Nets Are Scorching

First things first.  Kris Humprhies passed his physical, and the deal to send Eduardo Najera is now official.  Humphries got to practice in time to participate through the second half of practice.  When the media was allowed into practice, Humpries was on a far basket working on some post moves as well as the pick and roll game with Chris Quinn:

Jarvis Hayes and Courtney Lee were also working after practice.  They were running through some shooting drills:

A funny story about Kris, as he was walking off the court, Nets’ PR man Aaron Harris had to introduce himself to Humphries before he introduced Humphries to the media.  When he talked to us, the main focus of the conversation was why he hasn’t stuck on a team (the Nets will be his fourth team).  Well if you think about it, he has been behind Carlos Boozer, Chris Bosh, and Dirk Nowitzki.  Kris was also a topic of conversation when the media talked to Kiki.  Kiki also talked about Devin Harris.  He is in fact playing tomorrow, so that is something to look forward to.  Here are the full interviews:

Kris’ Interview:

Kiki’s Interview:

As for Devin, he answered a few questions, talking about the injuries, and why he insists on playing despite not being 100%:

One final note on practice as a whole.  We have been getting some e-mails from fans at the game (thanks guys, we read them and do appreciate them!) about how the Nets bench was in shambles.  How the Nets players were yelling at each other and not being focused, while the coaches look disgruntled.  I waited until today to see if this kind of stuff was true, and I have to say, I don’t see it.  I mean when a team is losing (in the moment), there is frustration.  Players and coaches yell.  Today at practice the mood was great and the guys were laughing.

A specific example, Del Harris spent the entire time Terrence Williams was shooting foul shots, watching him and talking to him.  Del was really coaching Terrence up, and the mood looked good.  I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but Del, Terrence, and CDR (who was there as well) were laughing it up.

I think that this is important, because with all the losing, players tend to get negative and when they are negative, they don’t play at their best (in practice if that negativity is there, they don’t focus and they don’t learn).  This stuff is important.

With yesterday’s news that the Nets are going to hang on to Shawne Williams for the immediate future, despite initial speculation that he would be waived once the Humphries-Najera trade was completed, we thought it would be worthwhile to provide a little information about the Nets new player.

While Dave D’Alessandro was quite snarky in his write-up of Williams, there is/was talent there at some point. As a freshman at Memphis (teammates with Chris Douglas-Roberts), the 6’9″ forward averaged 13.2 points and 6.2 rebounds and was named Conference USA Tournament MVP. Before the 2006 draft, where he was picked 17th by the Indiana Pacers, your friend and mine, John Calipari labeled Williams a “sleeper.”

While Williams has yet to live up to his potential on the court, it’s been his off-the-court antics that have truly torpedoed his career. In September 2007, he was busted for marijuana possession and for driving without a license. In February 2008, a friend of Williams’ wanted in connection for a Tennessee murder, was arrested leaving Williams’ house. Earlier this year, he was basically told by the Mavericks to just stay away.

Tim Donahue, who writes for the TrueHoop Pacers blog Eight Points Nine Seconds, was never a huge believer in Williams, but “there was a sizable contingent of Pacer fans that were absolutely convinced that the was going to be a better player than Danny Granger.”

“Problem is he’s one of those guys that makes a promising first impression, but then never, ever shows any progress,” Donahue added. “Couple his inability to improve as a basketball player with the situational judgment of a ham sandwich, and you’ve got a bust. He’s still in the league, because of his guaranteed contract.  Think an unmotivated Tim Thomas.”

Sounds like he’ll fit right in around here.

So the common theme surrounding the New Jersey Nets is that after shipping out Rafer Alston, Sean Williams and Eduardo Najera, they’re not even close to being done with their roster makeover. According to numerous league sources, Josh Boone, Tony Battie, Trenton Hassell and Bobby Simmons could all be shipped out at any time, provided the Nets get what they’re looking for in return (younger players who won’t put in a dent in the cap flexibility for the summer). Heck, ESPN’s Chad Ford suggested that even Devin Harris could be on the block if he nets the team a superstar.

But looking at more realistic roster scenarios, ESPN’s Marc Stein recently suggested the Nets are trying to dump their veterans and free up roster space for “fresh blood from the D-League.”

Whenever I see firesales of this magnitude it seems to indicate one thing – a team is tanking the season in an effort to secure a top flight pick in the draft. The fact that the Nets appear more interested in importing D-League players, who they can likely sign on super short-term 10-day contracts, in favor of winning a few more games with some of their veterans, is a clear indicator that they’ve officially given up on trying to salvage any respectability this season.

Or is it? There’s one huge whole in this logic that must be considered for fans and spectators who criticize the “tank” strategy. The Nets have been incredibly awful with their current mix of young up-and-coming players and veteran, playoff –tested guys. At 3-34, is there really any reason to believe the Nets are a better team with Rafer Alston and Eduardo Najera rather than Chris Quinn and Kris Humphries?

The Nets are in a unique situation that a “tanking” strategy could actually make them better. What’s better for a team that’s currently built around five 20-something guys in Devin Harris, Brook Lopez, Courtney Lee, Yi Jianlian and Chris Douglas-Roberts (provided they’re not on the block too)? Picking up players for their bench who have been overlooked for playing time in playoff towns like Miami and Dallas, and filling out the roster using D-League guys who are trying to prove that their NBA-caliber? Or having a veteran guy like Alston who only seemed to succeed in New Jersey at alienating the immature young-uns like Terrence Williams and CDR. Eduardo Najera was supposed to bring toughness and grit off the bench, but he couldn’t keep his body from breaking down long enough to be an example for anyone.

Read more…

Hey, I know that Sebastian Pruiti guy. Check out his breakdown of the critical possession of the Nets-Hornets game from Friday.

Rod Thorn on trades; more to come: “You’re probably going to see some major deals before it’s over with,” he said. “We’ll be talking to people on a daily basis to see if there’s other things we can do that we feel will help, whether it be short term or long term.”

Dave D’Alessandro profiles the two newest Nets, and wonders if their acquisitions makes the roster more “high-maintenance.”

Eduardo Najera is one happy dude now that he’s been traded; “Today is the first time I’ve been able to smile.”

In Orlando, our old friend Vince Carter may be headed to the bench in favor of JJ Redick. Orlando Pinestriped Post (formerly Third Quarter Collapse) has the analysis.

Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn is trying to connect the dots between Gilbert Arenas and Mikhail Prokhorov.

Speaking of DDDB and Daniel Goldstein, he’s “still not going anywhere.” Hat tip NetsDaily.