Joe Netsfan Game x Game 23- Nets 105, Cavs 97

Energy and matter at the Izod

Nets 105, Cavs 97
Game 23 File
After another early struggle, the Nets reverse course and follow the lead of a renewed Vince Carter to hold off the Cavs and win at home for a change. Carter gets off the blocks early, and finshes strong, and the Nets get inspiration from Josh Boone and Sean Williams, as well as contributions from many others. About time, we say.
• Box Score

Nets Record: 10 - 13
Home Record: 5 - 9
Away Record: 5 - 4
Division Record: 2 - 4
Conf. Record: 7 - 8
Other Game Reviews

Nets High Men:
• Points: Vince Carter, 32.
• Assists: Jason Kidd, 11.
• Rebounds: Boone and Kidd each had 8.
• Steals: Jason Kidd, 5.
• Turnovers: Jason Kidd, 3.
• Blocks: Boki Nachbar, 2.
• FG Percentage: Vince Carter, 59.1% (13 - 22). Sean Williams was 4 - 6.

Nets Team Stats:
• FG Percentage: 48.7%
• FT Percentage: 71.0%
• Rebounds: 45
• Rebound Differential: +10
• Turnovers: 11
• Opposing Team's Turnovers: 14
• Bench points: 41
• Bench points Differential:+19
• Steals: 8
• Blocks: 3
• Points in the Paint: 46
• Double-Doubles: 0
• Triple-Doubles: 0

The Kidd Effect:
• Nets Players in Double Digit Scoring: 4
• Nets Fast Break Points: 18
• Kidd's FG Percentage: 28.6% (2 - 7)
• Scoring Differential Kidd in the game: -2
• Scoring Differential Kidd out: +10 (Armstrong)
• Double-Doubles this Season:10
• Triple Doubles this Season: 6
• Career Triple Doubles:93

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Game 23: Nets 105, Cavs 97 – December 14, 2007
Big Bang Theory
The Nets have been a team in search of energy and some big bang from the front line all season. Tonight's win against the Cavs (at home, strangely enough) might have been the beginnings of the scientific evidence needed to plan a big man rotation, and also the renaissance of Vince Carter. In any case, the white paper of this one will show the end of the four game losing streak, a big W against LeBron, and perhaps the finest game the Nets have played all year.

OK, Joe, don't get ahead of yourself. I know it might seem a bit like fool's gold, but there is reason for optimism after the performances of Vince Carter (a vintage, take over the game affair) and the two youngsters on the frontline, Josh Boone and Sean Williams. The three aforementioned players had a large effect on this one almost from the start. After spotting the Cavs a 15 - 4 lead early, out came Malik Allen and Jason Collins, in went Williams and Boone, and off went Carter, who took matters into his own hands after a timeout. With 10 of the next twelve Net points scored by the hands of Carter (operating more from the low post than the perimeter), NJ was back in this one.

And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see what the young bigs brought to this one. After the horrid start, the Nets played the Cavs almost to a standstill, with large amounts of help from Boone and Williams. Williams had a monster jam off a feed from Carter that brought life to the lifeless crowd, and the game was on. With a finishing kick from Cavs, though, the Nets found themselves down seven at the break after allowing 57 points.

The second half provided more evidence that this Nets team does have talent, if not confidence or the ability to close things out, especially on the court. Opening up hot, the Nets got right back into it and again battled the Cavs shot for shot throughout the third quarter. With a balanced attack leading to a 2 point lead for the Nets after three, it was then up to Carter to carry the Nets home.

And carry he did, with a big assist from the bench. With players making more than just cameos, people like Jamaal Magloire, Boki Nachbar and even Darrell Armstrong all came up big in the fourth quarter, with the subs and Carter helping keep Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson well rested for the finish. Carter quickly got the lead up as high as 7, before LeBron the gifted started digging in and taking over. Consecutive threes as the quarter went past the 7 minute mark brought the Cavs to within a point, but Carter than nailed a three to help quell the situation.

The Cavs then resorted to some strange strategy with three minutes remainig, the "Hack A Husky" (as some wise-ass reporter named it after the game), fouling Josh Boone intentionally three times to make him shoot free throws. Boone split three sets of free throws, though to keep the Nets ahead by four, and with enough defense on James, plus a timely tip in from Jefferson and free throws from Carter and Kidd, and the Nets had themselves a win.

Perhaps the Nets can find more of whatever it was that worked tonight, and start honing a rotation and a game strategy accordingly. It couldn't hurt, could it?

Scientific Notation
Cosmic Explosion Part I – Tonight we saw the Vince Carter we've been waiting to see all season long. Aggressive to the hoop, taking it down low and working his way in for a shot, not just hanging around the perimeter looking to take a contested jumper. Carter changed the tone of this one working down low against Larry Hughes, early, and from there the rest of the Nets followed. He was brilliant throughout (32 points on 13 - 22 shooting, almost all of them good shots, plus 7 rebounds, 6 assists, a steal, and several pretty "and-one" plays), but he was biggest early and late, which is when your superstar should be big. Now, can he keep it up?
Cosmic Explosion Part II – All season long, the Nets have been searching, and getting next to nothing, from the bigs in the rotation (what rotation, you might ask?). Tonight, after starting Malik Allen and Jason Collins yet again, the front line started carrying its weight when Josh Boone and Sean Williams entered the lineup. The Nets could then run the floor with these two athletic bigs, and while they didn't exactly shut down Zydrunas Ilgauskas (who had 21 points and 12 boards), they held their own. Boone has been active on the boards (8 tonight, along with 15 points), Williams is active period (he had 9 and 4 and was a +12 for the game), and both combined for some hustle plays the Nets desperately needed. Let's hope these two are allowed to play together more often, even if they aren't successful all the time, because clearly they are the front line future the Nets need.
Origins Of The Universe – If the Nets are to succeed with the roster they have, they need to run more often and get easier scores than they've been getting. Tonight they succeeded on both counts, as the Nets had 18 fast break points (and we actually saw Carter running the break with Kidd at least once) and 46 points in the paint (where the Nets have been largely absent this season). Add in the 27 assists (Carter was both scorer and distributor, which is something the Nets need and at this point, despite the success of RJ, this Net team runs better when the offense goes through Carter more often than not), so the Nets are not so damned predictable all the time, and you have the makings of a team that could start making some noise.
Black Holes – But what about the defense? The Nets never really looked like they would get stops, trading baskets with the Cavs, until the fourth quarter. Early on, it was too easy for them, and even after this offensively-challenged team get stuck in the mud, you never got the sense the Nets were going to close it out and run away from them until there was less than two minutes to play. We'll take it, but, there is still much work to be done defensively.
Expansion - Almost lost in the game was the big eight minute stint done by Jamaal Magloire. He wasn't noticed much, but he was a terror to the Cavs down low while he was in, getting four rebounds, 2 points, and a technical after sparring with Anderson Varajao. That's something the Nets need more of, some physical play and a challenge inside. Other teams should be more afraid to enter the paint - let's hope that Lawrence Frank sees his way to more time for Big Cat.
The Nutty Professor - Ok, so does this game make Lawrence Frank a genius? Everyone (fans, mostly) has been on Frank's case for bad coaching, for not using his players to better effect, and for even overcoaching. Tonight, he went to the youngsters up front and they responded, and for that he had them start the second half. Frontline by committee is ok, I suppose, but not when roles change from game to game. It's time to ease out Jason Collins, give more minutes to Williams, Boone and even Magloire, and see where that gets the Nets. Malik Allen can be a good sub off the bench, Collins can play defense and trade defense for offense at ends of quarters or games, and the youngsters and Magloire can do more of the heavy lifting. It's time, Lawrence...
Bad Sign - Boki Nachbar hurt an ankle sometime late in the fourth quarter and may be out for a bit. He had an effective game, coming in with the second teamers and Carter and doing things he did last year (drive the lane, make shots, defend). If he was just starting to come around, he'll be missed in a big way if he out for any stretch of time.

The Origin Of Matter And Energy
A nice effort tonight to end a four game skid thanks to Vince Carter, Sean Williams, Josh Boone, and the rest of the Nets. Needing a lift, Carter was the perfect way for the Nets to climb out of an early hole, showing for once that it matters. And the energy was handled nicely by Boone and Williams, who helped to change the complexion of the game with their hustle and their drive. Can the Nets do anything more to keep up the thrill of a well-played game with the hated Knicks next on the schedule tomorrow night? Well, depending on whether this was the start of something or just one more blip on the radar screen, the Nets will certainly tell us a whole lot over the course of the next 24 hours.
- Joe