Words That Don’t Inspire Confidence
Dec 23, 2009 Injuries, Jarvis Hayes, Keyon Dooling
A lot has been made about how the absence of Jarvis Hayes and Keyon Dooling – two likeable veteran leaders who also happen to be pretty decent outside shooters – has played a large part in the Nets misfortunes this season.
Some of the good news that came out of practice earlier this week was with Yi set to return tonight, and Hayes and Dooling soon after, the Nets might finally be whole for the first time this season (Chris Doulgas-Roberts returning from his ankle sprain would help this process along as well). However, in today’s practice report from Fred Kerber, some comments made by and about Hayes and Dooling describe their imminent returns as tenuous at best:
“With a hamstring, at this point, if he hurts it again, he could be done,” (Kiki) Vandeweghe said. “So it’s just not worth it. You’ve just got to be safe with it. As much as we need him, you’ve just got to be safe.”
and
“I had pretty major surgery. It’ll be a process. I’ll be back to normal, probably next year. This year is going to be a struggle for me,” Dooling said. “It was a pretty serious surgery for me.”
I don’t even think this needs much reading between-the-lines. To boil it all down, if Hayes reinjures his hammy, he’s probably done for the year, and Dooling never really going to be healthy this season, so he’s going to be on and off the injured list.
Now, I know these guys are only role players, but I take both of these morsels as pretty dispiriting news items. Please remember that it was Jarvis Hayes who organized the voluntary preseason practice sessions in late August – back in happier days where the Nets weren’t taking veiled shots at each other in the locker room and in the press. And is it any coincidence that Dooling’s short-lived return a few weeks ago occurred just as the Nets won their first two (and only) games of the season?
While the Nets probably have enough talent on their roster to avoid all-time infamy this season, I think it will be a lot easier to move pass 10 wins and end this talk of “worst ever” if these two specific guys can get back on the court and give consistent minutes off the bench. Not only will their three-point shooting provide some more spacing (provided that don’t pull a Bobby Simmons), but these two are the truest definition of “intangible” guys who torture statheads with their lack of numbers, but still make teams better regardless. Here’s to hope that these comments were just of the conservative, expectation-lowering variety.
Keyon Dooling Should Return Tomorrow
Dec 3, 2009 Injuries, Keyon Dooling
The Nets bench should have another live body tomorrow night against Charlotte. Keyon Dooling, who’s been out all season as he’s recovered from off-season hip surgery is expected to make his 2009 debut, according to Ben Couch:
Though the Nets have struggled offensively, they should receive a boost from the likely return of Dooling, a sparkplug off the bench last season. Able to play guard positions, Dooling plays solid defense, efficiently runs the offense (notably connecting well with Yi Jianlian) and has developed into a three-point threat, shooting .421 from long range last season.
Injury Report: Brook Lopez Sprains Ankle, Day-to-Day
Nov 23, 2009 Brook Lopez, Courtney Lee, Injuries
The Nets injury woes continue, as Lawrence Frank announced after practice today that Brook Lopez, who hasn’t missed a game yet in his career, had sprained his ankle and would be day-to-day headed into tomorrow’s game in Denver.
The Bergen Record’s Al Iannazzone has some quotes from Brook, who didn’t need x-rays, despite the initial pain he felt when he apparently landed on someone’s foot in practice:
“There was initial pain,” Lopez said. “I don’t think it’s anything serious.”
Will you play tomorrow?
“I don’t know,” Lopez said. “Whatever [Tim Walsh] says. It feels fine right now. Trust me, watching film hurt a lot more.”
Fortunately, according to Iannazzone, it looks like Courtney Lee is good to go tomorrow, though it’s still a game-time decision.
Injury Report: Courtney Lee and Tony Battie, Back Next Week?
Nov 20, 2009 Courtney Lee, Injuries, Tony Battie
Some news out of Nets practice today. Devin Harris still seems to be a definite go off the bench tomorrow against the Knicks, though expectations as to how much he’ll play are being kept to a minimum.
Meanwhile, Courtney Lee is looking possible for Tuesday against Denver, and Tony Battie, who hasn’t played a single game yet this season, could follow soon after.
From the Post’s Fred Kerber:
“I practiced a little bit today,” (Courtney) Lee said. “Timmy (athletic trainer Walsh) just wants to make sure, be 100 percent positive that when I come back it won’t be (any) re-occurring injury. I’m fine with it. It definitely (stinks) sitting on the side watching my guys go out there and play.”
And here’s Tony:
“I’m making huge strides,” Battie said but cautioned against any sort of timetable. “I went through practice, let’s just see how it feels.”
Podcast Episode 9
Nov 16, 2009 Brook Lopez, Injuries, Ownership, Podcast, Terrence Williams
Well, Mark and I got together once again for another podcast, and in this edition, Mark and I talk about the tough losses in Philly, Orlando, and Miami. We also talk about the injuries (what else is new), the schedule ahead, and a little bit about the new ownership.
Injury Update: Lee Out, CDR Maybe
Nov 13, 2009 Chris Douglas-Roberts, Courtney Lee, Injuries
According to the incomparable Al Iannazzone and the Bergen Record, Courtney Lee is expected to sit out tonight and tomorrow’s games in Florida with a strained groin, while Chris Douglas-Roberts should be in uniform tonight, though it’s uncertain how much he will play given his recovery from the H1N1 virus.
Iannazzone on Lee:
Lee is disappointed he can’t play against his old team. He was a fan favorite for all his community work and looking forward to hearing the ovation and helping the Nets try to win a game. But the bigger picture is he needs to get healthy. There’s no need to push it and risk further injury.
Lee said he’s not concerned that his injury is as bad as Harris’ and will keep him out several weeks. He’s pushing for Tuesday now.
And here’s Lawrence Frank talking about his plans for CDR tonight:
“I don’t think you want to put him in a position to fail,” coach Lawrence Frank said. “You never know. You may have foul trouble. But I think right now you have to have very modest expectations because he lost a lot of strength, endurance, conditioning, he hasn’t played in a week. Anything he gives you is a plus.”
I know it’s tough for an 0-8 team to concede anything right now, but if the Nets are really looking to break their losing streak, I’d rather see them closer to full strength on Tuesday when Indiana comes to town. I honestly couldn’t see the Nets pulling out either of these games this weekend before the injury bug hit.
Talking Health and PER
Nov 13, 2009 Analysis, Bobby Simmons, Eduardo Najera, Injuries, Josh Boone, Rafer Alston, Terrence Williams, Trenton Hassell
While the Nets 0-8 start to the season is a pretty definitive indicator as to how the rash of injuries is affecting the team’s performance, there are some advanced statistics out there that really hammer home what happens when a team is forced to either play guys out of position, or give starter’s minutes to players who are career back-ups or in some cases, career-12th-men.
One of the more interesting statistics available on the great statistical site 82games, is PER (Player Efficiency Rating) differential. 82games looks at a player’s PER while playing a specific position, and then also provides PER data for opposing player’s slotted at that same position. In other words, when Brook Lopez is playing center, he currently has a PER of 20.7, while opposing centers have a PER of 13.1 while Brook is on the floor, creating a PER differntial of + 7.6 (which is very good). I like looking at this metric because in addition to giving you an idea of how a guy stacks up at a certain position, it also provides some insight about his defensive abilities against other player’s at that position.
And for those of you who have not bought in to the advance statistics thing for the NBA yet, a quick refresher: PER is the overall rating of a player’s per-48 minute statistical production including scoring, shooting percentages, rebounding, assists, turnovers and other metrics. A PER of 15.0 is considered the mean, with anything above 15 being above average, and below 15 is obviously below average. You’ll find that Sebastian and I throw PER around a lot on this site, so if you never knew what we were talking about, there you go.
So in many cases in the early-part of this Nets season, the PER differential for some players is just alarmingly awful. After the jump, let’s break this down into two groups, players playing out of position and players getting big minutes who in a perfect world, would be riding the bench or inactive. Read the rest of this entry »
CDR Is Back To Work
Nov 12, 2009 Chris Douglas-Roberts, Injuries
Some positive news from Nets practice. Direct from Chris Douglas-Roberts’ Twitter feed:
Hit the gym. Was much winded. Headed to Orlando.
That’s right, the freshest baller with H1N1 is back. I’m sure the beat guys will have a report or two on this, though I’ll be curious to see how close any of them got to interview CDR. It’s unclear if Douglas-Roberts is in shape to play this weekend, but any live body at practice is a good thing these days. There’s something about practicing with chairs that’s very disconcerting.
PS – Was a big fan of CDR giving a shot-out via Twitter to the YES crew last night during the game. For those who missed it:
@yesnetwork Feeling & looking Fresh. Let’s GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NETSSSSSSSSSS! I’ll be back in the gym tomorrow. Yes yess.
Update: As promised here are practice updates from Al Iannazzone, Colin Stephenson (filling in for Dave D.), Julian Garcia and Fred Kerber.
Injury Updates: Courtney Lee Out – CDR Has H1N1 Virus (Swine Flu)
Nov 7, 2009 Chris Douglas-Roberts, Injuries
It was just announced on the pregame show. Dave D has the report:
The Nets’ bleak medical condition actually managed to get worse Saturday.
Chris Douglas-Roberts has been diagnosed with the H1N1 virus, Nets president Rod Thorn revealed in a statement Saturday afternoon.
The second-year wing has experienced flu-like symptoms since Thursday morning and was immediately quarantined, as per the precautionary measures mandated by the NBA.
Douglas-Roberts is believed to be the first player in the league to confirm publicly that he is suffering from the so-called “swine flu,” and it is unknown whether he received a vaccine prior to contracting it.
So CDR is the first player in the league to have contracted H1N1, and he will probably be out a little longer, because NBA officials are going to want to guarantee that he is 100% before putting him back out there.
Tonights starting lineup has been announced as well:
- Rafer Alston
- Trenton Hassell
- Bobby Simmons
- Josh Boone
- Brook Lopez
Najera and Williams are going to be coming off the bench since they will be realistically backing up guys at multiple positions. This one could get ugly.
Nets on the Net: 11/7/09 Edition
Nov 7, 2009 Brett Yormark, Brooklyn, Courtney Lee, Injuries, Lawrence Frank, LeBron James, Mikhail Prokhorov, Nets on the Net, Rod Thorn
The Nets are kind of a mess right now, as duly noted by NBA Fanhouse.
In his Nets notes, Al Iannazzone talks to Rod Thorn who says there is no immediate help on the way via a trade.
The Atlantic Yards Report, quoting ESPN’s Marc Stein, said Mikhail Prokhorov could buy the Nets even if they don’t end up in Brooklyn.
Prior to joining the injured ranks last night, Dave D’Alessandro scribed a piece about Courtney Lee needing to step up with the absence of other players.
Brett Yormark strikes again: Nets players who are too injured to play will mingle with fans at the Izod Center.
Ian Thomsen at Sports Illustrated looks at why LeBron James will probably not leave Cleveland.
Inside Shaun Powell’s column at NBA.com, Rod Thorn says the team is not going to be too rash to fire Lawrence Frank.