Joe Netsfan Game x Game 62 - Hornets 107, Nets 96

Byron's boys look a lot like the 2001 - 2003 Nets

Hornets 107, Nets 96
Game 62 File
A hot start, a cold finish, thanks to Chris Paul and the Hornets figuring out the Nets are no contenders. Paul gets hot in the second half to dismantle the Nets attempts at an upset, and with a magical run through the Nets defense, takes a 3 point hole and turns it into a 15 point lead in lightning fashion. Three straight losses (and four overall) and counting on this midwest swing...
• Box Score

Nets Record: 26 - 36
Home Record: 15 - 17
Away Record: 11 - 19
Division Record: 2 - 8
Conf. Record: 19 - 18
Other Game Reviews

Nets High Men:
• Points: Richard Jefferson, 27.
• Assists: Vince Carter, 10.
• Rebounds: Nenad Krstic, 11.
• Steals: Vince Carter, 3.
• Turnovers: Devin Harris, 6.
• Blocks: Krstic, Boone and Swift each had 1.
• FG Percentage: Nenad Krstic, 66.7% (6 -9).

Nets Team Stats:
• FG Percentage: 49.4%
• FT Percentage: 85.7%
• Rebounds: 35
• Rebound Differential: -5
• Turnovers: 13
• Opposing Team's Turnovers: 15
• Bench points: 14
• Bench points Differential:-16
• Steals: 8
• Blocks: 3
• Points in the Paint: 44
• Double-Doubles: 2 (Vince Carter: 19 points, 10 assists; Nenad Krstic: 14 points, 11 rebounds).
• Triple-Doubles: 0

The (No) Kidd Effect:
• Nets Players in Double Digit Scoring: 5
• Nets Fast Break Points: 11
•Devin Harris' FG Percentage: 53.3% (8 - 15)
• Scoring Differential Harris in the game: -7
• Scoring Differential Harris out: -4 (M. Williams, Armstrong)

Nets Media
Bergen Record | Nets
Newark Star-Ledger | Nets
Newsday | Nets
NY Daily News | NBA
NY Post | Nets
NY Times | Pro Basketball
YES Network | Nets

Nets Team Pages
CNNSI.com | Nets
ESPN.com | Nets
FoxSports | Nets
NBA.com | Nets
Sportsline.com | Nets

Hornets Media:
New Orleans Times-Picayune | Hornets

Game 62: Hornets 107, Nets 96 – March 7 , 2008
Great Scott, It's Paul
The old coach, kicked to the curb with help from the now-departed Jason Kidd, has made it ok on his own since moving to New Orleans. For Byron Scott has Chris Paul, and the Nets and Lawrence Frank do not. Paul was huge in a giant second half turnaround, one that again saw the Nets go from contender to pretender at the first sign of trouble, and the fight or flight response left the Nets fleeing for Dallas, with their pride mortally wounded.

This one was deceptively simple - the Nets came out inspired, took it to the Hornets, rang up early leads of 8 - 0 and 20 - 13 thanks to the aggressiveness of Richard Jefferson and the shooting of Nenad Krstic, then the inevitable appeared. Despite harnessing Paul in the first half, the Nets bench stopped the roll by missing shot after shot, and the Hornets slowly dug their way back to a 3 point deficit at the break.

And then Paul took over, and like the blitzkreig that only he can create, led the Hornets on an instantaneous 16 - 2 run to start the third quarter, and the rout was on. The Nets never recovered, nor did they appear to have any of the life they had in the first half, and when Paul took the Hornets down on two consecutive fast breaks that ended in Tyson Chandler 'oops, it was 69 - 58 with over 3 minutes to play in the third quarter. That was the bruised ego shot right there, and Paul just continued his relentless fast break assault on the fragile Nets, and they just cowered in a corner. It was a 20 point lead before the Hornets eased off and garbage time commenced, and while the Nets attempted a late run, they never got closer than 10.

How good is Paul? Well, he made a star into Julian Wright for a night, as Wright abused the Nets with his athleticism to the tune of 20 points, while Paul himself had 25 points and 16 assists. The Nets could not counter with anything, and thus, it now stands to reason that the Nets will limp back to New Jersey on the cusp of falling out of relevancy entirely before the end of the week.

Steering Wheels
Big Things Come In Small Packages - Is there any doubt that Chris Paul is going to be the next best NBA point guard? Arguably, he can now do more things than seniors Kidd and Nash can do, and even though he's not as big as Deron Williams, he might be more dangerous. Paul was the difference maker, just like Kidd used to be, and the Nets were powerless to stop him (even though they did a helluva job slowing him down in the first half). They had no answer for his speed, and no way to slow down the train once it got moving.
Coach Speak - Remember when we belitted Byron Scott for his long stare into space during timeouts or his obscene desire to delegate to Eddie Jordan? How he was the problem despite the Nets making the Finals two straight times under his watch? He seems to have gotten much smarter since then, huh? He's seen career years out of David West, Tyson Chandler and Chris Paul, and now, despite having a weak bench, he has the Hornets in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race. Not too shabby. What has Lawrence Frank done lately?
Career Advice - The Nets seem keen on giving up career nights on this trip - Hakim Warrick and now Julian Wright. Wright is a rookie who was barely playing, but he abused the Nets with his quickness to the point of absurdity. Wake up Nets, it's not your place to be doormats, nor is it your responsibility to break in the rookies and the barely playing...
Run Forrest Run - Here's where the Nets lost the game - their inability to control Paul or the break. The Hornets had 27 ast break points - the Nets, 11. Devin Harris couldn't seem to slow down let alone stop Paul in the second half, but he was far from the only one to blame. The Nets defense continues to implode when pushed, and instead of getting stops, they just seem to roll over and die. Harris did have 17 points and 8 assists, but also 6 turnovers. Ooh.
Concern Up Front - Since the Nets handed the keys to Harris and Marcus Williams, Josh Boone has struggled to be relevant. Some of that is the NEts' desire to re-establish Nenad Krstic (who was again good, with 14 points and 11 boards), but Boone (and his one-time partner, Sean Williams) has struggled to fit in. Boone had 5 points, 7 boards in 31 minutes, but more importantly, he was hard-pressed to stop Tyson Chandler (monster night, with 19 points and 10 rebounds). Sean Williams, meanwhile, who once looked good with Boone as the young frontline of the future, is reduced to scraps (4 minutes, 3 personals, nothing else).

Run For the Hills
So it's off to Dallas and old friend Jason Kidd, after being destroyed in the second half by Chris Paul, Tyson Chandler, Julian Wright and damned near everyone else in the city of New Orleans who can run. The Nets were not good, certainly, but more damning, they fell to pieces the minute they got pushed. Is that any sort of way for a playoff team to be? Not if you're talking about the Nets, because Nets and playoffs don't belong in the same sentence right now. Don't you think Kidd got wind of this performance tonight, and is licking his lips in anticipation of the Nets "letting go of the rope" early and often in Big D? The road trip is a shambles, the egos crushed, and the spirit broken - yup, great time for the Nets to face the Kidd...
- Joe