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Showing posts with label NBA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NBA. Show all posts

Nets officially announce opening night starting five




 The Brooklyn Nets are on the verge of opening the 2024-25 season.

According to NBA.com, the Nets will start  Dennis Schröder, Cam Thomas, Cameron Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Nic Claxton.

Jordi Fernandez has kept his cards close to the vest but this appears to be the lineup for the foreseeable future. 

It's likely that both Johnson and Finney-Smith will not be on the roster past the trade deadline. 

Both vets will showcase their skills to prospective buyers and contenders during the year. 

Brooklyn will open the season at State Farm Arena in Atlanta to take on the Hawks. 

While this is expected to be a tank season where the Nets will be evaluating and developing young talent as it eyes the 2025 NBA draft lottery, the opener is a winnable game on the schedule. 



Nets fans celebrate NBA opening night nearly as much as C's



 The Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 132-109 on opening night at TD Garden. It wasn't even that close. 

Not only did the Knicks not look like the second best team in the East, but they were non-competitive throughout the entire contest with the defending NBA Champion Celtics. 

So while Boston fans were elated with a championship ring ceremony followed by a drubbing of the Knicks, there was another fan base that was equally pleased with New York getting run out of the building. 

After the Knicks acquired Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn in exchange for six future first round picks, five of which were unprotected and a second round pick, the Nets rebuild was officially underway. 

Bridges's jump shot has looked broken throughout the preseason and his defense did very little to stop Jayson Tatum on Tuesday night. 

The Knicks gutted the heart and soul of their team by trading Donte DiVincenzo and Julius Randle away to Minnesota for Karl Anthony Towns.

Additionally, they allowed Isaiah Harkenstein to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the offseason. 

New York is in win-now mode, but still looks like it's not in the same stratosphere to compete with Boston. 

That is good news both short-term and long-term for Nets fans is Brooklyn owns most of the Knicks future picks and would not like to see the crosstown rivals enjoy any success this season. 

While this was simply opening night, it's s clear the defensive identity of the Knicks is gone and they don't appear to be a championship contender just yet.



Nets fall in untelevised preseason opener 115-106 to Clippers




If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

That remains the philosophical question for the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers as their untelevised preseason contest on Tuesday night resulted in a nine-point win for the hometown Clippers. 

James Harden led L.A. with 14 points and Keon Johnson paced Brooklyn with 14. 

The Nets had seven players reach double figures in scoring and even Ben Simmons contributed with two points, three assists and two boards in the loss.

Rookie Jordi Fernandez's head coaching debut got off to a sluggish start with his team going down 12-2 out of the gate and being outscored 35-18 in the opening stanza. 

Brooklyn fought back in the second to pour in 39 and limit the Clippers to just 20 points. 

Newly opened Frontwave Arena hosted its first ever Clippers game. It's too bad NBA fans didn't get to see it after it first being reported the game would be televised.

The Nets have almost a week off before returning home October 14 to face the Wizards in their preseason home opener at Barclays Center.


Breaking: Nets' owner reportedly buying minority ownership stake in NFL franchise

Joe Tsai will be adding another line item to his ownership portfolio. According to Bloomberg, Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross will be selling stakes in his team valued at $8.1 billion to private equity firm Area Management and Tsai. 

 Reportedly a 10 percent stake in the team, Hard Rock Stadium and the Miami Grand Prix are being made available. 

 Talks are still ongoing, but it's clear Tsai's interests are beyond just his financial and emotional commitment to the Nets.

 Just a month ago, Tsai sold a minority ownership in the Nets to Julia Koch. Tsai's finance background is showing itself in the form of diversifying investments and business acumen. 

 However, the Nets' owner has a long way to go in the interpersonal relations department and his links to the corrupt and unethical Chinese Communist Party is inevitable. 

 Many owners have skeletons in their closet, but Tsai has shown to be a flawed owner incapable of resolving issues with his superstar players,  instead exacerbating them.

Nets' new coach has absurd goal for Ben Simmons

 


The big bad wolf wouldn't mess with Ben Simmons. He'd huff and puff but couldn't blow down the house of bricks the Nets' PG built with outside jumpers.

So why, dear lord why, would Brooklyn's new head coach Jordi Fernandez include Simmons with a list of bigs he wants shooting at least three long range attempts per game?



The rims at Barclays Center and road arenas might not be able to take that kind of abuse from Simmons clanking jump shots.

Then again, Simmons may not even draw iron. 

Fernandez's goal to create floor spacing is admirable, but unfortunately it's not possible with the offensively challenged Simmons.

After multiple back surgeries and knee issues have diminished his once explosive frame, Simmons has devolved into a decent defender and black hole of offense. 

Fernandez, like many in Nets World, is optimistic at the advent of a new season.

 You can't fault him for that. 

But it would take some serious Black Magic to make Simmons an effective offensive player from the perimeter. 

NFL Opener decided in eerily similar fashion to Nets playoff heartbreaker

 




The Brooklyn Nets had their title hopes dashed when Kevin Durant's toe touched the 3-point line on a potential game winning basket in the 2021 NBA playoffs.

That big three squad fell apart and the Nets championship chances went out the window in a flash. So while an NBA playoff loss at a pivotal moment by millimeters can't stack up to a NFL regular season heartbreaker, the similarities are still uncanny.

 



In a rematch of last year's AFC Championship Game, the Ravens went to Arrowhead aiming to avenge the loss on their own turf in January to the Chiefs. 

Trailing 27-20, Lamar Jackson danced in the pocket as the final seconds slipped away and miraculously found an open Isaiah Likely for an apparent touchdown.

Baltimore coach John Harbaugh signaled for his team to go for the two point conversion and the win. Before the Ravens could do that, the booth reviewed the play and upon closer examination, Likely's toe appeared to just touch the out of bounds line in the back of the end zone.

Just like that, a potential win was turned into a devastating loss. Sound familiar Nets fans?

This Nets player will wear KD's sacred No. 7

 


If Nets fans haven't turned the page from Kevin Durant's unceremonious exit from Brooklyn, they will be forced to now. 

Shake Milton came over to the Nets from the Knicks in the Mikal Bridges mega blockbuster this offseason.

The shooting guard will take Durant's number 7. 

 This is the first time since Durant's departure that a Nets player will wear that number. 

Clearly Milton won't fill the void left behind from Durant, but seeing another player wear
that number might help the healing process in Brooklyn. 

Nash reflects on disastrous Bklyn tenure, NBA player empowerment




 Things didn't exactly go as planned for Steve Nash in Brooklyn. He'd be the first one to admit that.

With a plethora of injuries, side stories, distractions, COVID interruptions, infighting and constant power struggles, the locker room wasn't exactly a picture perfect place. 

Speaking at former NBA star Goran Dragic's retirement event in Slovenia, Nash revealed to Eurohoops that many obstacles he faced during his first opportunity as an NBA coach in Brooklyn were not basketball related. 

“I was surprised when I coached, you’re not in the team that much, Nash told Eurohoops. You have five minutes with players before the game, at halftime, and after the game. Those are the only times when you address the team. I wanted to connect with every player individually. It’s important to build a culture and an environment where people believe and see them be their best. You need to feel that you want them to become the best version of themselves”, Steve Nash continued.

Managing the egos of Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, and James Harden became untenable for the neophyte head coach. 

"Coaching was a great experience, I didn’t want to be a career coach, admitted Nash to Eurohoops. "I don’t think coaching was about to be my career. I’m coaching my kids, teaching them life. I earned the opportunity to choose, and that’s rewarding, There are always projects, affiliates, and partnerships. I always have something going on, I’m focused on my family."

While Nash did interview for the Toronto opening and didn't get the gig, the two-time MVP had a very difficult situation to navigate in Brooklyn and failed to deliver on the lofty title or bust expectations. 

Bogdanovic, Croatian National team to play game honoring Petrovic


Bojan Bogdanovic, Dario Saric and Ivan Suban will be among the Croatian-born NBA players to play a game honoring the late-great Dražen Petrovic's 60th birthday. 

The former Net passed away tragically in a car crash on the rain soaked Autobahn on June 3, 1993 , in the middle of his brilliant NBA career.

The game with feature the trio of NBA players born in Croatia, along with members of the Croatian National team taking on a selection of European players on September 5 at Zagreb Arena in Zagreb, Croatia. 

Former Croatian NBA players are expected to be in attendance and it will be a touching tribute honoring one of the game's great European-born stars that was gone too soon. 

Nets tied for worst NBA championship odds

 


According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Brooklyn Nets are tied with the worst odds to win the 2024 Larry O' Brien trophy.

The Nets are among eight teams with +100,000 to take the title.

Three years ago the Nets were listed as title favorites by many odds makers. How far the mighty have fallen. 

This shouldn't come as a shock to Nets fans as they are fully retooling the roster and almost setting themselves up for an NBA draft lottery that is rich with generational talent. 

So while another season may pass without the Nets winning a championship, player development and NBA draft lottery positioning may set up exceptionally well for the future. 

Did Brooklyn Nets social team troll Durant?



 Kevin Durant and Dennis Schröder have been trading barbs on X/Twitter since Team USA captured the Gold Medal in France. 

Durant hinted that U.S. born NBA players exude both skill and entertainment on the court to take a shot at Schröder intimating that NBA basketball is just entertainment and European basketball is more team oriented. 

Now, the Brooklyn Nets social team is promoting its current point guard but is it taking a subtle shot at its former franchise cornerstone? 


 Now at first glance the tweet may seem innocent enough, but if you read between the lines, the troll job perhaps becomes a bit more obvious.

Durant's signature style featured a beanie hat that he wore on the streets, during pre and post game interviews, practices and I'm sure if the NBA allowed he'd wear it in games, too!

So with Schröder and Durant embroiled in a public feud, it seems curious in the least, but perhaps intentional, to stir up a little drama. 

The Nets are expected to be a lottery team this year, so in the dog days of the NBA off-season, it looks like the social team is doing just about anything for engagement. 

KD's feud with current Nets' PG gets uglier



 There's no love lost between Brooklyn Nets fans and Kevin Durant. Now that the organization's current point guard, Dennis Schröder is taking aim at the former Nets superstar, it's must watch drama.  

Schröder stated that European teams play higher IQ basketball while the NBA is entertainment. After Team USA won the gold following a scare versus Serbia in the semifinals as well as France in the finals, Durant took to Twitter to fire back at Schröder.



In response, Schröder alluded to Durant's thin skin and taking things the wrong way. 


 


 As if Nets fans need another reason to root against the Phoenix Suns and Durant, now the feud with Schröder will take things to the next level. 

Brunson-Kyrie swap was possible for Bklyn according to one basketball pundit



Jalen Brunson is currently the New York Knicks savior. 

 But according to  ESPN basketball expert and Mavericks reporter Tim MacMahon, Brunson was close to playing across the East River. 

During the summer of 2022 when Brunson became a free agent, his intentions were clear to sign with his father's former club in the Knicks. 

 Before he became a free agent, the Mavericks failed to lock down Brunson on a four-year, $55 million extension during his final season there. Speaking on the Knicks Film School Podcast, MacMahon indicates that there was a 'strong likelihood' that Brunson is part of a Kyrie Irving trade with Brooklyn if an extension is signed in Dallas.

 We'll never know what the pairing of Brunson and Kevin Durant would look like, but things would have likely ended better than they did with the Nets the last two seasons. 

Nets fans will root for these two nations in addition to Team USA

 


Team USA knocked off Serbia 110-84 on Sunday to improve to 1-0 in their group. While all US-born basketball fans are pleased with the outcome, Nets fans will have second and third favorite teams they'll root for to grab the silver and bronze. 

Jordi Fernandez, head coach of Canada and Dennis Schröder, point guard for Germany, will give the Nets faithful other rooting interests.

Obviously, love for country will supercede all, but Schröder and Germany are coming off a FIBA title last year, while Canada secured third place and the U.S. fourth place. 

Team USA added a lot of big names since that disappointing finish including: Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis and others. 

The reshaped roster is the odds on favorite to take gold, but a good showing by Team Canada and Germany will reflect well on the Nets. 

New Jersey may get an NBA team again, but it's not the one you think



When the New Jersey Nets left for Brooklyn after the 2011-12 season, the state, and specifically Governor Chris Christie, wished good riddance to its pro basketball franchise. 

The IZOD Center in East Rutherford has  remained merely as a relic of the past. It's been utilized by studios for workspace and the filming sets to the highest bidder including the zombie classic series, The Walking Dead, among others. 

Now, an existing NBA franchise may look to relocate across state lines and into the Garden State. 

That team, the Philadelphia 76ers, already has its training facility located in Camden, New Jersey. 

With strong opposition to build a arena in Center City Philadelphia, the state of New Jersey is making a major push for a proposed 1.3 billion arena project to call New Jersey home. 

There's no clear indication that a move is imminent, but New Jersey becoming an NBA city again would be a major development. 

 The Internet, and specifically X(formerly Twitter), have run wild if there's a potential name change. Among them: The Jersey Sixers, Philadelphia Jerseys and perhaps the best of the bench-the Philadelphia 76ers of New Jersey.

This is certainly a story for many in the tristate to keep a close eye on. 

Brooklyn needs to build a bridge and get over Mikal

 


Mikal Bridges is a New York Knick. The supposed centerpiece of a Nets post-Big Three era is now a distant memory. 

Sean Marks built a warchest of picks and capitalized on the Knicks overpaying for a zero-time All-Star. 

The Nets will be in the Cooper Flag sweepstakes. That means plenty of losing and therein lottery balls hopefully bouncing their way. 

In the meantime, the Knicks will be looking to dethrone a Celtics team that just inked Jayson Tatum to the richest contract in league history and has all of it's starters and key reserves locked up for at least the next few years. 

The Sixers added Paul George, Caleb Martin and Andre Drummond to a core of a rising Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Kelly Oubre. 

The Bucks and Pacers will look to be a factor, while Miami can never be discounted with Jimmy Butler and Erik Spoelstra.

The Knicks have a pathway to the finals, but after losing Isaiah Harkenstein, there's a glaring need for them at backup center. 

The Bridges trade will be a constant talking point in the Big Apple, but while the Knicks will have the pressure of being winners in the short-term, the Nets can patiently wait for draft picks, the right free agents and trade opportunities to come across Marks' desk.



Nets trail only this one team in future draft assets

 


The Brooklyn Nets have an embarrassment of future first round picks. In fact, they have 13 first rounders between the 2025 and 2031 NBA Drafts.

And guess what? More could be on the way.

Dorian Finney-Smith is a highly coveted player across the league and he might possibly net Brooklyn at least another future first rounder.

Cam Johnson is a valuable 6-foot -8 wing with accuracy from long range. Teams may look to attached a future first round pick to any deal where he's included.

Don't forget expiring contracts in Ben Simmons and Dennis Schröder. Teams that are looking to clear salary cap space next summer to make a play for a big free agent, will find those two players'contracts useful. 

When all is said and done, Brooklyn may come close to Sam Presti and Oklahoma City's ridiculous draft stock.

Nets fans are fully embracing the rebuild and Sean Marks is now well armed to build a long-term contender in Brooklyn. 

Knicks gave Nets' GM 'get out of jail free card'



 The Brooklyn Nets were headed nowhere fast. With Mikal Bridges as the supposed building block of the franchise, the Nets stumbled to a 32-50 record with Bridges looking lackluster throughout stretches of this past season. 

Some speculated that the NBA's Iron Man was wearing down with his consecutive games streak reaching ridiculous heights. In hindsight, Bridges joins a list of other NBA divas that simply wanted to take the easy road out and join his Villanova teammates across the East River at MSG. 

General manager Sean Marks was being harpooned by his own fan base for not flipping Bridges immediately upon the trade with Phoenix last year to teams that were apparently offering four first round picks.

Marks made his fifth coaching hiring in Brooklyn this summer by tabbing Jordi Fernandez as the man in charge. 

Nets fans were not sold on Bridges and unsure what superstar wanted to join Brooklyn after the big three exodus of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. 

Marks was public enemy number one alongside Joe Tsai, but then Knicks GM handed them a lifeline. 

The Knicks sent Bojan Bodganovic, four unprotected first-round picks, a 2025 protected first-round pick, a pick swap and future two second-round picks.

Bridges will form the Villanova Knicks to try and chase a title. 

Meanwhile, they overpaid grossly for a player that has never made an All-Star appearance and the Nets get out of NBA purgatory.

If the Knicks capitalize on this three to four year window with a championship, then it was all worth it. 

If not, the Nets may just use the treasure trove of picks to build a homegrown title contender in the years ahead.  



Nets beat down decimated Grizzlies for Ollie's first win



 The Brooklyn Nets snapped a four game skid with a 111-86 win over Memphis on Monday night. 

The Nets fixed many of their defensive issues and kept the Grizzlies at bay as seven players reached double figures in scoring.

Even on a night the Nets came out on top, Cam Thomas turned his ankle and was not putting weight on his foot. Thomas told reporters after the game that he doesn't think the injury is as serious as the injury he suffered earlier this year, but it's not great news nonetheless 

It's almost certain that Thomas will not be available on Tuesday night in a back to back against Orlando and the team already ruled out Simmons for playing for a second consecutive night.

It's been a feel good night for Brooklyn, but the Nets will need more than one win to catapult them back into the playoffs conversation. 

Short-handed Nets shellacked by Cavs in latest embarrassing loss



 The Brooklyn Nets had only eight available players on Thursday after the trade deadline passed.

With Spencer Dinwiddie and Royce O'Neal no longer part of the equation, Brooklyn wasn't even able to keep a close against Donovan, Mitchell and company.

Mitchell had 27, while Mikal Bridges had 26 and Cam Thomas 17. 

The Nets look like a team that is going to have a very rough second half of the schedule. The Cavaliers are the hottest team in the entire NBA, winners of 16 of their last 17 contests. 

Sean Marks did unload a pair of expiring contracts and the only significant move was bringing in Dennis Schröder. 

Brooklyn looks like a team that is stumbling into the All-Star break and will need a hard reset this summer.

While the fan base is clamoring for superstar talent back on the team, Jacque Vaughn will need to find a way to stack some wins and avoid an NBA lottery situation where the Nets don't even own their own pics. 

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