Nets Are Scorching

After a 24-58 season, the New Jersey Nets will have to make some changes heading into 2012. This week, Nets are Scorching takes a closer look at some soon-to-be-available names.

Name: Luc Mbah a Moute

Stats: 79 G, 26.5 MPG, 6.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.4 BPG, 0.9 SPG, .463 FG%, .000 3p%, .707 FT%, 11.51 PER

Why Billy King Should Be Texting Him Right Now: With wing players such as LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony currently residing in the Eastern Conference, it’s going to be important for the Nets to possess players on their team who can defend those like. I believe Luc Mbah a Moute (LMaM) is just that. At 6-8 LMaM is a live, athletic body to throw at the elite wings of the world. Last season LMaM ranked 58th in the league in isolation situations, holding his opponent to just over 32% shooting. LMaM also allows improves the depth of our frontline with his versatility as he is able to defend SG’s, SF’s and PF’s on most nights. He’s also a good leaper and an active offensive rebounder (2.1 pg).

Don’t Risk the Fine: For his great energy and defense he provides, LMaM is rather limited offensively. With Milwaukee, most of his offense pertained to spot up situations (35.2% of his offensive plays). With that, his range is fairly limited. In his three year career he’s attempted 28 three-pointers (seven last season). It may be unwise for the Nets to give money to another player expected to play a swing position for us who can’t shoot. (See Outlaw, Travis).

And the Winner Is…Tamper: If the price is right, I would absolutely be thrilled if the Nets were able to add a player like Mbah a Moute. However, it would need to be understood that LMaM is just once piece to a much larger puzzle. Adding Mbah a Moute alone would not make us a playoff team, but Mbah could be a valuable role player to a very good team – which is what we’re trying to become. Despite his limitations on offense, LMaM would have the luxury of playing with a point guard who can make anyones game look nice, especially an energetic and athletic player such as Mbah a Moute.

As some of you may know, the Nets hosted a draft combine in conjunction with the Knicks and the 76ers on Saturday. Most of the players who attended are considered to be second round talent. Ryan Feldman of The Hoops Report gives us the inside scoop on what scouts are thinking after the event.

From Feldman’s sources, none of the big men in the combine were impressive. However, many of the wing players were mentioned by multiple NBA scouts, including College of Charleston’s Andrew Goudelock, San Diego State’s Malcolm Thomas, Providence’s Jamine Peterson, Louisiana Tech’s Olu Ashaolu and Rhode Island’s Delroy James.

The general gist of the combine seemed to be that there were no future stars who attended. Most of the guys who attended are hoping for a second round selection, and some may not even get that. Hopefully, the Nets found a diamond in the rough and know something that the other teams don’t.

After a 24-58 season, the New Jersey Nets will have to make some changes heading into 2012. This week, Nets are Scorching takes a closer look at some soon-to-be-available names.

(Ronny Martinez/Getty Images)

Stats: 33 G, 13 GS, 18.7 MPG, 8.5 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.1 BPG, 0.4 SPG, .441 FG%, .400 3P%, .920 FT%, 115 ORtg, 15.2 PER

Why Billy King Should Be Texting Him Right Now: Maybe if I’m basing this on last night, I should be telling the Nets why they should be texting Jason Terry. But what Peja contributed to last night’s Demolition in Dallas is exactly the reason why the Nets should be looking at him, too. He can knock down open threes and shoot over most defenders. He’s an intelligent and efficient catch-and-shoot player who doesn’t try to play outside of his abilities. Twice he’s led the NBA with the best turnover rate, and that’s because he doesn’t try to create off the dribble when he doesn’t have anything. He’s a career 40% shooter from deep, and can definitely contribute in a sixth man role for this team. His production doesn’t taper off in the playoffs, either: Peja has generally averaged his season averages or better come playoff time. Plus, he went 6-6 from deep last night.

Don’t Risk the Fine: What I listed as Peja’s strengths are simultaneously his weaknesses. Stojakovic doesn’t play outside of his abilities because he is very limited – he’s almost strictly a shooter at this point, a la Anthony Morrow. He’s never been much of a rebounder, passer, or defensive player, and at 34 he’s not getting any better in these fields. He posted an above average PER this past season, but it was in less than 35 games, and he hadn’t posted one over 15 since the 2007-08 season. Along with shooters, the Nets need guys who can contribute in the little, extra ways – guys who play defense, box out consistently, guys you can surround Deron Williams with.

And the Winner Is … Avoid: While I think Peja would actually be a good fit for this team off the bench, he’s not the best player in his lane the Nets have a chance of acquiring. The two other guys mentioned earlier – Afflalo and Richardson – are younger, can do what Peja does, and bring other skillsets to the table. While I think he’d be a nice piece to add after you get a solid starting-quality wing player, the Nets shouldn’t go too crazy trying to get him.

After a 24-58 season, the New Jersey Nets will have to make some changes heading into 2012. This week, Nets are Scorching takes a closer look at some soon-to-be-available names.

Name: Arron Afflalo

Stats: 69 G, 69 GS, 33.7, MPG, 12.6 PPG, 2.4 APG, 3.7 RPG, .5 SPG, .4 BPG, .498 FG%, .423 3FG%, .847 FT%, 123 ORtg, 13.6 PER

Why Billy King Should Be Texting Him Right Now (Tamper): Arron Afflalo is not a name that seemingly leaps off the page, as he’s not an “all-star” or even a pretend all-star who’s going to single-handedly put behinds in seats. But what he might be is the best overall shooting guard on the open market, filling a desperate need for the Nets.

As a team, the Nets demonstrated a major weakness at the two “wing” positions, SG and SF. For the season, Nets SGs collectively put up a PER (Player Efficiency Rating) of 11.4, well below the league average of 15.0. At SF, they were even worse, putting up a PER of 9.1, which is so far-below replacement, it made me long for the days of Yi getting 30 minutes per game at the PF slot.

Afflalo, mostly a SG by trade, though he can play some SF in small line-ups, would bring one of the league’s most efficient offensive players to the Nets. His offensive rating of 122.8 (which accounts for the points he creates per 100 possessions) was 6^th overall in the NBA this past season, and his effective field goal percentage, which includes three-point field goals, of .581 percent, was 3^rd best in the league.

Additionally, Afflalo has earned a reputation around the league for being a very good defender. That’s important because the Nets didn’t have anyone at the SG position who could play lockdown defense. People might look at Afflalo’s offensive stats and see him as a three-point specialist and ask “why pay this guy more money to start when Anthony Morrow is an even better long-range specialist,” but Morrow has never had the reputation for stopping anyone. And if the Nets are going to make the jump to a playoff team, they need more two-way players who have demonstrated they can handle the pressure of starting every game each season, while being assigned to guard, in all likelihood, the other team’s best offensive player at the SG position.

Don’t Risk the Fine (Avoid): I have to be fair. I routinely killed the team’s use of Stephen Graham as a “defensive specialist” all season because there was nothing statistically that showed he was the elite defender Avery Johnson pegged him as. And when I look at Afflalo’s defensive numbers from the past season, you see a similar situation. This past season, opposing SGs had a cumulative PER of 16.2 when Afflalo was on the court and Denver had a better defensive efficiency rating with Afflalo off the court (106.7 points per 100 possessions) compared with him on the court (109.8 points per 100 possessions).

And as efficient as Afflalo is offensively, he’s not someone who’s going to take over a game in any way, something that the Nets desperately lacked all season. His usage rate of 13.7 was 10^th lowest at the SG position. In other words, he’s not particularly good at creating his own shot. He’s best equipped to roam the perimeter and be on the receiving end of kick-outs from Deron Williams and Brook Lopez. In other words, he’s a carbon copy offensively of Anthony Morrow, who’s already on this team and stands to make well-less than what Afflalo will command on the open market.

And the Winner Is … Tamper: Afflalo really intrigues me as a potential answer for the SG position this upcoming summer. I’m not overly concerned by some of the statistical blips we’ve seen defensively, as Denver as a whole was a team in roster transition this entire season and it might be hard to gauge one individual player’s defensive performance from team off court/on court numbers. The point is Afflalo is a more defensively-tested version of Anthony Morrow, and a player who has routinely started on playoff-bound teams. I think it’s incredibly important for the Nets front office to chase after well-rounded players who can buy into a hard-nosed defensive system next season. Outside of Atlanta, all of the best teams in the Eastern Conference this past season played fantastic defense. I’m firmly convinced that between DWill and Brook, the team will have more than enough opportunities to score points next season, but they don’t have enough players on their roster who can stop an opposing player. Maybe Afflalo’s prowess is overblown, but he’s been around long enough to earn it, and if you combine Afflalo with a similar-minded player at SF, even Damion James if he could ever stay healthy, and the Nets suddenly look like one of the better defensive teams in the league next season.

After a 24-58 season, the New Jersey Nets will have to make some changes heading into 2012. This week, Nets are Scorching takes a closer look at some soon-to-be-available names .

2010-2011 Stats: 15.6 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 1.8 APG, 44.7 FG %, 39.5 3P%, 73.0 FT%, 1.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.2 TPG, 15.02 PER

Why Billy King Should Be Texting Him Right Now: Jason Richardson is a great long distance shooter, and is great when a team wants to run a catch and shoot. If the Nets start to play a fast-paced style with Deron Williams, Richardson would get tons of open looks and might be able to drop 20 consistently. He would be the scoring wingman that the team needs. “J-Rich” can play small forward as well, which would give the Nets the ability to sit Travis Outlaw for extended periods of time, and that’s always a good thing. As added bonuses, Richardson is an above average rebounder and is capable of posting up in transition. He’s also an efficient finisher as he converted 68% of shots at the rim this season.

Don’t Risk the Fine: The major problem with Richardson is that he’s thirty years old. The Nets don’t want to lock J-Rich into a major deal and risk overpaying for a declining player. The evidence that Richardson has been declining is there; he had his lowest PER over his entire career this season. He’s a very inconsistent player, as shown by his huge fluctuations in production over the months of October and November. Richardson’s also a suspect defender; he’s athletic but has lost any lateral movement on D. It’s unlikely that Avery Johnson uses a style that would fit Richardson’s game, which is fast paced offense with little defense. His good three point shooting also looks to be an aberration as he shot well under 40% from 10-15 feet and from 16-23 feet.

And the Winner is….Avoid: Richardson looked like an extremely valuable player during his time with Phoenix. However, his production took a severe hit after he was traded to Orlando; a team that the Nets are similar to. It’s clear that J-Rich is not an answer to the Nets’ problems. One can only hope that Billy King and his staff don’t panic and overpay the former Michigan State standout and instead get a very talented teammate of his.

In lieu of the Mavericks’ sweep of the Lakers, CBS Sports’ Ken Berger explores the possibility of the Lakers pursuing Dwight Howard. Berger states that the Lakers, the Nets, and the Knicks are the favorites to land the superstar center. Berger cites a person “familiar” with the Howard’s situation as saying that Howard wants to be a Laker.

The Lakers are the team that scares me the most in terms of competition for Howard. The Knicks aren’t a real competitor due to lack of draft picks and young talent. However, the Lakers can offer two out of three very skilled players in Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, and Lamar Odom. For example, if the Magic received Bynum and Odom from the Lakers they would still be a playoff team in the East despite trading Dwight Howard. I don’t think that you can say the same if the Magic received, say, Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries. Lopez has more long term potential than anybody amongst the Lakers or the Nets, but basketball is a business and losing in the first round makes more money than winning 30 games.

As for Berger’s “source”, I don’t think that it has any credibility. I doubt that Deron thinks it does either.

Double feature on the links today. As Nets fans look forward to the NBA Draft, Chad Ford released his first Mock Draft (Insider). He has the Nets taking Richmond power forward Justin Harper and Purdue power forward Jajuan Johnson*, although he only lists Johnson as the last of his post-first round “next five.” Both of these guys are great athletes, but Harper is more of a shooting power forward while Johnson is a hustle guy that relies on his athleticism to run the floor and score hustle points. Harper is like a poor man’s Ryan Anderson and Johnson is a poor man’s Kris Humphries. It’s curious to see Ford have the Nets take two power forwards, especially when the consensus is that the Nets need wing players.

Secondly, former Net Michael Ray Richardson is known for his drug usage and his subsequent lifetime ban from the NBA. While Richardson was thought to have great potential, he seemed to have ruin it with his wild personal life. Good Sports interviewed Richardson about his once-troubled life. What struck me most was when Richardson recounted his triple double against the Knicks that led the Nets to victory (despite Bernard King’s 60 points). It’s a game that most Nets fans don’t always remember because of the team’s ineptitude during the 80s, but it’s definitely a memorable game in Nets’ history. We at NAS wish Michael Ray Richardson all the best for the future.

Maybe the “I have to give Avery credit” award is more an award geared towards me, the blogger and constant critic, rather than the coach, who’s probably used to being second-guessed.  I haven’t been shy in my feelings about Johnson since the early parts of the season. And while I’m still not fully convinced that he should be the guy to lead this organization into Brooklyn, I do think it’s worth celebrating the Little General for one thing that he actually nailed on the head: the mysterious case of Troy Murphy.

On the surface, the Nets’ acquisition of Murphy, a bonafide double-double machine, long-range threat, and New Jersey native to boot, seemed perfect for the organization. In exchange for Courtney Lee, a solid but unspectacular (and unhappy) player who seemed certain to fall on the depth chart behind Anthony Morrow and Terrence Williams, the Nets brought in a player who would stabilize a position that had long needed stabilizing. With a raw rookie in Derrick Favors and career back-up Kris Humphries waiting in the wings, Murphy’s expiring contract was going to look mighty attractive to a contending team near the deadline.

But, as was the case most of this 2010-11 Nets season, things with Murphy didn’t go as expected. He suffered a back injury, and when he returned to action, he looked out-of-shape and unmotivated. After suiting up in a game for the first time on November 3, he proceeded to shoot 29 percent over the next four games. Then he was benched for a game against Cleveland, mustered only 8 minutes the following game against Orlando, and didn’t play another minute that month until November 28.

Interviews with Murphy showed a very visibly aggravated player who didn’t understand why his playing time was non-existent. Johnson was equally unsatisfied, and as trade talks with Denver for Carmelo Anthony intensified, it became clear that Murphy was a goner. By the time January rolled around, Murphy was told by GM Billy King to go home. When Mikhail Prokhorov initially said a deal with ‘Melo was dead, King suggested that Murphy should come back to work, before Avery once again squelched that idea.

With the team playing terribly and no hope on the horizon, I did what any unreasonable Nets fan would do: I jumped on a column penned by Ball Don’t Lie’s Kelly Dwyer, and called out Johnson for jerking around a good guy like Murphy. It didn’t make sense to me that a player who have averaged 14.6 points and 10.2 rebounds just the season before could be so utterly useless, and considering guys who were struggling and had less of a track record like Travis Outlaw and Johan Petro were being thrown out there every night, I thought Murphy’s treatment was just a case of Avery’s egomania running wild.

But after Murphy was mercifully traded to Golden State for a bag of broken basketballs, released and latched on to the Boston Celtics, his season never got any better. He went on to shoot 42 percent in 17 games for Boston, including 10 percent on three-pointers, his supposed specialty. He’s logged a total of 3 minutes in the postseason for the Celtics. Simply put, Murphy is the poster-child for non-factors.

And while Murphy’s downward spiral is still completely perplexing, I now have to hand it to Avery Johnson. He saw something from the get-go that showed a player way in decline, who probably would have been zero help, even on the Nets. Nets fans only would have become frustrated if Johnson continued to trot Murphy out there every night, giving him 25-30 minutes a game while Kris Humphries rotted on the bench. It shows a point that while coach lives to be second-guessed, they do see things behind the scenes that will justify their decisions. Johnson got it right with Murphy, and I acknowledge him as such.