|
Overall
Win/Loss Record : 49-33, second place Atlantic Division
|
Last Season’s Rank
14
|
Projected 2013/2014
Finish
6
|
Last
season’s Team Statistics and League Rank
|
Returning
Individual Statistical Leaders
|
|
Projected
Starters Based on Talent, Tenure, Paycheck and Potential Impact:
|
Second Unit Roster Order Ranked on Talent, Tenure, Paycheck and Potential Impact:
|
|
Analysis:
165$ million--that is the estimated how much it will cost Nets owner Mikhail Prokhov this season alone as he not only has to shell out 102$ million on the roster alone, but also has to pay 65$ million in luxury tax penalties. His starting five alone will cost him 82.4$ million which is already 12.4$ million over the league mandate 70$ million luxury tax threshold for this season and with teams having to pay two for every one dollar over the limit, he will be on hook for nearly 25$ million for just five players. Granted, the starting five are all NBA All Stars who have a grand total of one NBA Championship and 393 playoff games between them; however four of them are thirty and above with two of them being WAY past their primes at 36 and 37 years old respectively. Both Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett looked as if they both were going to fall apart on the court in their last season with the +Boston Celtics while Joe Johnson has shown signs of decline ever since he inked that massive 120$ million dollar contract extension with the +Atlanta Hawks two years ago. Now the Nets not only have to swallow paying Johnson and his declining production 60$ million over the next three years, but also have to deal with another 16$ million from Pierce, whose contract will mercifully end at season's end, and Garnett whose contract will end at the end of next season while still being owed 24$ million for this year and next. With such a massive off season move, one can certainly deduce that the Nets are not just going to settle with simply making the playoffs only to be eliminated out of the first round as they did last season, but to reach the NBA Finals and possibly win an NBA Championship as well. Unfortunately, both the team and their fans are putting a huge amount of stock on the fact that both the players that they have acquired are far too overvalued as the zeros on their paychecks far outweigh their actual value of the court. It is all but a certainty that neither Pierce or Garnett have the ability or stamina to log on the minutes and post the numbers that they previously had in their careers; however, they won't be expected to as the Nets have a bolstered second unit which will certainly spell the two aging superstars allowing them to play less minutes. Both Andray Blatche, who had a breakthrough season after being unceremoniously waived by his former team, the +Washington Wizards, and Reggie Evans, who led the team in rebounding and ranked among the top rebounders in the league last season, will be returning to provide solid backup support for Garnett thus limiting his playing time and the waer and tear of the regular season. The Nets also managed to pluck away Andrei Kirilenko, who had played last season with the +Minnesota Timberwolves and is capable to provide backup minutes at the three and four spots giving both solid production on the offensive end along with a lockdown defender who can guard both the perimeter and the paint. The Nets also assured that their overpaid dinosaur in Joe Johnson will not have to endure playing the 37 minutes per games that he was forced to last season with the addition of Alan Anderson, who can comfortably slip in between the two and three spots as well as Jason Terry, who also came from Boston in that massive off season deal that took both Garnett and Pierce out of Boston Green and into Brooklyn Black and White. Terry showed last season in Both that he was no longer capable to provide the scoring punch that he once did playing for the +Dallas Mavericks; nonetheless, he can still provide a solid 18 to 20 minutes per game coming off the bench while proving some respite for not only Johnson, but also Deron Williams, as he can take some pressure off the point guard spot as well. Altogether, despite the very hefty price tag and the advanced ages of most of the players on their roster, the Nets certainly have a talented and deep enough team to not only contend in the East, but even prove to be a spoiler for a +Miami HEAT team that is looking to win its third straight NBA title. Although their best basketball is behind them, both Pierce and Garnett will still prove to be worth the price the team's front office paid for them as they will no longer have to log the minutes they had in Boston while at the same time not have the pressure of carrying the team offensively either. On a team stacked with veteran talent, Pierce and Garnett are easily the fourth, or fifth, possibly even sixth offensive options on the team and with such a deep lineup, they can rest easier as their minutes will be reduced and they can remain somewhat fresh for the post season. One can go as far to say that once the playoffs arrive, the Nets will most undoubtedly will be the most dangerous teams to face both on the offensive and defensive ends as they have plenty of able bodies capable of both hitting big shots and locking down their opponents defensively. And with the way that they can potentially interchange within the roster because of the team's overall versatility and diversity of playing styles, many teams will simply get run down by the sheer magnitude of the depth and firepower of this team. Imagine players such superstars as +LeBron James, +Tim Duncan, +Carmelo Anthony, and +James Harden having to deal will three of four bodies on them constantly with little or no rest or relief whatsoever as they will always have a fresh player on them. Post players such as +Dwight Howard, +Chris Bosh, +Blake Griffin or +Kevin Love will have to look forward to being banged down low by the likes of physical defenders such as Lopez, Garnett, Evans while perimeter scorers such as +Derrick Rose, +Kevin Durant, and +Stephen Curry will have be hounded by the likes of Pierce, Johnson, Williams, Terry, on the outside. Let us not forget players such as Kirilenko, Anderson, Blatche, +Shaun Livingston, who have the potential to play and guard multiple positions at once due to their skill sets and athleticism. To exacerbate matters, all the players mentioned, save for Evans who has limited offensive ability, are capable of putting up big numbers on the offensive end at any given time with a total of eight player who have averaged ten or more points per game over the course of their careers. Unfortunately, despite their obvious strengths, the window of opportunity is barely open for a team whom although sport plenty of talent, are aging and come with a rather hefty price tag to say the least. Most of the players on that Nets roster have just one or two good years left in them before they start to decline and shackle the team with a bloated payroll of under performing players which they have to pay millions for in luxury tax penalties. Add the fact that the Nets hired someone with no coaching experience to lead this team also makes even the most optimistic of fans question whether their new team can really take that step forward to becoming a true title contender. There is no arguing Jason Kidd's credentials as a player nor his knowledge and acumen for the game, but considering that there were numerous more impressive candidates that have not only more experience, but also proven results to back them up, possibly hiring a player right out of retirement to lead a team where it is championship or bust is not the greatest idea. By choosing to becoming the Nets' coach, Kidd has put himself in a situation where he has potential set himself up for failure, because like it or not, with the money that has been invested, anything less than an NBA championship would be considered a failure; however, hopefully that will not come to pass as he has a well stocked arsenal of players that can bring any coach to championship contention. |
||
Showing posts with label number 6. Show all posts
Showing posts with label number 6. Show all posts
Monday, October 28, 2013
SDH's 2013/2014 NBA Worst to First Previews and Predictions: 6. Brooklyn Nets
Monday, July 15, 2013
SDH Presents the 2013 End of Season NBA's Worst to First: 6. Chicago Bulls
|
Overall
Win/Loss Record (At
Season’s End
) : 45-37 (second place, Central Division)
|
14
|
At Season’s
End
6
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Team
Statistics and League Rank (At Season’s End)
|
Individual
Statistical Leaders (At Season’s End)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SDH Player of the Year: Nate Robinson 
Consider Nate Robinson as one of the feel good comeback stories of the NBA. He went from being labelled as a knucklehead and a lost cause to re-emerging to becoming one of the bright spots on this struggling Chicago Bulls team. Although Robinson's arrival to the Windy City was welcomed with plenty of raised eyebrows and a heavy helping of skepticism, he still managed to turn it all around providing much needed leadership for a Chicago team in desperate need of it. His brightest moment by far was in the playoff where he led the Bulls to a surprising first round upset over the Brooklyn Nets in this year's playoffs making him the Windy city's favorite son for now. With his contract expiring at season's end, look for many team to take a look at the quick and athletic 5'9" dynamo as he will certainly be a player to watch out for in the free agent market.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Analysis:
They entered the regular season not only just without their star player, but a drastically altered roster which had many wondering whether or not the team would even finish with a .500 record, let alone qualify for the playoffs; however Chicago Bulls still managed to silence any of their doubters and not only make the playoffs, but also managed to pull off the impossible by eliminating a far more deeper and talented Brooklyn Nets team. After losing rather badly in game one, many though that it would be a rather short and forgettable series, but Chicago bounced back winning three straight games to take a three games to one lead over the Nets and the opportunity to eliminate the far stronger Brooklyn squad in game five. Despite winning game five, the Nets could not stretch the series to the seventh and deciding games as they would fall in game six which resulted in the Bulls to advance in the second round to face the top seeded Miami Heat who Chicago also caught off guard taking the first game in the best of seven series. Unfortunately for the Bulls that would be the only game that they would win as Miami made short work of them winning the next four games and quickly eliminated Chicago as they marched on to their second straight NBA title. As for the Bulls, they would end their season with their heads head up high that they were capable of accomplish so much despite having so little and now spend their off season for the star player, Derrick Rose, to be healthy enough to bring the team back to the upper echelons on the Eastern Conference; however, one has to ask himself whether Derrick Rose will be enough to bring this team back to notoriety and championship contention. With Rose, the Bulls had two straight seasons where they finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference only to fall short in the playoffs first losing to the Miami Heat in the Conference Finals and then shockingly eliminated in the first round by a far less talented Philadelphia 76ers team. They then entered the 2013 regular season with the grim reality that their leader and heart and soul of the franchise would not be playing alongside them and despite being able to pull off a somewhat respectable finish, it was still rather touch and go for the Windy City's finest. For starters, the Bulls were absolutely horrid on the offensive end as they were the second worst team in the league in terms of scoring and in the bottom five when it game to shooting from the field. And despite being arguably one of the league's best defensive teams by far, they were still unable to convert that defensive effort into easy offensive opportunities as they were one of the worst teams in the league in forcing turnovers and had only beaten their opponents by a mere +0.3 margin. In other words, if they had been a missed turnover or a last second miss, the Chicago Bulls probably would not have made the playoffs and probably would have finished with the league's worst record had it not been for a lucky bounce or two on the rim. Where most of the league's top teams relied on defense more as a catalyst to spark their offense by getting easy baskets through turnovers, Chicago's defense more resembled a crutch that propped the team up long enough to come through for the win. Watching the Bulls on offense was simply painful as every possession become a chore and Chicago virtually had to pull out their own teeth to come away with a basket each time they came on their side of the court. And despite ranking among the top ten rebounding teams in the league, that did not make much of a difference as they allowed their opponents to crash the boards at relatively the same rate only separated by a rather slim margin +2.1 rebounds per game. What is even more sad about this slim rebounding differential was that it had nothing to do with the Bulls being able to grab more rebounds than their opponents, but the fact that their opponents had made more baskets at a better rate than them thus resulting in them not having to rebound as much. Putting together all the factors surrounding the team during the regular season, it is safe to say that the Chicago Bulls truly were not that great of a team in the 2013 season, but a bad team that got very lucky. In addition to the loving intervention of Lady Luck that kept them within striking distance of the post season, the Bulls were also fortunate enough to be playing in a rather weak Central Division as they spent the season behind an equally poor executing offensive team in the Indiana Pacers. With the news of Derrick Rose's absence become known, many had handed Indiana the Central Division wrapped up with a bow on it as the Pacers came into the 2013 season with a far more improved roster than last season's team; however, upon arriving Indy started the season dead cold from the field and spent much of the first half scratching their way to reach .500. The Pacers did manage to get it together to put a strong finish late in the regular season to win the Central Division, but it was far from impressive they barely won it over Chicago by a mere four game margin and considering that Indy was projected to be a dominant force in the league, their finish was far from spectacular. The Bulls did not have that much of threat from the team right under them as the Milwaukee Bucks proved to be even more of a mediocre team finishing the season winning just 38 games to only be swept in the first round by the eventual NBA champion Miami Heat. Simply being in that rather weak division gave the Bulls enough confidence to fight on because unlike what many predicted, despite all the challenges they faced, they still had a fighting chance to come out with the Division lead. Now with the 2013 NBA season finally at a close, the Chicago Bulls can finally breathe a sigh of relief, allow themselves to rest up for the next season, and patiently await the arrival of the their absent franchise player, Derrick Rose; however, one has to wonder whether the return of Rose will bring the Bulls back to the upper echelons of the Eastern Conference. Rose will not be returning to the same team that went 50-16 last season as much of the roster had been hollowed out due to financial reasons leading one to think that perhaps the Bulls no longer have what it takes to be a contender for the NBA crown. In fact, one can go as far to say that Chicago's time has passed as their window of opportunity has firmly closed thanks to the emergence of teams such as the Indiana Pacers, the Brooklyn Nets and the New York Knicks being in their way. Facing far more potent obstacles than they have ever faced and with an older team looking even more worn down than before, the future no longer looks a brought for the Chicago Bulls who looked to finally come up from under the shadows of history to create their own championship legacy. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Monday, May 6, 2013
SDH Presents the NBA's Worst to First for January and and February: 6. Indiana Pacers
|
Overall
Win/Loss Record (as of February 28th): 36-22 (first place, Central Division)
|
7
|
This Month:
6
|
Team
Statistics and League Rank (as of February 28th)
|
Individual
Statistical Leaders (as of February 28th)
|
|
Worst Player
of the Month: Gerald Green
 After what many saw as a breakthrough season last year, Gerald Green has proven by his poor performance this season how looks can be deceiving. Green started the season rather disappointingly as he posted rather mediocre numbers averaging a little over seven points per game while shooting under .400 from the field. It would not get any better for Green as his numbers plummeted at 2013 as his scoring dropped to 5.5 points per game while shooting .261 from the field by the end of January. On February, Green was essentially nonexistent as he played just four games and average 1.8 points per game while shooting .158 from the field. What could have and should have been a savvy dark horse acquisition for the Indiana Pacers has become a full fledged bust as Gerald Green has proven to be disappointment yet again. |
First Player
of the Month: Lance Stephenson
 His numbers may not jump out at you, but Lance Stephenson has probably been the most solid and consistent Pacer player thus far this season. Unlike his teammates whose numbers seemed to have bounced up and down as the season progressed, Lance Stephenson's have remained relatively stable scoring a solid eight to nine per game while consistently shooting .450 or better. He may not be the flashiest player nor the most noticeable as he does not take that many shot attempts; however, what few shot attempts he may takes, he had been rather efficient in connecting. At the same time he does all the little things as well woth his scrappy defensive play and rebounds rather well for a shooting guard as he has average slose to four per game this season. While most of the focus has been centered around his All Star teammate Paul George, Lance Stephenson can certainly be considered as one of the Pacers'unsung hero that has propelled the team to be amongst the Eastern Conference's elite. |
|
Analysis:
It took them a few months, but the Indiana Pacers have now started to perform and produced like the elite NBA team that many envisioned them to be at the start of the season. At the end of 2012, the Pacers looked average at best barely skimming five games over the .500 mark while leading a rather sad, week, and poorly performing Central Division; however, now at the end February, the Pacers have elevated themselves out of the shadow of mediocrity to rise among the top teams in the league. It did not look as good at the end of January when the Pacers went a passable 9-6 as they finished the month losing three of their last four games; however, that all changed once February came around. It was upon the arrival of February that the Pacers went from simply a good team to become a great team as they simply crushed their opponent as they went 9-3 winning in rather impressive fashion against rather impressive competition. Now awake with their eyes wide open, the Pacers look to make believers out of those who have doubted them for much of the season as they look to prove that they are a more than worthy adversary and contender for a NBA title.
What started as a 21 point win against the lowly Detroit Pistons (1/30/2013) to cap off a unimpressive January turned into a five game win steak where the Indiana Pacers made short work of rather impressive competition. They started February win an impressive 13 point win against the East's top team, the Miami Heat (1/1/2013) then followed that with double figure margin wins against their division rival Chicago Bulls (2/4/2013) and Eastern Conference playoff mainstay, the Atlanta Hawks (2/5/2013). They followed those three impressive performances by simply squashing the Philadelphia 76ers by 19 holding the team to just 69 points and .348 shooting from the field (2/6/2013). Indy suffered a couple of minor setbacks losing rather close games--both in overtime--to the Toronto Raptors (2/8/2013) and the Brooklyn Nets (2/11/2013); however, the Pacers bounced back in splendid fashion winning their next five straight games by an average margin of nearly 22 points per game with the most notable being a 34 points spanking of the New York Knicks (2/20/2013), a team in possession pf the second best win total in the East.
Altogether Indiana won a grand total of 18 games and went from being a team that hovering around mediocrity with a mere 18-13 record by the end of 2012 to raising themselves at third place in the East with a 36-22 record. With such an impressive performance, it begs one to answer the question: if the Pacers were capably of playing so dominantly in January and February, how come they did not do so at the very start of the season. They had the same team at the end of November as they did in the end of February virtually injury free, save for the one that has kept last season's leading scorer Danny Granger sidelined for most of the season. In fact, if someone would have told those who follow the NBA that the Pacers after starting their season at 7-8 would go on and take third place in East Conference, they would not have taken that prediction seriously at all. One can also go as far to say that the Pacers' ascension from mediocrity to NBA elite can be considered by many observers as one of the best comeback performances of the 2012/2013 NBA season and what makes this even sweeter for Indy fans is that their team has done so well without the help of a majors marquee player as the other teams in the Eastern Conference has.
Sure, the team has been blessed thus far by the improved play of Paul George, whose impressive performance earned him a selection on the Eastern Conference All Star Team; however, he certainly cannot be placed in the same boat as the Heat's Lebron James or the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony. George is not even in the same league as notable second tier players such as Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett or even a player such as Atlanta's Josh Smith, who has yet to receive even his first All Star selection. In any instance, the Pacers do not have any real names that pop out at the fans or the media as they have kept relatively low profiles throughout much of the regular season. Yet despite not have the star power as the two two teams ahead of them, or even the marquee names of the team's under them, they Pacers have risen up to reach the plateau of the two of the best teams in not only the conference, but overall in the league as well.
Despite posting such an impressive performance to finish the month of February among the top three teams in the East, the Pacers still remain rather flawed entering the final stretch of the regular season. Regardless of the huge jump in scoring from averaging under 92.0 points at the end of December to close to 95.0 by February's end, the Pacers still remains a team that still struggle on the offensive end as the still rank near the bottom in scoring and field goal percentage while at the same time rank among the worst teams when it come to committing turnovers. Their defense still remains top notch as ranked among the best teams in the league in points and field goals allowed; however, despite such impressive defensive intensity, the Pacers rank near the bottom of the league in forcing turnovers. They still have little or no idea how to turn defense into offense as they still lack the ability to make their opponents pay on the offensive end with the team's reality poor shooting and inability to finish on the other side of the court. It will be very interesting to see whether or not Indiana can overcome their weaknesses as they head into the regular season's final stretch.
|
||
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
SDH Presents the NBA's Worst to First for December: 6. Memphis Grizzlies
|
Overall
Win/Loss Record (as of December 31st): 19-9, second place Southwest Division
|
This Month:
6 |
|
Team
Statistics and League Rank (as of December 31st):
|
Individual
Statistical Leaders (as of December 31st):
|
|
Worst Player
of the Month: Rudy Gay
 December was a rather rough month for Rudy Gay as he struggled with his shot shooting just .394 from the field as well as his scoring dropping from 18.7 in November to just 16.7. His perimeter touch seemed to have also left as he was dead cold from outside shooting just .233 from beyond the arc. Such problems have been fodder for all the critics, haters and trolls who have continuously lobbied to send Rudy Gay packing out of Memphis. The Grizzlies may not have much of a choice either as Gay's contract puts them WAY over the luxury tax threshold forcing the team to pay twice as much for every dollar over the cap. After slightly sliding in December after having the best record in November and with huge tax penalties looming, it seems as if Rudy Gay will soon bid farewell to the city he has called home for the past seven years. |
First Player
of the Month: Zach Randolph
 Last season, it was an almost certainly that Zach Randolph would be traded after an injury riddled season that saw him post his lowest numbers since his rookie year. Now he has returned to Memphis healthy and stronger and has gone on an ongoing campaign to silence any doubters or skeptics who may have though that he was over the hill. It seemed as the winter weather of December did not even phase the burly power forward as he was just on an offensive tear as he led the team in scoring averaging close to 18 points per game. In addition of being the Grizz's prime source of offense, Z-Bo was also an immovable anchor in the paint ashe dominated the boards by grabbing a little over 12 boards per game as well. As a result of his stellar performance, Randolph has certainly elevated himself as the Grizzlies' primary scoring option leaving another player who had that title left out in the cold. |
|
Analysis:
Last November, the Memphis Grizzlies for the first time in franchise history started with the best record in the league and seemed to have the makings of a new championship contender. Then as soon as they rose to the top starting the season 12-2, the Grizzlies got knocked of their pedestal following a phenomenal November with a rather lack luster December losing four of their first six games. Ironically their first loss came courtesy of the previous holder of the Southwest Division crown, the San Antonio Spurs, as if the older Spurs gave the young Memphis a little smack across the face for being so insolent (12/1/2012). After being roughed up by the Spurs, the Grizzlies bounced back winning the next two games against the Phoenix Suns (12/4/2012) and the New Orleans Hornets (12/7/2012). Unfortunately, the bliss from those victories were short lived as Memphis would go on to lose their next three games against the Atlanta Hawks (12/8/2012), Phoenix Suns (12/12/2012) and Denver Nuggets (12/14/2012).
Memphis managed to bounce back yet again from that little three game slide by winning four straight right after--three by double figure margins--and it looked as if the Grizz were on their way back to returning to the top spot in the West. Unfortunately, they could not maintain the streak as they would lose rather embarrassingly against the Houston Rockets (12/22/2012), followed by a ten point loss to the Philadelphia 76ers (12/26/2012). Memphis broke that short two game losing steak by downing the Denver Nuggets in a hard fought defensive battle (12/29/2012); however; they finished December and entered the new year on a sour note with a heartbreaking five point loss to the Indiana Pacers (12/31/2012). Despite finishing December with a 7-7 record, the Grizzlies still were able to maintain one of the top records in the league regardless of the slight set back they suffered to finish 2012. Unfortunately, the situation has gotten more complicated for the Memphis Grizzlies as they would have battle through the rest of the season as a "middle of the pack" team in a conference that has little opportunity for upward mobility. From sitting up at top of the mountain, Memphis now finds itself treading water trying to keep their heads above water in a ruthlessly competitive Western Conference where placing is everything. As of December, the Grizzlies have found themselves in fourth place in the Western Conference behind the Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the San Antonio Spurs, giving them home court advantage in the first round if the playoffs were to start today. Due to the rather poor showing in December, the Grizzlies lost their advantage of being on the top and, barring something cataclysmic to happen to the three teams ahead of them, they have pretty much lost it for good. With the strength of the three top teams in west, the Grizzlies are basically stuck in the middle with no other place to go but down. It has now become a game of survival for the Grizzlies as they have a hungry Golden State Warriors team nipping at their heels while trying to stay afloat and one false move can send them deeper into the abyss. To make matters even more complicated, the Memphis Grizzlies have found themselves in quite the financial crunch as they are a small market basketball club with limited resources in terms of television revenue and have one of the highest payrolls in the league. With the new salary cap rules coming into place next season, Memphis will find themselves paying double four every dollar spent that is over the salary cap in luxury tax penalties. And unlike the teams in big media markets such as Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Boston, and Miami, the Grizzlies do not have the television revenue capable of covering such expenses thus opening them to a severe monetary loss. That first place finish at the end of November was the only lifeline they had to keep that team together and with that gone, the window of opportunity for a potential NBA Finals appearance has all but been closed. Grizzlies' front office will be forced to make some very hard choices as their team struggles to hang on their foothold in the West while shouldering an immense financial burden to go on top of that. Expect the Grizzlies front office to pull the trigger on some lopsided trades in order for them in order to cut payroll in order to stay below the luxury tax threshold. As their chances for a championship have all but evaporated, it has become more difficult to justify a roster that has four players making 10$ million or more with one being owed 80$ million for the next four years. It is a no win situation in Memphis right now as they are feeling the squeeze financially while at the same time, one the basketball side, have to keep teams who are gaining on them at bay as they try to hold on to what little ground they have left. Survival will be the priority for a team that finds itself closed off from advancing any further in the West after tragically slipping from the summit and having to fight for what little scraps that are left. Hopefully once the playoffs arrive, Memphis will hopefully advance further than the first round for at least they will have something to show for all their struggles and sacrifices. |
||
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
SDH Presents the NBA's Worst to First for November: 6. Brooklyn Nets
|
Overall
Win/Loss Record (as of November 30th): 10-4 , tied first place Atlantic Division
|
13
|
This Month:
6
|
Team
Statistics and League Rank (as of November 30th)
|
Individual
Statistical Leaders (as of November 30th)
|
|
Worst Player
of the Month: Kris Humphries
 Last season Kris Humphries had a monster year posting career highs in scoring (13.8ppg), rebounding (11.0rpg) and blocked shot per game (1.2). Unfortunately, once the season started Humphries was nowhere to be seen as he had completely disappeared in the roster as all his stats have significantly dropped from last season. His scoring dropped by almost half to just 7.9 per game while his rebounding per game dropped to single digits. Some might point out that the reason why Humphries may lie in the new arrivals of Joe Johnson and Gerald Wallace along the the return of the oft injured Brook Lopez; however, those news additions should not have production by that much, especially in the rebounding department. The Nets' front office must certainly regret signing Humphries for two more years to the tune of 24$ million because thus far, they have yet to get a return on their investment. |
First Player
of the Month: Brook Lopez
 After two straight years of being sidelined with injuries, Brook Lopez is finally back on the court and has shown that his lengthy absence has not affected his play. He has started the season in splendid form leading his team in scoring and despite the new additions, he has still managed to stay as the team primary option on the offensive end. Lopez certainly has proven to his doubters shaking of the stigma that he nothing more that the reason for his success was because he was a good player. If he continues with his phenomenal play of the past month, Lopez will certainly guarantee himself his first selection on the Eastern Conference. Certainly the Brooklyn Nets are happy that they chose to invest in him instead of futilely banging their heads trying to get Dwight Howard there, who has been currently been having a hard time with his new team, the Los Angeles Lakers as Lopez looks as if he will be the foundation of the franchise for years to come. |
|
Analysis:
Thus far the inaugural season of the Brooklyn nets have been a resounding success entering their new home, the Barclays Center, to a full house of excited fans and unlike last season when they were in the previous home, they have given their new fans something to cheer for. Instead of moving to their old home with the same pathetic lineup that only won 22 games last season, the Nets had a complete overhaul done gutting out their roster trading most of it to the Atlanta Hawks for one of the top five shooting guards in the League, Joe Johnson. The Nets also decided to move on from the vain attempts to entice an unreliably indecisive Dwight Howard and decided in investing right at home signing Brook Lopez to a four year extension instead worth around 45$ million. They ten rounded out the roster by signing the athletic veteran who has been a defensive stalwart and a monster on the boards for much of his career in Gerald Wallace. The Nets' biggest move, however, was to secure their All Star point guard Deron Williams to a maximum extension giving Brooklyn a starting five that can rival the NBA at the cost of almost 300$ million dollars over the next five or so years.
Many raised their eyebrows when all these moves were made during the summer as the Nets not only wiped out all their cap space, but also put themselves over the luxury tax threshold in matter of days; however, it was nothing to Brooklyn, as the team had a strong financial backer who's first priority is winning above all else. When Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov took over ownership of the team two years ago, he all but guaranteed that the Nets would not only contend for a playoff spots, but also be in the run for a championship within five years. Many scoffed at the renegade Russian's bold proclamation, but three years into his reign as nets owner, he has already laid the foundation by recklessly opening his massive check book so his that GM, Billy King, can buy their pieces whom they needed to take the league by storm. From that moment on, it was not just about slowly building a playoff team over time--from day one, the only objective for this new Brooklyn team was Championship or bust. That's probably made fans in Brooklyn so excited for their new arrival, because they knew that they would have to endure long losing season as their predecessors did, but will have a team ready to win right of the bat. Thus far, the denizens of the New York borough that has been the inspiration of so many rap songs, have been pleased with their new team as it has lived up to their expectations thus far. After passing over a slight bump in the round losing two of their first three games, the Nets went on a tear winning their next five games. They would then hit another small bump in the road losing to the Los Angeles Lakers (11/20/2012) and the Golden State Warriors (11/21/2012) on the road, but bounced back yet again winning their next five games to finish the month of November off in style. To top it all off, the Nets even won Big Apple bragging rights by downing their divisional and inner city rival, the New York Knicks, in their first meeting of the season (11/26/2012). They cemented their stature by by handily stomping on the previous division leaders who have essentially held the Atlantic crown for the past five years, the Boston Celtics twice thus far owning them on their home court (11/15/2012) and on the road as well (11/28/2012). So far coach Avery Johnson has been secure in his position as coach as the Nets have managed to live up to expectations thus keeping him employed; however, despite their successful debut, there have been a few red flags that have popped up during the Nets' debut. One reg flag would most certainly be found on the defensive end where the Nets, despite having such deep and talented roster, have allowed their opponents to shoot close to .460 from the field which ranks near bottom in the NBA. Their rebounding has not been that impressive either as the Nets possess such beasts on the boards as George Wallace, Kris Humphries, Reggie Evans, and Andray Blatche added alongside the talent of Brook Lopez, but just only rank eighteenth in the league in rebounds per game. With such elite talent, one would expect the Nets to be among the teams in the league on the boards, at the least be amongst the top five. Unfortunately, the Nets currently just rest nearly at the bottom of the league and it has not been because of their shooting because that too has been rather pedestrian to say the least as they shoot just slightly worse than their opponents at a little under .450 percent and rank near the bottom of the league in scoring--considering the offensive firepower that team possesses.
All these negative factors point to the unfortunate realization that this 10-4 start will blow up in smoke unless the Nets start increasing the efforts on the boards and raising their level of intensity on the defensive end. Although it has yet to overtly show coming into December, the Nets have been playing rather mediocre to say the least considering the talent on the roster and the huge 300$ million investment put forth by their owner. Thus far, Brooklyn has been fortunate that the teams they have faced have been sub par at best and they have managed to win the games they were supposed to; however, once they start facing elite competition, their weakness will start to show and the whole house of cards will just topple down. When that happens, it is not going to be pretty as their ruthless Russian billionaire owner watches closely to make sure that he gets the return that he expects from his one third of a billion dollar investment. So if in the coming weeks the Nets start to slightly slip in the standings, expect heads will roll as there will be an even more brutal house cleaning that the mass disappearances and cleansing during the Stalinist era in Communist Russia.
|
||
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)