Nets Are Scorching

Next up in Bloggers Talk is Royce Young, from the fantastic Thunder TrueHoop site, Daily Thunder, which is so cool, they even have their own t-shirts (we need to get some of these on Nets Are Scorching, right folks?).

NAS: Give Nets fans a reason to be optimistic. The Thunder were a young/inexperienced team last season that started terribly and got better as the season went along, and are now hovering around .500. What happened with the Thunder that brought them together and got them playing better and what does the roster need that should boost them up to the next level?

I feel bad. I’m honestly having a hard time finding a connecting factor between the two teams that could give Nets fans reason for optimism. Not to sound like a Laker fan, but OKC has Kevin Durant to build around. New Jersey has… Brook Lopez? That said, the Nets roster has talent and their 2-28 record isn’t a good indicator of the ability of the team. I felt that exact same way about Oklahoma City last year when it was 3-29 on New Year’s Eve. The Thunder made a commitment to starting new in 2009 last year and did so with a solid January and carried it over to a quality 20-30 finish to the season. That should be the goal for New Jersey. Forget 2009 and focus on 2010 and make an effort to build momentum into the offseason.

NAS: On that note, the Thunder just finished a rough part of their schedule where they were 3-5 against many of the league’s top teams. Any moral victories you took away in some of those losses?

The Laker loss at Staples might be a defining game later on. In three games against the defending champs, OKC has lost by just three in two of them. But maybe even more encouraging was the win in Phoenix the following night. After an emotional letdown against the Lakers, the Thunder turned around and beat a Suns team on their home court, a place they had only lost once prior. The most difficult part of the Thunder’s schedule should be behind them now, so pressing on above .500 is very, very exciting.

NAS: What are your thoughts on the Eric Maynor acquisition from Utah? Where does he fit in on Oklahoma City?

I turned my coffee table over and broke a window in excitement. I was a big fan of his before the draft last year and really hoped OKC would target him with its second pick. Utah got him before Presti could, but to get him for virtually nothing is excellent. The Thunder needs a long term backup to play behind Russell Westbrook and a guy that can change the pace. Maynor is definitely that guy.

NAS: Where does Kevin Durant rank in your mind among the best players in the NBA right now?

Disclaimer: I’m a homer. I unabashedly love KD. So keep that in perspective. But I’d put him in the top eight. He can score with anybody – he’ll toss up 34 and you won’t even notice it – but he’s really improved himself defensively. He’s learning how to take over games late. He’s probably not a Tier One player yet, (the LeBron, ‘Melo, Wade, Kobe, Chris Paul stratosphere) but he’s right on top of the Tier Two guys. Keep in mind, he’s just 21. Imagine his skillset when he’s 26. Scary. Well, for other teams.

A young franchise, with up and coming players and a star to build around struggled for the first two months of the season, only winning two of their first 24 games.

Your 2009-10 New Jersey Nets? Yes. But also your 2008-09 Oklahoma City Thunder.

Tonight’s game at the Izod Center should be an interesting matchup for the Nets, not only because the Thunder come to town with a 15-14 record, and their main guy, Kevin Durant, playing like a superstar, but because the Thunder are a great example of a young team that struggled initially, but was able to grow together and become a much better team. As Nets fans, we can only hope this year’s team, can follow the same trajectory as last year’s Thunder.

Granted, the Nets don’t have a player on the level of Kevin Durant currently on their roster, but in Devin Harris and Brook Lopez, they have two guys who have flashes of superstardom.  If you add in a high lottery pick in June, the continued development of young role players like Courtney Lee, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Terrence Williams and Yi Jianlian, and of course a free agent or two, and suddenly the Nets not only resemble the Thunder, but they could possibly grow at an even quicker pace into one of the league’s better teams.

Don’t take my word for it, just hear what coach Kiki Vandeweghe has to say about it, as reported by the always fantastic Ben Couch:

“Could they have won more games letting the veterans go, retarding the growth of a Durant?” Vandeweghe asked, rhetorically. “Yeah, they probably could have won a few more games, but that’s not the path they chose. It took them two years to get there; we’re trying to do it within a year, but it’s a tried-and-true method (of) almost force-feeding your guys. And that’s what they did in Oklahoma, they force-fed their guys and they got good results.”

The Thunder finished with 23 victories last season, after finishing December with only 4. While they were able to take advantage of their schedule, grabbing some victories against bottom-feeding teams like the Memphis Grizzlies, Washington Wizards and Sacramento Kings, as the season wore on, they were able to pick off some of the league’s best teams, including the Dallas Mavericks and the San Antonio Spurs (twice).

This season, the Thunder have already beaten the Orlando Magic at home, and the Spurs and Phoenix Suns on the road. Of course when you talk about the improvement of Oklahoma City, a lot of the focus starts with Durant, who in his third season, is averaging career highs in points per 40 minutes (27.9) and Player Efficiency Rating (23.12).

But the improvement doesn’t stop with Durant. Jeff Green, a 23-year-old forward, is utilizing an improve turnover and assist ratio to raise his PER from 13.99 to 14.4 this season. Starting Center (and old friend of the Nets) Nenad Krstic, has improved since coming back from Russia last year, averaging 14.5 points and 9 rebounds per 40 minutes, on 48 percent shooting, good for a PER of 14.06, after essentially playing himself out of basketball in 2007-08, his last year with the Nets. Rookie James Harden is a sparkplug off the bench, averaging 10 points, on 36 percent shooting from three. Another rookie, Eric Maynor, was recently acquired from the Utah Jazz to back up Russell Westbrook at PG. Westbrook is having a similar season points-wise to last year, but has also improved his turnover and assist ratios, to jack up his PER and pure point rating.

Outside of Durant, and possibly Westbrook, these are not yet household names, yet the Thunder are keeping their young heads above water in the tough Western Conference. While there’s still a lot can that go wrong for the Nets, the Thunder should hopefully provide hope for what can go right. While adding someone on the level of LeBron James or Chris Bosh is nice, it’s not a necessity. The Nets just need to stick with their plan of rebuilding, even if it means an ugly record in November and December.

Just a quick look at everything that’s been going right for Yi Jianlian, who looks like a different player since his return from injury Wednesday night.

As always, be sure to check out our Nets Are Scorching video page on YouTube, for up to date videos and other goodies.

After starting the season 0-18, the Nets are staring down the barrel of another double-digit losing streak tonight, according to Julian Garcia of the Daily News.

Many Nets are impressed with Yi Jianlian since his return (so is Nets Are Scorching, see our update in a few hours): “He’s shooting the ball with confidence, attacking the rim with tenacity and finishing strong,” Devin Harris said. “He’s capable of it. I’ve seen him jump just as high as Sean [Williams] in certain places. He’s got the athleticism. He’s a very talented individual.”

Brooklyn Opponents remain classy, and erect a guillotine for eminent domain (and Russia!) in front of Freddy’s Bar: He passed it over to Death, who pronounced, “Poor eminent domain, born of a noble purposes of building hospitals and roads… is being used to take Americans from their homes, not just for a British bank but also for Russia… eminent domain, you are hereby condemned.”

A look at the financial crisis in Russia, and the one Russian oligarch, Mikhail Prokhorov, who is “At least one Russian oligarch is having fun.”

I know it has been a while since I last did a video breakdown, but it was finals weeks for the last two weeks, so I haven’t had a whole lot of time to go over videos.  So we are going to continue the video breakdown series starting with the Nets game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.  There are a lot of good things to take away from this game, but there were also some bad defensive plays.

On offense, you are going to see the the difference having 3 point shooters make.  I have talked about it a little bit before, but when you have shooters, it forces teams to stay close with them.  That makes helping out on defense harder, and it also makes doubling Brook Lopez harder.  The Nets lost this game on the defensive end though.  They got dominated in the paint, and part of it was poor rotation, allowing the Timberwolves to get easy lay-ups.  We are going to take a look at some examples after the jump.

Read more…

Red94, The Dream Shake,  View from the Couch, Brook Lopez Interview, Yi Jianlian Interview

The Houston Rockets are one of those teams that have bewildering opponents with their ability to win games despite their perceived lack of “name” talent all season long, so I really can’t act too surprised by the final score last night, as clearly the “better” team won 98-93, even if on first blush I think the Nets have some better players.

Yet, after Keyon Dooling (11 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists), drilled a three-pointer with 1:38 left in the game to tie the score at 91, I thought the Nets would defy my initial logic.

For a change of pace, the Nets were actually the benefactors of a team having a terrible offensive quarter, as the Rockets missed 8 of their last 10 shots in the third, en route to a 13 point performance for the quarter. While some of it was just bad luck for Houston (and a lot of bricks from Trevor Ariza), the Nets also played some stout defense. At the 2:46 mark, Josh Boone was one of the only Nets to make a stop on Carl Landry (26 points, 7 rebounds), as he played some nice post defense and blocked Landry’s shot. About 40 seconds later, Yi Jianlian (17 points, 6 rebounds), making his first start since the fourth game of the season, was able to front Aaron Brooks on a dribble drive from the left elbow, forcing him into a contested jump shot which he missed. The Nets capped off their strong third quarter stand by playing great team defense off a missed shot by Keyon Dooling, getting back to stop the fast break, and forcing Luis Scola into a double dribble in the post. The Nets entered the fourth quarter down one, and were in position to steal a game from one of the Western Conference’s (and league’s) better teams.

But that almost seems to be Houston’s game at this point – lull you into believing that your team can grab a victory from such a seemingly undermanned roster of players. They leave you scratching your head – did the Nets really give up 16 offensive rebounds and get outrebounded 51-39 against a team starting a 6’6″ guy at Center? On that note, how did Brook Lopez only get 4 of his 17 points in the second half? With the game tied after the Dooling three-pointer, how does Aaron Brooks (17 points, 7 rebounds) blow by Devin Harris and get that layup over Yi who I thought was standing his ground pretty well along the baseline?

And truth be told, the Nets made their fair share of unforced errors down the stretch, which helps explains why they are where they are this season – now 2-28 and losers of their past 9 games, including their past three at home. Yi, who’s really been a revelation since coming back from his knee injury earlier in the week, committed a really stupid foul on Carl Landry with about 2:40 left in the game and the shot clock on the verge of expiring, when he put his hands out to guard Landry just a bit too far and ended up making contact with his wrist. Then Yi made a huge dunk with about 2:25 left, driving baseline and showing an aggressiveness that I just have never seen from him before this recent two game set… unfortunately he let his emotions get the better of him and he ended up hanging on the rim way too long after the play, drawing the technical from the officials. You could say Yi was just trying to protect himself because of his forward momentum from the play, but if I’m being fair here, he could have a made a better case for himself if he let go of the rim about a second earlier.

Still, despite these mistakes, the Nets have looked like a different team the past two games. Yes, they’re still not winning these games, and a case could be made that losing to a team like the Timberwolves at home was an embarrassment (however, I think with Kevin Love and a healthier Al Jefferson, the Wolves are a better team than we’re giving them credit for). However, after their drubbing to the Raptors, and their second-half meltdown against the Lakers last weekend, the Nets have done a much better job of staying competitive for all four quarters. They’re still missing a key component in Chris Doulgas-Roberts, a guy with a large enough offensive repertoire that could help get this team get over the hump. If the Nets could learn from these tough losses, they’re going to find a way to turn this season around, and at least make a respectable run to get them out of the “worst ever” conversation.

Here a few more final thoughts after the game:
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The Nets lost another heartbreaker at home tonight, falling to the Houston Rockets 98-93.

• This was a fun game, and the Nets were able to to use a great defensive third quarter where they held the Rockets to 13 points to get themselves back into this game headed into the home stretch. They exchanged the lead a few times in the fourth, but Yi Jianlian and Keyon Dooling both missed threes in the closing minute, while Aaron Brooks made a clutch layup and four three throws to ice the game for Houston.
• In his first start since early November, Yi didn’t have the touch he had on Wednesday night against Minnesota, but was aggressive to the hoop all game, and finished with 17 points and 6 rebounds on 6-13 shooting. However, Yi’s last two points may have been the turning point for the Nets, as he hung on the rim after the dunk, earning an ill-timed technical from the refs.
• The biggest flaw for the Nets all evening was their rebounding. They allowed a team without a legit center to grab 16 offensive rebounds, and 51 for the game.
• Brook Lopez have another double-double, 17 points, 11 rebounds (and 3 blocks), but only scored 4 points in the second half.
• Keyon Dooling provided another boost off the bench with 11 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. He nailed a three down the stretch to tie the game at 91, but the Nets were never able to get over the hump.
• Carly Landry went for 26 points and 9 rebounds off the bench for Houston, to lead all scorers.
• Devin Harris had 19 points, but needed 22 shots to do it.
• Tracy McGrady was not with the Rockets tonight.

What’s going on everyone?  Hope you all had a good holiday, the Nets are getting back into the swing of things with a game against Houston tonight.  Before we talk about this game, I want to point something out from the game against Minnesota (there will be a video breakdown tomorrow, so this will be quick).  Hoop Data now has advanced box scores, and it is awesome.  Taking a look at the one from the Minnesota game, it become obvious that missed shots at the rim probably cost the Nets the game.  Josh Boone was 1-5 at the rim.  Brook Lopez was 1-6.  As a team, the Nets were 13-28 at the rim…ouch…

Anyway tonight should be interesting.  Nobody expected the Rockets to be 17-12 at this point, and they are doing it without Yao and without T-Mac for most of the year.  They spread the scoring load around.  Four guys average over 14.7 PPG, including Carl Landry who is averaging 16.6 off the bench. T-Mac is back, but he hasn’t played more than 8 minutes in a game, he has been pushing for more minutes, and we will see if he gets them tonight.  Onto the matchups!

Devin Harris vs. Aaron Brooks

This is going to be a fun match-up to watch.  You got two quick guys who like to get into the lane and create things for themselves and their teammates.  Neither are the best defenders either.  Devin for once is going to have a size advantage, and hopefully he will be able to use it, especially when he pulls up for his mid-range jumpers.

Advantage:  Devin Harris

Courtney Lee vs. Trevor Ariza

Courtney Lee has had his best game since the Bobcats game where he put up his career high.  He had 20 points on 8-16 shooting including 2-3 from 3.  What was most impressive was his willingness to  attack the basket and not settle for jumpers.  The Trevor Ariza signing has had mixed reviews, he is putting up pretty good numbers, but with his increased usage this year, his True Shooting Percentage is the worst of his career (47.0%).  What that means he is taking too many shots to get his points.

Advantage:  Push

Chris Douglas-Roberts vs. Shane Battier

From what I am hearing CDR will be back tonight.  This is going to be a tough return game for him as he will be facing one of the best defenders in the league.  Battier isn’t really a scoring threat on the other end (only 8.2 PPG), so CDR can focus his efforts on the offensive end, and he is going to need to.

Advantage:  Shane Battier

Yi vs. Luis Scola

Yi forced Kiki’s hand last game.  He was only supposed to play something like 10-15 minutes last game, but he played so well and looked so good, he ended up playing 30 minutes.  I think his performance on Wed. night will show Kiki that Yi is ready to start.  Luis Scola is a tough player who likes to bang inside, he may have some problems covering Yi on the outside, but when Scola is going to be on offense, he is going to try to post Yi up as much as he can.  Yi is going to have to step it up defensively.

Advantage:  Luis Scola

Brook Lopez vs. Chuck Hayes

Chuck Hayes is an undersized center, but his work ethic on the court makes up for his lack of size.  That being said Brook needs to get a fair amount of touches inside.  With Yi and Dooling now back, he probably won’t be seeing as many doubles as he was before, and that could free him up to use his size advantage inside.

Advantage:  Brook Lopez

This is your open thread tonight guys, use it if you want.