State of the New Jersey Nets By: Alex Raskin Last Updated: 7/27/09 3:59 PM ET Whatever state the New Jersey Nets are currently in—be it New Jersey, a state of repair, or even a state of fiscal turmoil—the franchise hopes it's only temporary. A global economic crisis and frustrations regarding the team's move to Brooklyn combined to create the perfect storm of uncertainty for the Nets. Now principal owner Bruce Ratner is rumored to be looking for more investors to offset the high costs of moving; Vince Carter took his 20.8 ppg with him to Orlando; and fans on both sides of the Hudson River are still trying to figure out how this team fits into an already crowded New York City sports landscape. There is a silver lining though and it has little to do with the free agent crop of 2010: the Nets are young, cheap and talented. How young are the Nets? New Jersey averages 26.3 years of age but that figure could drop even further at the trade deadline if the playoffs are out of reach. Bobby Simmons (29), Eduardo Najera (33), Jarvis Hayes (27), Trenton Hassell (30), Keyon Dooling (29), Tony Battie (33) and Rafer Alston (33) could all be useful to a contender and not one of them is owed any guaranteed money beyond this season. That means team president Rod Thorn and general manager Kiki Vandeweghe have as close to a blank slate as a non-expansion team can have. Devin Harris seems like a grizzled veteran despite being only 26 and the other major pieces for this franchise are still his junior. Brook Lopez—who finished third in last year's Rookie of the Year voting—is only 21 while Josh Boone, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Yi Jianlian, Courtney Lee, Sean Williams and Terrence Williams are all 24 or younger. Youth breeds financial flexibility, which is why the Nets have such a friendly cap situation. As the players grow older, however, this cap figure will change dramatically. What is the cap situation? The franchise has less than $29 million committed for 2010-2011, which should put them in great position to take a shot at a free agent in the summer of 2010. Of course, the team may not have to wait for free agency to make a splash. With a surplus of movable vets New Jersey could add to the two first round picks they already have in the 2010 draft (they own Dallas' as part of the Jason Kidd trade). And doing that will only drive down New Jersey's cap figure in the short term —which currently stands at $56.6 million. Only Harris and Terrence Williams are guaranteed money next year although the options on Lee, Lopez and even Yi would be hard to decline. More importantly, the Nets have a situation where they'll be able to retain their young talent—similar to what Kevin Pritchard has created in Portland. How talented are these guys? The current Nets roster is loaded with potential. Even if the playoffs are a distant hope (they finished five games out last season and after trading Carter to Orlando they appear to be further from that goal) New Jersey has some desirable pieces. Lopez was picked 10th overall in 2008 and proved to be the steal of the draft. At 7-0 even, the former Stanford Cardinal has a 7-5.5 wingspan that he used to block 1.9 shots per game with as a rookie. He averaged 13 ppg, 8.1 rpg, shot 79.3% from the line, 53.1% from the field and finished 15th among all centers in terms of Player Efficiency Rating. In fact, Lopez's PER was better than that of Mehmet Okur, Al Horford and Brad Miller. Harris' PER (21.65—6.65 above the league average) was third best among point guards but his sterling defensive reputation took a hit as opponents made 39% of their 3-pointers against the Nets—second worst in the NBA. Perimeter defense was a big reason the team chose Terrence Williams out of Louisville in this year's draft. Williams is built like Quentin Richardson of the Timberwolves (or is it the Clippers? Grizzlies?) and brings interior toughness away from the paint. He has enough quickness to stay with his assignment and can guard 1s, 2s and 3s. What's most impressive about Williams is how he improved over his four years at Louisville. His ppg never rose above 12.5, but he did eventually become a great rebounder (8.6 per game as a senior), thief (2.3 spg) and distributor (5 apg last year). Considering the Nets ranked only 23rd in rebounding differential, 24th in steals and have a scoring point guard, Williams seems to be a perfect fit. His biggest obstacle will be his shooting woes (as a senior he shot 58.1% from the line and 45.9% inside the arc). Lee proved to be extremely well-rounded as a rookie for the Magic last season while making over 40% of his 3-pointers. It's unlikely he will match that this year, but he continues to improve on defense and that's something that will be sorely needed this season. The biggest question mark for the Nets is at power forward where they're tinkering with the idea of trading Yi. Glen Davis has been rumored to be a candidate if a sign-and-trade with Boston could be worked out, but even if the team has to keep the inconsistent 7-footer, things might be okay. Prior to injuring a finger last year, Yi scored 22, 20, and 16 points in three straight games while averaging over 7.5 rpg. That brief glimpse however ended when Yi went down until mid-January. When he returned, Coach Lawrence Frank had altered his roster and Yi's minutes went down. Yi has been working on his interior game this offseason in the United States so perhaps he will move towards the basket and refrain from shooting long jumpers—75% of Yi's field goal attempts were jump shots. The bottom line Frank is under contract through this season and needs to see instant progress to avoid becoming a lame duck coach. His rise from obscurity won't soon be forgotten though and if things don't work out in New Jersey he won't be out of a job long (he's already lost several assistants for budgetary reasons). His players may not universally love him, but he should be respected because he has continued to adapt his system to the talents of those around him. Douglas-Roberts, Lopez and even Harris all walked into an offense last season that seemed vaguely familiar. Frank's preference towards versatile players gave Simmons, Hayes and Dooling a chance to shine and even Carter was able to show some facets of his game long thought to be dormant (he even played the point a few times). If it's darkest just before dawn, '10-'11 may be very sunny for the Nets. They will have at least two first round picks, plenty of money to spend and will be that much closer to moving to Brooklyn. Investors should take Ratner's phone call. New Jersey plays in an old arena and is generally expected to miss the playoffs for the third straight season, but buying low right now might mean owning a piece of something special when and if the team gets to Brooklyn. http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13446 --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 60.250.147.33 ※ 编辑: NetsFan 来自: 60.250.147.33 (07/28 13:45) ※ 编辑: NetsFan 来自: 60.250.147.33 (07/28 13:45)