Two For All
Two games down, only another 80 to go before we hit the playoffs.
What have we learned in the first two games? Not really enough of anything to make any sound judgements, but a few things come to mind:
The Nets could have a potent, powerful offense once they settle in to their rotations. Without Uncle Cliffie, and the missing and injured Eddie House and potentially Josh Boone, we won't quite know for awhile what this team is truly capable of. But they are capable of making far more shots than they have in seasons past (if that damned new ball doesn't get in the way of that).
Defensively? Again, still a work in progress, hopefully they aren't as prone to being a step behind the open shooter, or leaving large gaps in the paint (Shaq's abuse in Game 2 nonwithstanding). The one large, and I do mean, large hole in the early defense has been the work of Marcus Williams, who covered his tracks against the Raptors but was exposed repeatedly in Game 2. Let's hope the learning now adds up to far more confident defensive work come April.
Bostjan Nachbar is for real, and will make significant contributions this year. Like the way he did the little things against the Heat game, when he wasn't quite as hot as he was in Game 1.
Hassan Adams, that whirling dervish of a defender, may still have a hard time cracking the rotation, especially when House returns. While we would love to see him, he is still a rookie. Time is on his side.
So far, so good for L. Frank using his bench. And they've been more than ok, so let's hope it continues. Resting Kidd is the best thing for the long term (and hey, if he can get a triple double in 34 minutes, clearly it can work).
We've got lots more learning to do - let's see how they handle the Jazz on Wednesday, who are supremely coached and technically precise on both sides of the ball.
But for 2 games, despite a 1 - 1 record, things are looking pretty good. Even Rod Thorn said so.
-Joe
What have we learned in the first two games? Not really enough of anything to make any sound judgements, but a few things come to mind:
The Nets could have a potent, powerful offense once they settle in to their rotations. Without Uncle Cliffie, and the missing and injured Eddie House and potentially Josh Boone, we won't quite know for awhile what this team is truly capable of. But they are capable of making far more shots than they have in seasons past (if that damned new ball doesn't get in the way of that).
Defensively? Again, still a work in progress, hopefully they aren't as prone to being a step behind the open shooter, or leaving large gaps in the paint (Shaq's abuse in Game 2 nonwithstanding). The one large, and I do mean, large hole in the early defense has been the work of Marcus Williams, who covered his tracks against the Raptors but was exposed repeatedly in Game 2. Let's hope the learning now adds up to far more confident defensive work come April.
Bostjan Nachbar is for real, and will make significant contributions this year. Like the way he did the little things against the Heat game, when he wasn't quite as hot as he was in Game 1.
Hassan Adams, that whirling dervish of a defender, may still have a hard time cracking the rotation, especially when House returns. While we would love to see him, he is still a rookie. Time is on his side.
So far, so good for L. Frank using his bench. And they've been more than ok, so let's hope it continues. Resting Kidd is the best thing for the long term (and hey, if he can get a triple double in 34 minutes, clearly it can work).
We've got lots more learning to do - let's see how they handle the Jazz on Wednesday, who are supremely coached and technically precise on both sides of the ball.
But for 2 games, despite a 1 - 1 record, things are looking pretty good. Even Rod Thorn said so.
-Joe
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home