[Ghost01Participant]

 So the Nets went 22-44 last year, won 33% of their games. They acquired Joe Johnson, who averaged 19 PPG, which is solid, but not awesome, and a mid playoff team that thought he was so valuable, it was worth getting absolutely nothing back for him. They then proceded to resign Deron Williams for 98 mil, (apart of the 22-44 team), Kris Humphries for 24 mil (who was apart of the 22-44 team), Gerald Wallace for 45 mil, (Who was acquired last year, made little to no impact on Portland before that, and is going to be 30 years old which is old considering a player who basically relies entirely on athleticism), and Brook Lopez for 61 mil, (Who was hurt last year, but when he did play, he averaged 3.6 rebounds per game). So basically, they are bringing back the same team, adding one decent player, and they are going to go from 33% to solid playoff team/semi-contender? WTF am I missing?

[TyroberParticipant]

 Don’t look at who was on the roster and ignore games played. They had Wallace for 16 and Lopez for 5 games. It is actually pretty amazing they won 22 games to tell you the truth, but this team is nowhere close to the same team as last year. They are basically adding Lopez, Johnson, and Wallace to their team and will win much more than 33% of their games. 

 

And Atlanta got a ton of cap space for Johnson. Often capspace can be more important and decent players under contracts.

[thparadoxParticipant]

Nets were 6-6 with both Deron and Gerald Wallace on the roster.

Add Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson to that mix. There is reason to be optimistic.

[rhamnlacsonParticipant]

 mirza teletovic will be a big part of this line up 

[PointFourSecondsParticipant]

Also we have to factor in the improvement in MarShon Brooks’ game from last season to the next. Last year he averaged nearly 13ppg and he is known to be able to fill it up, so he will provide some scoring off the bench. Also the fact that they drafted Tyshawn Taylor (who is playing very well in the summer league), brought in Teletovic (26yr old "rookie" who is apparently a quality player), and picked up Reggie Evans (who everyone knows can rebound the hell out of the ball) means that this Nets team not only has a solid starting 5 but they also have some decent players off the bench. They are by no means better than Miami though

[HotSnotParticipant]

Is it just me or does Kris Humphries at 12 per seem excessive.  That dude is so lucky.  He got overpaid last year… and he gets overpaid again for the next 2 in order to be convinced to only take a 2 year deal.  The 2 year deal was important because after this season or when approaching the deadline, his contact becomes a valuable part in a trade as an expiring deal, while also allowing the Nets to take back massive amounts of money.  Humphries is value is likely closer to 6-7 mil per. 

[TallmanNYCParticipant]

Saying Wallace made no impact with Portland is just wrong. Wallace has always been a good player. He isn’t a big time scorer, but he does score and he does everything else well also. He is a perfect fit with Johnson as they can both slide up and down a position depending on the matchup (expect to see Wallace at the 4 and Johnson at the 3 plenty of times during the year).

Lopez played 5 games last year, so he is basically an additional guy. Wallace only played a few games, so he is new.

This is an easy 500 team and, without major injuries, definitely a playoff team as well. Basically the Nets are now good at PG, SG, SF, and PF. Most people would probably say they are good at C now with Lopez, though I need to see him grab some boards and play some D before I’d agree. Or if he wants to be a scoring center, then I need to see some good shooting percentages. Under 50% shooting from my center doesn’t cut it.  

[KHAM83Participant]

I like Humphries, but I think his large contract may be to open the Howard to Brooklyn talks early January, when Lopez can be dealt. Humphries contract will allow Nets to come closer to matching Howard, Turk and/or Richardson contracts in a deal. Humphries contract expires after next season, so it’ll still be attractive to Orlando. If they miss out on Howard, Nets can swallow Humphries contractnext year as well.

[MkadozaParticipant]

Humphries has turned himself into a consistant, traditional PF without too many glaring weaknesses. He can hold his own against talented big men defensively, rebounds excellently, which would be necessary with Lopez’s shrinking rebounding rates. He gets a handful of garbage points of offensive boards and plays his role well. 12 a year is a little excessive, but as Kham stated, the length of contract makes it attractive for other teams looking to dump cap later. 

 

[MkadozaParticipant]

 A starting lineup of Williams, Johnson, Wallace, Humphries, and Lopez, with a bench of Brooks, Reggie Evans (will be an INSTANT fan favorite. Looks like he’d fit right in with M.O.P.) Teletovic, and CJ Watson, they will be an entertaining talented team. Rebounding and size are their weaknesses, as they only have one player taller than 6’9" but theyve got plenty of offense to outscore teams. 

[Ghost01Participant]

Okay, because Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace have definitely been proven winners throughout their career, right? Whose going to come off the bench for this team?

[MagikKnickParticipant]

They have a pretty good 6th man in Marshon..

I dont know which PF is starting, but they have a solid PF rotation of Teletovic, Evans, and Humphries

CJ Watson is pretty good backup PG, cant ask for too much of a backup

Their bench isnt great, but its not terrible either…

They’ll be a playoff team, 5th-8th seed, depending on how quickly they gel and if they stay healthy

[Sewok15Participant]

Does semi-contender mean 2nd round exit? That is the best this team can hope for. When they failed to get Howard they lost any chance to win a title. They are better than they were but still behind Miami, Chicago w/ Rose , Indy, Boston, Philly and will be fighting with the Knicks for the 5th or 6th spot. They made noise but also made a lot of head scratching deals. Are they even going to be able to get Howard as a free agent next summer with the contracts they have on the books now? He is the only way they become a legit contender because Lopez is soft inside.

[Ghost01Participant]

I still think its premature to annoint this team. Deron Williams is by far thier best player, and he was healthy last year, and they sucked. Brook Lopez has never been a winner. He doesn’t rebound, hes just a scorer who’ll be a 4th option on this team more than likely. I like Brooks, but again, what has he really done? scored empty points in losses? Reggie Evans? Wasn’t he just the 10th man on a Clipper team that had a "bad" bench?

[TallmanNYCParticipant]

Well now that they have signed Humphries, rebounding shouldn’t be a problem. Sure Lopez is terrible in that department, but Wallace is good for SF, Johson is good for SG and Williams is average for PG. With Reggie Evans grabbing boards off the bench, this is an area that shouldn’t be a weakness even with Lopez playing 35 minutes a game.

Without Howard, second round playoffs should be considered a victory. It will mainly depend on how long a team can avoid playing the Heat and if Rose is healthy for the Bulls. Nobody wants to mess with either of those teams, but an aging Celtics team doesn’t seem so scary. And the Knicks could seriously implode like they were last year before Lin saved the day if their Guards can’t get it done.

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