Nets Are Scorching

leave the team as is for the most part just add a veteran power foward like kurt thomas or sumthin nd let him teach the young derrick favors a thing or two about defense nd pick nd roll basket ball, serve as a mentor to our young team as a whole, the nets right now are a playoff caliber team albeit 8th seed but hey once u get in u never kno let avery have at least a half a year with this sqad then try and steal sumthin at the trade deadline (danny granger or chris paul) or even both just let twill battle for a position, you guys act like a half a season is a barometer for his whole career, it would be stupid to trade t will such a talented two or three b4 his sophmore year and even more foolish to trade for some stop gap player, i hate to believe billy king is that short sighted, but yea im excited to see these nets play cant wait to see how avery molds this collection of players into a playoff team for years to come.........

@hbj

Fair enough. The point is just cause a kid stayed in school doesn't mean he doesn't have all-star upside. Deron Williams left after his Junior year. Jason Kidd went at least 2 years, and I think 3. Chauncey Billups went 4 years. Steve Nash went 4 years to Santa Clara, came out as a back up PG for 4 full years, then became a starter. After several years starting he became an All-Star and was let go by Mark Cuban. Think Cuban regrets it?

Devin Harris and T-Will both have big time upside, and are consistently getting better.

How would Nets Nation feel if we deal T-Will for Carl Landry, and he goes on to win 2 MVP's with the Kings en route to multiple NBA Finals appearances?

Meanwhile Landry opts out after this season and our 8th seed to go join his emerging home town Bucks?

That's what's being discussed. Is it worth it?

i love billy king's quote "players become available". the lakers stole pau gasol. he came at a great bargain price. i want the nets to get a steal during the trade deadline. with this country's financial woes, a team is going to be dying to give away a good player to shed salaries. especially a team who has no chance at winning the championship...

@jdoc- magic only played 2 years at michigan state.

trade devin he cant play defense and is constantly hurt farmar starts and is a proven player who couldnt edge fishers experience keep twill but as a sg and james as a sf and pick up a decent pf for devin and maybe a second round pick and of course lopez at center. This would be a young athletic,talented both ways(offense/defense) improved team who could sneak into the playoffs i predict 35-43 games won

@ numba...The lakers do not need a traditional PG that's why they let Farmar go. They run a Triangle offense and the PG has different responsibilities. The PG is an after thought for Phil. He needs them to play D and hit shots not run the team. Farmar feels he can run a team as a traditional PG, that's why he signed with us. Plus he's very fast, I was impressed with his play against the Celtics and Nate Robinson who can be a handful for anybody including his coaches...ha ha ha ha.

@JDoc: you're on point with everything, i totally agree. we got a nice foundation right now if we can reignite Harris, improve BLo, refine TWill, get Favors beasting ASAP, and get some playsets to exploit all that we have. I see all of that happening - without dreaming.

Farmar has below average PER and I can name at least 30 PGs that are better. He's a backup regardless of what his asperations are. If he wasn't, then the Lakers, who are desparate for a starting PG, would've extended him instead of Steve Blake. He's good, but the league is awash in PG talent right now. Which is exactly what makes Favors value so high right now because it's the opposite at PF and even more so at Center. We got top prospects at both, depth on bench and a franchise no star wants any part, except the future stars we already got. Exactly where is all the controversy? Let's sit tight, develop those stars, and watch some much improved basketball under a great coaching staff. Yeah I said 'great', come lynch me! =)

Sean Williams had 1 game where he went 20-8. Then he didn't play for two years.

T-Will averaged 14.3-7.1-6.3 in April. He averaged 14.1-6.7-4.9 in March.

Through February he had averaged 15 MPG or less. From March on 29 MPG or more.

This guy isn't the same player as Sean Williams who showed no work ethic and never really averaged more than 11 MPG.

Just because one guy was a bust, doesn't mean the other guy is.

Yeah, why did the Nets hold onto Sean Williams...

@dre

Michael Jordan played college ball for 3 years. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird played for 4 years. Tim Duncan, David Robinson were both 4 year players.

T-Will was our lottery pick last year. Magic Johnson had Pat Riley coaching him out of college. T-Will had some joker named Kiki.

Give the kid a chance. The reason people are high on him, is because he's gone 20-5-7 in the NBA. He's shown the ability to do it. He only needs to get more consistent.

He will. Just give him the chance.

@ dre some players take longer to mature and develop then others. The hope is that he is one of them. Nobody knows the future and people need to be given the benefit of the doubt up to a certain point. He has not reached that point yet, but he's getting there. The great GMs know were that point is and trade them before they reach it if the player does not look like he will turn into the type he should be. Pull the trigger at the right time and get a bulls eye. If you're too early you might miss out on a great talent, if you're too late the player has little value compared to just a few months before. We should have gotten rid of Sean Williams, a lot of teams were interested from what I remember. Why we hung onto him is anybodies guess, I guess.

Chris Paul is going to get traded. Too much buzz for it not to happen. Portland and Charlotte seem to be leading (Paul is from NC, and they have Dampier's unguaranteed 13 million dollar contract to get around the cap restrictions).

As long as the team keeps progressing I'm happy. Take this FA with a grain of salt. You had 3 players hold the entire league hostage, only to all join forces in one location.

The PF's in this class don't really fit into our system. All of them are poor defensively. And they all got significant money that would have drastically limited our flexibility.

Not a single one of them would work with out a complimentary player as well.

I would much rather have David West or Troy Murphy for 7 or 8 million a year, than Boozer for 16 million. I actually think Murphy is a much better player. He doesn't have Chris Paul or Derron Williams feeding him the rock. He has a perimeter game and is a beast on the glass.

Like the others he isn't much of a defender and he's injury prone, but that's no different from Boozer, and he'd cost a heck of a lot less.

I'm chomping at the bit to NJINME, I just think that if we're really going to be winners, we have to exercise patience and strike when the time is right.

Not reach for what's available and over extend ourselves in the process.

We just need to keep moving forward, and by 2012 I expect that this is a team that's annually in the NBA Finals conversation.

If Favors does turn into a Dwight Howard. Standing next to Brook Lopez! We'll have the nastiest interior in the league.

If T-Will keeps developing, he can be a 20-10-5 kind of player at the two or the three. Those 3 alone could get us to the finals in 2012. Add on the pieces we can bring in with our assets. Add on Devin Harris. Add on a floor spreader like Morrow.

Just give the season a chance. I think you're going to be very excited with what you see this year.

I think we're going to win 35-40 games and contend for an 8th seed, with Favors developing. Next season, Playoffs. The next season....Championship.

And I'm going to love the look on Lebron's face when we sweep the Heat in 2012.

omg you people really need to get off the twill crack, yes hes good, but hes not irreplaceable
IF hes as good as you all think he is we wouldn't have won only 12 games last year. Hes not some 18 year old, fresh out of highschool or someone withonly 1 year of college experience. He played college ball for four years, he is what he is, if he was going to be an all star like you all think he is, do you really think he would have stayed in college that long?

I believe mgmt does have it's collective head on straight so they will do what is necessary. Keep in mind though that our most recent foray into Free Agency was not very successful, good role players no difference makers. the top players pretended to listen, Boozer didn't even give a return call. Let's not assume next years crop of FA's will look our way...especially if we are a lottery team again. I hope the highpoint of 2011 is not the draft and subsequent viewing of our pick(s) in the summer league with fingers crossed, hopeful that he is the one.

@NJINME

I said it in another post. Next season there are a ton of PF free agents, and the draft class is heavily loaded at the PF position.

We can draft Sullinger who projects as an Al Jefferson type.

We can sign Nene, Landry, Horford, Randolph, Diaw, Troy Murphy, or David West next season.

Those are starters. The names thrown around like Taj Gibson and Brandon Bass, aren't worth giving up some of the players being talked about. Especially with what you can get next year for a reasonable contract.

We have 14 million in cap space. Hump and Ross come off the books clearing another 5 million. Offer 8 million per over to Troy Murphy and you're set. Or hold off for Carmello.

In the meantime bide your time and hope we can land Chris Paul via trade.

“Players become available,” King said. “You want to make sure you have the flexibility because a lot of teams will finish this offseason and look at their roster, and [some] will say, ‘We’re not going to be good, we need to get rid of payroll, I don’t like where we are.’ You want the flexibility to do that.

“The Nets have the picks, the cap flexibility. So deals will come along and you have to be ready and prepared to do that.”

It sounds like Nets management have their head on straight. I don't think this quote was intended for Taj Gibson or Carl Landry.

I'm pretty sure it's aimed at Granger/Paul.

@JDoc like I said depends on what we were to get in return. I don't want a stop gap either, I do want a quality PF backing up Favors. Hump is not the answer. Using an undersized James or Outlaw not the answer either, unless you don't mind seeing them in the trainers room, when they play opposite a true bruising PF. I believe everyone is on the same page as to a PF. How we get one, I'll let Nets Mgmt decide.

@NJINME

I'm tired of losing too. That's why I'm not willing to trade a lottery pick like T-Will for a stop gap PF with one year left on his contract. Then you have nothing at all to show for sucking that year.

They're trade chips for All-Star players.

If we want a stop gap, Quinton Ross is the guy we deal. He's the one that doesn't really fit in or get talked about.

He has an expiring contract. Give him and a draft pick and see what comes back, or hold the fort and roll with what we have.

The players will develop soon enough, and we'll be back to being perrenial winners.

I agree with all you said. but I'm putting my faith ( for now ) in mgmt and any moves they deem necessary..popular or not. We have probably one of the best owner/mgmt/coaching combos in the NBA, if not the best. Let them do their job.

@numba...Sorry but Farmar as a backup is a non discussion, I bet Farmar doesn't think so. I like Harris but he needs to fix a few things like his injury history(get in the weight room). He's a shoot first PG and teams don't win with those types unless they run a certain type of offense and/or don't have the low post players/scorers. The Nets have the low post players, in Lopez and I hope Favors, so Harris will have to learn a few things and change his style of play to a certain degree. If he doesn't Farmar will see his minutes. So there is a discussion there. I crack up when posters make proclamations as thought what they say is written in stone, it's not.

The Nets still can't get fair value for their players... yet. TWill tweeted that he ain't going anywhere and I believe him. I think the Nets realize they already have 3 future allstars and just need to develop favors as a 4th. They'll pickup someone like Craig Smith for a few mil and listen all season to offers. But I see Favors progressing sooner than most. Devin, when healthy and coached, is a top-PG. Farmar is a backup, that is a non-discussion. He gets better exposure in Avery's system and Dev is a 60-game player - that's why he signed. I love this 3-SG set, starting TWill. It's a competition. TWill, wanna stay? Don't go on shooting rampages or turn the ball over. CLee, wanna play? Make some outside shots. Morrow, want PT? Play some defense. Now those are incentives. SF tandem is set and I love it. I like the C-set as well. PF won't look as pretty but it will be leagues better than last and Favors will be unquestioned starter by seasons end.

All ecxept Brooks are chips for trades. The goal is to make marked improvements over last year and have a legit shot at making the playoffs. Playing for lottery picks is LOSER MENTALITY..get over it. If you don't play to win...don'y play at all. Whether its Twill or CLee or DH, whomever..it's irrelevant as long as we get a quality player in return. Some of you have complained the quality PF's mentioned as possible targets were garbage...really? We're looking for a good backup to Favors who can start in the meantime. They all fit the bill. Do you think Twill is an allstar? I like him too...but he hasn't attained all star status yet and may or may not..Get over it. I'm tired of losing..You should be too.