about a guy not getting enough playing time, and they’re the ones who remember the otherwise inconsequential games in January where somebody made an incredible shot that makes us revere those players in such a way that it can sometimes defy logic. Sports blogging gives those of us who are lucky enough to have developed a regular audience an opportunity to share our own silly little observations about the game. I can only hope that my observations lead to additional observations and reactions from our readers. Simmons embraces this mentality, and for the most part, so does “The Book of Basketball.”

The Nets actually come up in the book more than I expected – especially the ABA version of the team. Simmons appears to sympathize with how the NBA-ABA merger in the summer of 1976 decimated the Nets (then of New York). The Nets had to pay the Knicks $4.8 million over 10 for territory rights – a move that so financially crippled the organization, they had to unload their franchise player Julius Erving to stay afloat.

In another chapter, Simmons looks at the 2002 MVP race between Tim Duncan (who ultimately won) and then-Net Jason Kidd. Categorizing the MVP as “fishy but ultimately okay,” Simmons sets up the argument where he sees the logic of a Kidd MVP: “Energized by the change of scenery, Kidd led the perennially crappy Nets to 52 wins, swung the New York media behind him and stood out mostly for his unselfishness and singular talent for running fast breaks …”
Read more…

While NAS just recently called last week’s match-up against the New York Knicks the Nets best chance to avoid an 0-17 – or worse – start to the season, tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings also provides the organization with a glimmer of hope to avoid infamy as they face the defending champion LA Lakers on the road on Sunday and then come home to face the 11-4 Dallas Mavericks.

I personally thought the Nets matched-up better with the Knicks, which was why I was willing to go out on a limb last week and call it a got to have win last Saturday. The Knicks do very little right, but they obviously did just enough right (and got the right calls from the refs) to push the Nets losing streak onward.

As for the Kings, they are the worst defensive team the Nets have faced this season, currently 27th in the league in defensive efficiency giving up 107.6 points per 100 possessions. That’s a good thing for a team that has trouble scoring as much as the Nets do – who will likely insert all-star Devin Harris back into the starting line-up tonight. However, the Kings can score – they’re 11th in the league in offensive efficiency while the Nets toil at dead last in that category. So even if the Kings let the Nets score more than they’ve been able to do so far this season, the Nets still have to figure out a way to stop them on defense. That won’t be easy.

Fred Kerber in the New York Post today notes an important piece of coincidental history that could favor the Nets – when the Los Angeles Clippers got off to their 0-17 start in 1999-2000, a victory against the Sacramento Kings ended their losing streak. Of course, that was a Sacramento team that featured Oliver Miller and Jerome James.

Here’s what Brook Lopez thinks about the losing streak, from Kerber:

“It’s one game at a time. As good as those teams are, you’ve got to put it off,” said Brook Lopez, who is coming off his career game: a personal high 32 points and 14 rebounds (an NBA season-high 10 offensive) in the 93-83 loss to Portland, defeat No. 15, Wednesday. “Either way, you have to focus on the game you’re playing. You can’t play tonight worrying about tomorrow.”

For Nets fan looking for an injection of optimism, the Bleacher Report gives us five reasons why the Nets will win against the Kings. Some of the reasons include the aforementioned Kings’ defense, and the starting lineup return by Devin Harris, but the list also includes the Kings’ weak rebounding abilities, and the Nets “growing confidence” coming off a game where they battled the heavyweight Portland Trailblazers well into the 4th quarter before running out of gas.

Of course, the Nets have showed pluck and fight most of the season, with a few notable exceptions (hello Tuesday’s game against the Nuggets).  None of this has led to a victory. And the article’s last reason doesn’t exactly inspire confidence:

THE LAKERS AND MAVERICKS ARE NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE. The first of those two games is at Staples Center. That means Friday’s game in Sacramento is pretty much New Jersey’s only chance for salvation. The Laker game is an automatic loss and the Mavs game is close.

Update: Over at the TrueHoop mother site, Chris Sheridan talks about the Nets chances for tonight, Lawrence Frank, and three games the Nets should have won this season: against Minnesota opening night, the heartbreaker against Miami, and last week’s second-half meltdown against the Bucks. I would have also added at least one of the two games against Philadelphia to Sheridan’s list, probably the home game where the Nets had three chances to tie or go-ahead and couldn’t hit a shot in the final minute.

Kiki Vandeweghe has been through a losing season like this before with the Denver Nuggets.

Randy Hill looks at the Nets and the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are battling each other for the worst record in the league.

The Daily News and the Bergen Record, react to the recent eminent domain ruling that sets the stage for the Nets to move to Brooklyn.

Fred Kerber of the New York Post believes tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings is the Nets best shot to end their losing streak.

Brook Lopez credits his patience, along with some sage advice from assistant coach Roy Rogers and teammate Chris Douglas-Roberts for his good night against Portland on Wednesday.

Hoops World looks at franchises that are in big trouble right now.

Here is a pretty awesome video of the Nets helping out at a New Jersey Salvation Army before their trip out west:

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  See you all Friday.

GameFlow, Blazers Edge, Brook Lopez Interview, Lawrence Frank Interview

I am much calmer as I type this than I was after the Denver game.  Why?  The Nets showed effort, and they stayed competitive putting a scare into Portland.  Portland simply had much more talent and while they were shuffling in guys like Rudy Fernandez and Andre Miller off the bench.  The Nets responded with guys like Bobby Simmons.  The gap in talent was very obvious.  Like the Denver game, I sat down on the couch not really expecting a win, but unlike the Denver game, the Nets showed effort, a ton of it.

Most notably, Brook Lopez came out and showed fire.  I was really worried about Brook going into tonight, mainly because he had a bad game yesterday and he was going up against a big center in Greg Oden.  Brook has struggled against the bigger centers so far this year.  Dwight Howard, Brandon Haywood, and Roy Hibbert all gave him problems.  Not tonight though, Brook looked aggressive, and maybe most importantly, he showed much better body language.  The only thing that has disappointed me about Brook has been his poor body language, whenever there is a foul he disagrees with, he shows his displeasure and usually picks up a cheap foul soon after.  Not tonight, even when he picked up an early one against Greg Oden, he didn’t react or anything like that, he just went back to work.  You know Roy Rogers is getting in his ear.

Chris Douglas-Roberts had a bounce back game as well.  It was apparently early that he wanted to get to the rack.  He didn’t start shooting jumpers until after he made a few line-ups.  That is really good to see.

It just came down to the gap in talent, you had to know this was going to be a rough year, and though it has been a little rougher than most would have expected, this team is starting to put some things together and look better.  If the Nets have this kind of game, they can put themselves to get a  win on Friday.  I tried to write down times and plays today so I can do some key plays, but when I looked at them after the game they were unreadable.  Maybe it was because I was writing and watching the game at the same time.  So no key plays today, but there are some bullets after the jump:

Read more…