Prokhorov is crazy

[Cman]

I disagree with some members here that the Nets bench is weak.

If they sign Korver like rumoured, and Blatche returns under KG's wing this time.

You got

Dwill/Taylor
JJ/Terry
Pierce/Korver/Shengelia
KG/Evans
Lopez/Blatche

That's a solid bench IMO.

Yep. Its a very good team (on paper). I expect they'll do quite well.

[clover]

I disagree with some members here that the Nets bench is weak.

If they sign Korver like rumoured, and Blatche returns under KG's wing this time.

You got

Dwill/Taylor
JJ/Terry
Pierce/Korver/Shengelia
KG/Evans
Lopez/Blatche

That's a solid bench IMO.

Yep. Its a very good team (on paper). I expect they'll do quite well.

Yep.  Interesting to see how the old men's health holds up.

[hwangjini_1]

Prokhorov crazy? Crazy like a fox, maybe. He has mortgaged his team's future for sure, but he's willing to spend money on a calculated risk.

The Nets are going to be stupid good next year. Contenders for certain. And not in the way that the Lakers were supposed to be this year, what with their clowns and castoffs, but a legit solid team with veterans who have been there before. A lot of this depends on how Kidd serves as coach, but as long as he surrounds himself with talent, they can play ball.

I'll be watching our entertaining/terrible Celtics team this coming year, since our YGs will be losing lots of games but growing as players. However, this might be a League Pass year for me, too; I wouldn't mind following the Nets for a couple seasons to watch two of my favorite players ride off into the sunset. (EDIT: and stick a fork in the eye of the Knicks and the Heat at the same time)


Worst case scenario for Prokhorov, the Nets come short of a ring, fall off a cliff, and they have to use the 1st rounders that they couldn't trade in order to build back up. It is hard to fault the guy for seeing a chance, and jumping on it.

yes, but the beauty of this is that 4 out of the next 5 brooklyn first round picks belong to the celtics.

i wish the best for pierce and KG, but i also hope the nets immediately nose dive into absolute oblivion and stink to high heaven for the next 5 years.

ainge is looking better and better to me.

[D.o.s.]

I expect nothing less than an ECF appearance from the Nets this year.  They are legit title contenders.

  I'd have to see them play for a while before I went with that. Adding KG and PP to a team adds to their talent but doesn't do much for their overall athleticism. It's similar (although not as bad) as last year's Lakers. People had no problem seeing what a talented lineup they had but they had pretty big issues putting 4 players as old as Nash/Kobe/Pau/Metta on the court at once against faster teams.

Most of the successful teams in the East play pretty down tempo though--there's no real George Karl Nuggets type teams over here.

[fairweatherfan]

It's also worth noting that this is a team that played like less than the sum of its parts all year.  That lineup had no business whatsoever losing to the Bulls, but they played listless and disorganized all series long.

Is anyone going to be surprised if we start hearing about personality conflicts between Deron, Paul, and KG?  Or if KG starts getting irritated with Lopez's soft play inside?  Add the enormous expectations from the front office and a rookie head coach trying to wrangle it all together and it's a recipe for a lot of tension and infighting.

[moiso]

Prokhorov crazy? Crazy like a fox, maybe. He has mortgaged his team's future for sure, but he's willing to spend money on a calculated risk.

The Nets are going to be stupid good next year. Contenders for certain. And not in the way that the Lakers were supposed to be this year, what with their clowns and castoffs, but a legit solid team with veterans who have been there before. A lot of this depends on how Kidd serves as coach, but as long as he surrounds himself with talent, they can play ball.

I'll be watching our entertaining/terrible Celtics team this coming year, since our YGs will be losing lots of games but growing as players. However, this might be a League Pass year for me, too; I wouldn't mind following the Nets for a couple seasons to watch two of my favorite players ride off into the sunset. (EDIT: and stick a fork in the eye of the Knicks and the Heat at the same time)


Worst case scenario for Prokhorov, the Nets come short of a ring, fall off a cliff, and they have to use the 1st rounders that they couldn't trade in order to build back up. It is hard to fault the guy for seeing a chance, and jumping on it.

yes, but the beauty of this is that 4 out of the next 5 brooklyn first round picks belong to the celtics.

i wish the best for pierce and KG, but i also hope the nets immediately nose dive into absolute oblivion and stink to high heaven for the next 5 years.

ainge is looking better and better to me.

We all hope the same thing, but I'm afraid that Prokhorov will be too stubborn to ever do what Ainge has done this year and admit that the team isn't going anywhere and completely start over.  I think he will keep coming up with enough stopgap measures to never really hit rock bottom, unfortunately for the Celtics.

[BballTim]

I expect nothing less than an ECF appearance from the Nets this year.  They are legit title contenders.

  I'd have to see them play for a while before I went with that. Adding KG and PP to a team adds to their talent but doesn't do much for their overall athleticism. It's similar (although not as bad) as last year's Lakers. People had no problem seeing what a talented lineup they had but they had pretty big issues putting 4 players as old as Nash/Kobe/Pau/Metta on the court at once against faster teams.

Most of the successful teams in the East play pretty down tempo though--there's no real George Karl Nuggets type teams over here.

  True, but I think you might see more of it against the Nets than you would against a more athletic team.

[kozlodoev]

I expect nothing less than an ECF appearance from the Nets this year.  They are legit title contenders.

Yeah.  If they are relatively healthy, they are possibly the best team in the east, or at least right up there with the Heat.

They are not as good as Miami.  Their bench is very weak, all they have for now is Plumlee (??) and Reggie Evans and it sounds like they'll get Korver.  Otherwise? and the fact that you have to say "relatively healthy" says a lot too.

How is their bench weak? They have Korver, Terry, and Evans, plus some promising young talent in Plumlee, Teletovic, and Shengelia.

That's not a weak bench, that's a pretty good bench -- especially given how loaded the starting lineup is.

[D.o.s.]

I expect nothing less than an ECF appearance from the Nets this year.  They are legit title contenders.

  I'd have to see them play for a while before I went with that. Adding KG and PP to a team adds to their talent but doesn't do much for their overall athleticism. It's similar (although not as bad) as last year's Lakers. People had no problem seeing what a talented lineup they had but they had pretty big issues putting 4 players as old as Nash/Kobe/Pau/Metta on the court at once against faster teams.

Most of the successful teams in the East play pretty down tempo though--there's no real George Karl Nuggets type teams over here.

  True, but I think you might see more of it against the Nets than you would against a more athletic team.

Possibly. I actually think the Celtics could field a very fast and athletic team against them this year.

Bummer George Karl won't commit to a team in the process of rebuilding-he'd be great for that, esp. if we added someone like Josh Smith to play the 4 and smallball 5.

[pearljammer10]

I agree. While they look pretty good on paper, that team is old and slow. These guys can't play big minutes anymore. I see one or two of them getting hurt. This years NJ pick might not be a top pick but next year I'd bet on it being a lottery.

Unlike the Boston Celtics, "these guys" can comfortably be the 4th and 5th option in the Nets' starting lineup.

Unless, of course, you were calling Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, or Brook Lopez old. This team is ridiculously loaded, and is likely an automatic 1A in the East.

How is this team loaded?

Williams/? Taylor?
Johnson/Terry
Pierce/?
KG/Evans
Lopez/? Plumlee?

they have a solid on paper starting 5 but whats happens when they fall into their love of iso like we saw all of last season? Who is going to play the other 20 minutes in place of KG? Loaded yet old starting 5 maybe... Loaded overall? I dont think so. No way they are better than the Heat Bulls or Pacers.

[wiley]

Can they afford Dalembert?

How about Pietrus....I think they can add enough that
we'll soon call them loaded..

[wiley]

Can they afford Dalembert?

How about Pietrus....I think they can add enough that
we'll soon call them loaded..

I guess they can't afford Carl Landry?  He'd be a great boost for the regular season especially...

[D Dub]

don't forget player-coach Jason Kidd... 
if he suits up, they have a solid 5 guard/wing rotation:

D Williams, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry
Joe Johnson & Paul Pierce


to go with burly 4-man burly rotation up front:
KG, Lopez, Reggie Evans, Andre Blatche


i'd call that top 9 pretty loaded

[BballTim]

I agree. While they look pretty good on paper, that team is old and slow. These guys can't play big minutes anymore. I see one or two of them getting hurt. This years NJ pick might not be a top pick but next year I'd bet on it being a lottery.

Unlike the Boston Celtics, "these guys" can comfortably be the 4th and 5th option in the Nets' starting lineup.

Unless, of course, you were calling Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, or Brook Lopez old. This team is ridiculously loaded, and is likely an automatic 1A in the East.

  They aren't old but they aren't overly athletic. The age thing is a fairly valid concern. How well they'll mesh is also a concern. Johnson's offensive numbers dropped quite a bit last year, the same could easily happen to PP. The problems they might have aren't as obvious as they were with the Lakers or the Heat's first year, but everything would have to go pretty well for them to get into the Heat's class IMO.

[snively]

Like the Lakers this past season, they have pretty significant health and team speed concerns. 

They don't, however, have the floor-spacing issues the Lakers had.  This team should be an offensive dynamo with D-Will and Lopez as a 1-2 punch, JJ as a 3rd option, and Pierce and KG spacing the floor and providing quaternary playmaking and passing. 

They will be vulnerable defensively to teams that can stretch the floor and dribble penetrate.  They could really use a guy like Kenyon Martin to plug into a defensive line-up with KG at the 5.