Nets Are Scorching

In Al Iannazzone’s draft report this morning, he references some members of the Nets’ front office who believe DeMarcus Cousins is a better pick at #3 than Derrick Favors. The problem? Would Cousins, more of a center than a power forward, be able to share the floor with Brook Lopez?

“That’s what we have to figure out,” Thorn said. “Can [Lopez and Cousins] play together? What kind of system would you use to have those guys play together? That’s what we’re hoping to figure out when we work them out.”

Cousins and Favors will face each other tomorrow in a pre-draft workout for the Nets.

Obviously, this is a New Jersey Nets blog, however, the NAS crew absolutely love the NBA in general. So, every week, Sebastian, Mark, Devin, and myself will answer questions regarding the L.

1) How much do you think Tom Izzo not taking the Cleveland Cavaliers head coaching had to do with LeBron James?  Is this a sign that LeBron is bolting Cleveland?

Sebastian:
I don’t think the actual non-signing has anything to do with LeBron.  Although, I think a big indicator that he might be leaving is the fact that he refused to meet with Izzo when he was in Cleveland.  If he is staying, doesn’t he want to talk to the new coach and get things figured out?

Mark:
LeBron, LeBron, LeBron. I’m really starting to feel like Jan Brady here. Obviously, the uncertainty of the LeBron situation is connected to Izzo’s decision to stay at Michigan State, though I don’t think anyone can say with any certainty that this now tips LeBron’s hand and he’s going to leave.   Regardless of LeBron, I thought Izzo risked ruining his legacy by jumping to the NBA to coach the Cavs. And maybe, when it’s all said and done, Izzo was much happier being the best college coach rather than another guy who came over to the NBA and failed. It’s not like Pitino, Calipari and Carlesimo haven’t set a precedent here.

Devin:
It’s probably not specifically a sign, but do think LeBron is gone. Tom loves Michigan State (clearly) and obviously has a ton of allegiances to the university. While it would have been interesting to see him manning the sidelines at Cleveland,  I think it’s probably best for him to stay in college, since most coaches have difficulties making the transition and Izzo’s got a huge following at MSU. All in all, I don’t think Izzo turning down the job had to do with LeBron’s potential departure, but LeBron will most likely only play in Cleveland on the road next year.

DV:
I think the uncertainty of LeBron re-signing led to the uncertainty and eventually rejection of Izzo.  If there was any clue that LeBron was going to re-sign, Izzo would have been all over that job because who wouldn’t want to coach LeBron besides Mike Brown who seemed like he never really did anyway.  I still believe that James will come back to Cleveland, but the coaching shambles did make me rethink that.  However, after a few minutes, I came back to think that Cleveland will continue to be witnesses. Read more…

During the regular season, when Chris Bosh was asked if he’d consider playing for the Nets when he became a free agent this summer, he gave a pretty definitive “no” answer. Today, the New York Post talks to Bosh again where he seems to be softening to the idea of playing in New Jersey. While the headline naturally only mentions the Knicks, Bosh actually seems to be even more complimentary of the Nets in his comments:

“I think each team has its own advantages over the other,” Bosh said. “New Jersey has a young core, so does New York. The coaching styles are a bit different. A lot of people are excited about the new (Nets) owner. It’s interesting. Everybody is pretty much excited about the makeup of the team and the direction the Nets are headed.

Interesting… after his comments earlier this year, I had more or less ruled out the possibility of Bosh. He and Brook would be a monster tandem in the frontcourt, and IF the Nets can get Evan Turner in the draft, a definite possibility now that Philadelphia is making some roster moves, a starting five of Harris-Williams-Turner-Bosh-Lopez kinda makes me drool.

He’s looking at you, Rod. Right at you.

News broke today that the Sacramento Kings and the Philadelphia 76ers have agreed to a trade, with Samuel Dalembert heading to the West Coast for Spencer Hawes and Andres Nocioni. Now, normally this would be irrelevant to the Nets & their fan base, but since the draft is now under a week away, and the Nets pick one spot below the Sixers, this could potentially have mass implications:

The Sixers have been deciding whether to select Evan Turner or Derrick Favors with the No. 2 pick. Although Sixers general manager Ed Stefanski is a Turner fan, new coach Doug Collins is high on Favors. With Dalembert gone and Nocioni in, it could push them in the direction of Favors.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5297829

There’s still a good chance that the Sixers will end up taking Turner on draft night, but trading your center – a renowned defensive monster and rebounder extraordinaire – for a decent small forward and a 7-footer who averaged six rebounds per game with little defensive reputation is not a sign that you’re interested in a swingman who replicates the skillset of your best player. You have to think that they’re looking at Favors very closely; the Sixers can’t possibly believe that Elton Brand and Spencer Hawes can handle the frontcourt every night. They’ll get abused on the defensive side of the floor and be one of the worst rebounding tandems in the league. Derrick Favors fits what they need more, and if Doug Collins has any say, he’ll be a 76er. I can even see Favors donning a Sixers cap now & Turner competing with Brook Lopez in the “who has the most ridiculous voice in New Jersey” contest.  (Don’t sleep on this. It’s basically Goofy Andre the Giant vs. Kermit the Frog. I would love to see these guys in a tandem interview.)

Crazy sounds aside, two more wild cards in this:

1) How they view DeMarcus Cousins. They just traded away their center, Cousins could fill that role instantly. If they’re truly enamored with his talent they might also consider him at the #2 spot as well considering his size and skill at rebounding the ball.

2) How badly Minnesota wants to move up. There have been countless reports that Minnesota is trying to trade their #4 and #16 pick for the Sixers second choice, and after this deal it would be hard to pass that up. The Sixers would still get one of the major big talents in this draft (Cousins or Favors after Turner goes to the Timberwolves) plus a bonus pick. The only way that deal falls through is if either side tries to ask for too much, or if the Timberwolves are able to swing a better deal for Al Jefferson or Kevin Love to open up space in the frontcourt.

Basically, the Sixers have just blown the draft (after the Wizards pick) wide open. Anything is possible at this point. I know that I’ve made my opinion very clear that the no-doubt #1 prospect in this draft is John Wall. I also know that I’ve spent far more time than anyone should deconstructing the debate between DeMarcus Cousins and Derrick Favors. I also know that I haven’t talked much about Evan Turner (I left that to Dennis). Because of that, let me just go on the record now: if Evan Turner is available at #3, the Nets should take him immediately and start dancing in the war room. The Evan Turner hype has been low; he didn’t measure out as an unbelievable athlete and isn’t flashy or interesting. But let’s be entirely clear: if you had the first pick in an NCAA 5-on-5 game this year, and your life depended on your team winning, you’d take Evan Turner in a heartbeat with that first pick. No question. The guy is an absolute warrior. I have little doubt that barring injury he’ll be a great player for the next dozen years. I’d be ecstatic to see him at the Rock next year.

Attention, NBA teams! If you happen to finish the season with the worst record in the league, please do not think you will win the NBA Draft Lottery because I probably have a better chance of successfully resisting a piece of cherry pie than you do of being granted the first overall pick in the subsequent draft. And please note that I absolutely love cherry pie.

In the 26-year history of the NBA Draft Lottery, in only four of those years has the team with the worst record claimed victory over his fellow lottery foes and gained the first pick. That’s 15.4% and that’s just a pathetically low number. Seriously, there needs to be some reform here, and I’m not just saying that because the Nets were unceremoniously given the hard shaft of reality that they could no longer control their destiny and agonize over the merits of picking John Wall or Evan Turner. Okay, fine, I am saying that. But because of a flawed draft lottery system for those that actually need the help, the Nets wrestle with thoughts of Derrick Favors or DeMarcus Cousins with the third pick, and perhaps even Wes Johnson sneaking in.

Read more…

This is likely all just due diligence but the Nets apparently had some additional big men working out at their practice facility yesterday, Baylor’s Ekpe Udoh and Georgetown’s Greg Monroe, both of which are projected top 10 picks though certainly not a top three.

Rod Thorn is certainly not afraid to trade down if he’s not 100 percent happy with what he wants on draft day. He most successfully pulled this off in 2001 when he swapped the talented by tragically troubled Eddie Griffin for three picks, which included Richard Jefferson and Jason Collins.

We’ve been hearing a lot of positive things about Avery Johnson since he was picked to be the next head coach of the Nets. Here’s the video of his introductory press conference yesterday, where Avery talks about Brook Lopez, Devin Harris and his big dreams for the franchise:

According to Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski June 21st is another date that Nets’ fans need to add to their checklist:

After some gentle prodding by the New Jersey Nets’ front office, Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors and Kentucky’s DeMarcus Cousins – the top two big men in the NBA draft – will work out one-on-one against each other on June 21 in East Rutherford, N.J.

The Nets hold the third pick in the draft, and so far Favors’ agent Wallace Prather has been reluctant to let him get matched with the bigger, stronger Cousins on the floor. They worked out together in Sacramento on Saturday, but largely stayed in individual drills. Sources say Nets general manager Rod Thorn is leaning toward drafting Favors, but wants to see him in some contact drills with Cousins.

This is some pretty big news because Favors and Cousins are the two guys the Nets seem to have it narrowed down to, and seeing them play against each other should provide some insight for the Nets when deciding who to draft.  Notice how I said some.  The minute this workout is over, you are going to hear reports.  If Derrick Favors gets the better of DeMarcus Cousins, the Nets made the right decision.  If it ends up in favor of Cousins, then everyone will need to re-evaluate everything before the draft.

While a workout against each other will provide some information (for example, how Derrick Favors handles a bigger defender or how DeMarcus Cousins can shoot from the outside), there is only so much you can learn from a situation like this.  The main reason, this is simply one on one rather than five on five drills.  At some point teams are going to have to trust their scouting of live-game situations, and I think that the Nets’ scouting will tell them that Derrick Favors is the Power Forward the Nets need to draft.

Also, you shouldn’t read too much into workout reports that say Cousins pushed Favors around.  Look at the two of them, it would be more surprising if Cousins didn’t push Favors around.  I think Rod Thorn really wants to see how Favors reacts to taking some shots to see if he backs down or keeps working as hard as he can.

The interesting thing about this whole situation is that the Nets’ were able to get Derrick Favors to agree to a one on one workout.  With Favors already being the favorite for the Nets’ pick, there is no reason for him to give the Nets an opportunity to negatively rate him.  This makes you believe that the third pick is more up in the air than previously reported or that Rod Thorn told Favors’ agent that a decent showing against a physical player is all that he needs to get himself a guarantee from the Nets (not saying I agree with that).  If I was forced to pick, I would say that the latter situation is a more realistic possibility and if Favors plays aggressively with Cousins, that is going to be the last thing Rod Thorn and Avery Johnson need to see from him.