Will the Nets be good? The answer, Netsfans, is
blowin' in the wind...
Diatribe #5 - September 19, 2002
The Summer
Winds
Anybody wanna actually talk basketball?
It's been a long, dry summer for basketball-speak here at JNF. Too busy
tilting at windmills and evil cable empires to do anything as simple as
talking hoops. Well, all that is about to change. Finally.
Change is the the wind, Netsfans. So much change, it's been hard to keep
track of all the comings and going all summer long. The Nets organization,
in no short order:
1) Found
a potential diamond in the rough in the second round. Drafted a 19-year
old wisp of a center from Yugoslavia (Nenad Krstic) in order NOT to add
a guaranteed contract to the roster.
2) Traded
their twenty-something chief whipping boy forward (Keith Van Horn), along
with their twenty-something starting center (Todd MacCulloch) ,for a thirty-something
defensive center (Dikembe Mutombo).
3) Promoted
the now-second-year reserve athletic forward (Richard Jefferson) to the
starting small forward spot.
4) Moved
last year's starting small forward (Kenyon Martin) to the power forward
position.
5) Actually
managed to re-sign their highly regarded assistant coach/chief offensive
strategist (Eddie Jordan).
6) Signed
a member of the "boomerang" club as a backup pointguard (once
and future Net Chris Childs).
7) Signed
a former running mate of our fearless leader "Cap'n Crunchtime"
to fill the instant offense, sixth-man-three-point-chucker forward position
(Rodney Rogers, former Sun before he was a former Celtic).
8) Changed
television networks from MSG to YES, but kept the same play-by-play announcer
(Ian Eagle) while switching out the TV analyst for the radio analyst (goodbye
Bill Raftery, hello Kelly Tripucka).
9) Became
embroiled in the now infamous "YES Mess/Cablevision Conundrum,"
affecting legions of Netsfans across the tri-state region.
10) Raised
ticket prices to the level of a championship team.
11) And continued
to seek a new Arena in Newark after the latest defeat of the proposal
(and potentially managing to salvage a deal by selling the land rights
to Newark Airport to the Port Authority).
Whew. All this from a team that made it to the NBA championship.
But how will all of this change affect the uncoming season? Of course,
"the devil is in the details", and "that's why they play
the games," to dust off a couple of cliches. Are the Nets better
off than when we last left them, getting Shaq-ified by the Lakers in four
straight? Let's look at the personnel moves.
The Nets, of course, participated in the biggest trade of the summer,
the "I got the best of you, sucker" deal between the Nets and
Sixers. The Sixers' contingent was overjoyed, apparently, to get rid of
the suddenly aged Dikembe Mutombo for two youngsters, Keith Van Horn and
Todd MacCulloch. The Nets, on the other hand, couldn't wait to move Van
Horn, who had become the scapegoat for every failing the team has had
in the past few years, and who just couldn't live up to those rookie year
Larry Bird comparisons. Losing MacCulloch along with Van Horn was just
the price that Rod Thorn had to pay to get Mutombo. Dikembe was acquired
for his shot-blocking presense and overall defense – a direct result
of the Nets getting Shaq-killed in the NBA Finals. A Finals in which Van
Horn all but disappeared, I might add. But hey, he wasn't the only one
to pull that act.
Overall, this move has been regarded as a good one, an "addition
by subtraction" trade if there ever was one. But is Mutombo really
long past his prime? Will he contribute, or will he become a liability
on the offensive end and actually slow down the Nets run-and-gun offense?
That's where the re-signing of Eddie Jordan comes in. Jordan wanted a
head coaching job somewhere in the NBA, but when the music stopped, the
only chair left open was the Nuggets. Mr. Jordan politely declined. Jordan
will be responsible for tinkering with the "Princeton" offense
to make sure that Deke fits into the Nets' schemes.
The Nets become much tougher defensively, no doubt, and they have to make
up some points, true, but Mutombo probably only needs to play no more
than 25 - 30 minutes per game to make a difference. At the end of last
season Jason Collins showed he's ready to step up to that 20 minutes per
game mark and make a significant contribution nightly.
Personally, though, there's something about "Defend-e Rebound-o"
that makes me uneasy. Is it the fact that everyone in Philly said Mutombo
looked like he'd lost it last season? Deke could be 36, or he could damned
well be 50 for all anyone truly knows. If Mutombo's skills have diminished,
then the plan to "go for it now" isn't going to work. But who
knows? Maybe next season Tim Duncan will be manning the middle and running
the break with Kidd. You never know in this league.
The Mutombo trade helps the Nets out for cap purposes as well, so there
is much more to like about it than just meets the eye. Van Horn, whose
teammates totally lost confidence in him (as did 99% of the fans in the
arena), will be better served with a fresh start. I think the offense
will miss Todd MacCulloch far more than anyone will admit to, but hey,
no one is sad to see his "defensive presence" head back to Philly.
Obviously, this was the key move the Nets made in the off-season. Here's
hoping it pays off.
Briefly, on to the signings of Chris Childs and Rodney Rogers. The Childs
signing doesn't really do much for me, but a 10-minute backup (and Lord
knows we don't want Kidd getting injured and handing the reins to ol'
Chris) and occasional stint at shooting guard shouldn't be cause us much
suffering. A very young team last season made it to the Finals, and with
his significant veteran presence added, the Nets could be that much tougher
next season.
Rogers, who had a very successful stint playing with Kidd in Phoenix,
is an excellent addition. Don't be surprised if he plays some major minutes,
and winds up in the starting lineup (mostly if someone gets hurt, or Jefferson
has trouble adjusting to the starter's role). Rogers will score some points,
drop some treys, and even pitch in on the defensive side. Rogers isn't
Chris Gatling, folks. He and Kidd should be fun to watch this year.
But then again, so should this new starting five, Kidd and Martin and
Jefferson and Kittles and Mutombo. That adds up to four excellent athletes,
four great defenders (and the fifth well on his way) and a whole lot of
running. The Nets could be a juggernaut, if the young Nets continue their
upward climb and the vets don't have one of those "off" years.
And if they stay away from major injuries, which of course with this franchise
is like asking Ozzy Osbourne not to curse, and tremble uncontrollably.
All this change brings up so many questions. Will Martin be able to handle
the night-in, night-out, physical pounding he'll get now that he's a power
forward? Can Kittles continue to stay injury-free? Will Jefferson take
his game to the next level as a starter, or will he suffer that dreaded
"sophomore slump"? Can Kidd continue to keep the offense fine
tuned and running fast while playing less minutes this season? Is Mutombo
capable of playing 30 effective minutes, or will teams begin to form layup
lines around him?
Change is good. Change is necessary. Soon, it will be time to see if change
is successful. Can the summer winds lead to a breezy spring and another
shot at a championship?
We'll find out beginning October 30.
- Joe Netsfan
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