New Jersey Nets

New Jersey Nets season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Jason Kidd
G Vince Carter
F Richard Jefferson
F Nenad Krstic
C Jamal Magloire

Reserves
Marcus Williams
Bostjan Nachbar
Jason Collins

Last year
if you are a New Jersey Net fan, last year must have felt like a roller coster. They started the season being Charles Barkley pick to win the east. Lost Nenad Krstic to injury. Had a hobbled Richard Jefferson for a few weeks then went two month or so with out him. They have Vince Carter who can provide a roller coster ride on his own with his mixture of athletic abiltiies and ho-hum attitude. But they also have Jason Kidd who in 2006-2007 proved that age ain't nothing but a number. With 10 triple doubles during the season and 2 more during the playoffs, Kidd was on another planet this past season. Of course those triple doubles didn't help keep Kidd's name out of the paper as his divorce was making the front page of the sports sections in the N.Y. area. There was also an infamous stretch were they lost 3 games in a row, all on buzzer beaters. They also watched the Raptors take over the Atlantic crown during this season. On top of all this was the issues of where the Nets would be playing in the future. Brooklyn watch out. And of course the trade deadline drama consisting of "Do they trade Kidd?" "Do they trade Vince? "Do they keep this core?" "Will Vince resign in the off-season?" It really must have been an interesting year for Nets fans. Now of course the Nets went into the playoffs with momentum and a healthy Richard Jefferson, and some might argue that they could have done better against Cleveland if they had Nenad Krstic, although I personally don't agree with that. Let's not forget that the Nets did go 11-15 to start the season with a healthy Krstic. Now that everything is said and done on 2006-2007, I am sure the Net's would perfer just to forget that season happened, although to their credit they still had a decent showing in the playoffs.

Off-Season
Re-Signed Vince Carter
Signed Jamal Magloire
Lost Mikki Moore to free agency
Waived Hassan Adams
Waived Clifford Robinson
Drafted Sean Williams
Lost Eddie House to free agency
Signed Robert Hite
Signed Malik Allen
Signed Rod Benson
Signed Jumaine Jones
Signed Mateen Cleaves
Signed Eddie Gill

After all the drama, they decided to continue with what they got. Maybe it's true that it was the Lakers who said no to the trade involving Kidd, but now that it's over they have obviously decided to not bother finding another trade partner and to ride the Kidd triple double express as long as possible. Vince Carter sells tickets, but any team with Vince Carter will never see any rings. Of course, what Vince lacks in heart Jason Kidd more then makes up for it, so it's hard to say never. But I will still say never. Jamal Magloire was a former all-star who has quietly done nothing for the past few seasons. I know that Mikki Moore was a product of Jason Kidd, but I don't know if Magloire has the legs or speed to keep up with Kidd when he starts pushing the ball. Sean Williams is a high risk high reward player. Tons of talent, but sounds like the type of guy that would have fit nicely on the Portland Jailblazers a few years ago.

2007-2008
The funny thing about the Nets is that no matter what happens during the previous season, they are always in the conversation as one of the top teams in the east. That is more due to the power trio of Kidd/Carter/Jefferson then anything else. But even though we said the same thing last year, it needs to be said again, Kidd is a year older. On top of that he played this summer with U.S. national team. Will he have the legs to go 82 games plus playoffs? The Net's truly depend on Kidd for any success they have, as depth is not a friend of New Jersey. Marcus Williams is a nice player, but he does not have the impact on the flow of the game or on his teammates like Kidd does. Although it was only 2 games that Kidd missed last season (amazing it was only 2, he is a machine) the Nets did lose both easily to the Spurs and the Raptors. The success of the Nets rides competely on the shoulders on Jason Kidd. As for Vince Carter, should be interesting to see how he does now that he has his contract.

What to watch for
1) Triple Double machine - Is Jason Kidd slowing down? We will know based on how many triple doubles he gets.
2) Health - They should all be ready come Oct. 31st. Can this team stay healthy for the entire run?
3) Stand up or seat down - This team and its core needs to make a choice. Are they going to make a move to become an elite team, or continue as a 500 team. As a 500 team, there will be trade rumors.

Predictions
Even though it was close last year, a healthy Nets team is too good not to make the playoffs. But I think this has to be the year that Kidd starts to slow down. Based on a summer with the National team and Marcus Williams being out for the first few weeks, Kidd will still bring the goods, but not enough to lift this team into the upper tier of the Eastern Conference.

Between 44 and 48 wins this season with a 7th place finish in the East.