What went wrong with the 2014 Nets?

[Roy H.]

Everybody knows that the Pierce / KG trade worked out horribly for Brooklyn.  What I didn't necessarily remember was how bad Pierce and KG were for the Nets.

2013 (Boston):

Pierce: 18.6 points / 6.3 rebounds / 4.8 assists
Garnett:  14.8 points / 7.8 rebounds / 2.3 assists
Terry: 10.1 points / 2.0 rebounds / 2.5 assists

2014 - 2015 (Brooklyn):

Pierce:  13.5 points / 4.6 rebounds / 2.3 assists (1 season)
Garnett:  6.6 points / 6.7 rebounds / 1.6 assists (1.5 seasons)
Terry:  4.5 points / 1.1 rebounds / 1.6 assists (1 season)

The Nets won 44 games and lost in the second round.  Lopez went down early, and by the time the playoffs came around only Joe Johnson, Deron Williams and Pierce were double-digit scorers.

Statistically, Pierce and KG fell off a cliff.  Was this just a consequence of being in a different system with a different role?

[Redz]

That's what made the trade all the more awesome!

[knuckleballer]

I think they were supposed to be role players.  I don’t know what happened to Deron Williams, but he lost his game when he should have been in his prime.

[Moranis]

Pierce was in year 16 and had been getting worse for years and continued that in Washington and LA (it wasn't like that was an aberration).  That was Garnett's 19th year, he just didn't have it any more.  His rebounding, blocking, and stealing were all actually better per minute in Brooklyn, he just played 1/3 less minutes though

[Surferdad]

I think they were supposed to be role players.  I don’t know what happened to Deron Williams, but he lost his game when he should have been in his prime.

I don't think so. Nets were going to shoot the moon with giving away all those picks and I promise you it wasn't for role players who take up the bulk of the salary.

[Moranis]

I think they were supposed to be role players.  I don’t know what happened to Deron Williams, but he lost his game when he should have been in his prime.

I don't think so. Nets were going to shoot the moon with giving away all those picks and I promise you it wasn't for role players who take up the bulk of the salary.

It was.  They thought those guys would be bring championship experience and supplement their big 3 of Deron, Joe, and Brook.  The Nets had won 49 games the year before, but lost in the 1st round to the 45 win Bulls (and lost game 7 on their home floor).  The Nets were swinging for the fences by trying to supplement what they thought was a potential championship core.  Lopez got hurt and only played 17 games though and that derailed their season as he was a legit 20 point scorer (and really was the only one they had that season).  Brook missed the playoffs as well.  They needed him badly that year.  If Lopez doesn't get hurt it is hard to say what might have been that year. 

[Roy H.]

I think they were supposed to be role players.  I don’t know what happened to Deron Williams, but he lost his game when he should have been in his prime.

I don't think so. Nets were going to shoot the moon with giving away all those picks and I promise you it wasn't for role players who take up the bulk of the salary.

It was.  They thought those guys would be bring championship experience and supplement their big 3 of Deron, Joe, and Brook.  The Nets had won 49 games the year before, but lost in the 1st round to the 45 win Bulls (and lost game 7 on their home floor).  The Nets were swinging for the fences by trying to supplement what they thought was a potential championship core.  Lopez got hurt and only played 17 games though and that derailed their season as he was a legit 20 point scorer (and really was the only one they had that season).  Brook missed the playoffs as well.  They needed him badly that year.  If Lopez doesn't get hurt it is hard to say what might have been that year.

I think it depends upon the definition of "role player".  I don't think the Nets believed that they were getting All-NBA players, but my guess is that they expected Pierce and KG to be good starters, capable of production (and minutes) similar to their 2013 seasons.  Instead, both Pierce and KG declined significantly, as did Terry.  KG's FG% crashed, his ability to play close to 30 minutes ceased, and his intensity dropped off.  Terry's ability to finish inside the arc disappeared, and Pierce seemed to struggle playing with Deron and Johnson.

My guess is that PP and KG just weren't fully engaged in the same manner they were with the Celtics.  They came to "somebody else's" team as mercenaries, and they never quite fit in. 

[bdm860]

Lopez got hurt and only played 17 games though and that derailed their season as he was a legit 20 point scorer (and really was the only one they had that season).  Brook missed the playoffs as well.  They needed him badly that year.  If Lopez doesn't get hurt it is hard to say what might have been that year.

Interesting to think about. Wonder if Nets fans consider that Lopez injury like C's fans think of Hayward/Irving injuries in '18?

Looking at the 17 games Lopez did play doesn't paint a good picture, as Nets record with Lopez was only 7-10 (and 5-6 in games with all of their Big 5 playing).  Hard to really tell though with a lot of injuries going on, and sometimes it just takes teams time to gel (LeBron Heat started an unspectacular 9-8).  Nets did turn things around later in the year, after going 10-21 from Oct-Dec they then went 34-17 from Jan-Apr, so what happens if you add a healthy Lopez to that?

Total games played together for the Nets Big 5:

5 of 5: 11
4 of 5: 27
3 of 5: 41
2 of 5: 1
1 of 5: 1
0 of 5: 1

Also, Andrei Kirilenki and Terry were supposed to be key rotation players too, and they were injured as well (playing in only 45 and 35 games).

[Moranis]

Lopez got hurt and only played 17 games though and that derailed their season as he was a legit 20 point scorer (and really was the only one they had that season).  Brook missed the playoffs as well.  They needed him badly that year.  If Lopez doesn't get hurt it is hard to say what might have been that year.

Interesting to think about. Wonder if Nets fans consider that Lopez injury like C's fans think of Hayward/Irving injuries in '18?

Looking at the 17 games Lopez did play doesn't paint a good picture, as Nets record with Lopez was only 7-10 (and 5-6 in games with all of their Big 5 playing).  Hard to really tell though with a lot of injuries going on, and sometimes it just takes teams time to gel (LeBron Heat started an unspectacular 9-8).  Nets did turn things around later in the year, after going 10-21 from Oct-Dec they then went 34-17 from Jan-Apr, so what happens if you add a healthy Lopez to that?

Total games played together for the Nets Big 5:

5 of 5: 11
4 of 5: 27
3 of 5: 41
2 of 5: 1
1 of 5: 1
0 of 5: 1

Also, Andrei Kirilenki and Terry were supposed to be key rotation players too, and they were injured as well (playing in only 45 and 35 games).

They also had brought Kidd over as coach, so he was new as well.  That takes some time (see Celtics last year with Udoka).  When you bring in old injury prone players, you have to expect them to be injured.  Lopez though, had that 5 game season, but otherwise had played in 82, 82, 82, and 74 games.  His injury really did change their season.

[Birdman]

One: was Father Time caught up with them
Two: I think they was hurt by Celtics trading them & lost interest in playing..they didnt want to leave

[Kernewek]

I think they were supposed to be role players.  I don’t know what happened to Deron Williams, but he lost his game when he should have been in his prime.

Injuries that never really went away, apparently:

Williams's rise was rapid. So, too, was his fall. There was an ugly exit in Utah. Brooklyn was a disaster. The last memory many NBA fans have of Williams was a dismal performance with Cleveland in the 2017 NBA Finals. Injuries robbed Williams of his athleticism. He’s lost count of how many. “My ankles were the worst,” says Williams. “I waited so long to get them repaired, and they took a lot out of me. My first couple years in Brooklyn, I just had no lift. My ankles would swell up like softballs after games.” And injuries eventually convinced him it was time to walk away.

https://www.si.com/nba/2021/12/16/deron-williams-frank-gore-boxing-jake-paul-tyron-woodley-undercard

Somehow I didn't realise Williams was only 38 now - probably because he, like Andre Miller, always seemed to have the game of a 40+ rec league point guard.