Start With a Bang…Follow With a Dud

Richard Jefferson remembered, but apparently his teammates forgot about the game against the Raptors last night. Outside of RJ, the Nets slept walked through an embarrassing 106-69 thrashing at the hands of the Raptors. It’s one of those guys not worth dwelling on, analyzing, or discussing, it was that bad. Teams inevitably have a few each year, put it behind you, and move on. Unfortunately, this putrid performance came in the second game of the season against a team they anticipate battling for the division crown.

Everything went Toronto’s way all night. They could not miss from outside, shooting 50% from the field, and 59% from beyond the arc. For New Jersey, only RJ cracked double-digits with 27, and Sean Williams made an impressive debut with 4 blocked shots in 20 minutes of action. At one point, I was so disillusioned that when Jorge Garbajosa checked in for the Raptors, I could swear I thought Eagle said we have entered garbage time.

Last night put a damper on a nice Opening Night win over Chicago, 112-103 in OT. Though far from impressive, beating a top flight Eastern Conference team in what turned out to be a nip and tuck battle towards the end, is a great way to start. However, blowing a 17-point 3rd Quarter lead, then watching your two star players hoist up air balls during crunch time, does not leave anyone feeling warm and fuzzy.

Vince Carter struggled. Sure, VC filled the stat sheet up (24 pts, 9 reb, 6 ast), but during two critical stretches of the game, when the Bulls went on a run in the third to eventually erase the 17-point deficit, and in the final two minutes of the game with the Nets clinging to a quickly evaporating lead in desperate need of a hoop, VC did not deliver. Carter signed the big contract, I said it in the Preview and all off-season, he needs to step up now. Not just score, but become the go-to guy when the Nets need a hoop. In Game One, RJ and Antoine Wright stepped to the plate while Carter sputtered, and in Game Two VC barely showed up, though he did reach 15,000 career points. If the Nets plan to make noise Carter must score meaningful points, or risk becoming the A-Rod of NY basketball – big numbers, but never when it matters.

And how about Antoine Wright. A career-high 21 points, but most importantly clutch 3-pointers down the stretch and in OT, when the Nets needed it most. RJ and Wright scored the big buckets, with Jefferson’s 29 points and 10 boards leading the charge. After two games, RJ appears out to prove the Nets made a good decision by passing on the trade rumors.

One major problem area exposed in both games, the defense, particularly in the frontcourt. Kristic is day light, and a dollar short on almost every play, and was hit with too many defensive three second calls, an unacceptable mental mistake. Paying close attention, I can see why Coach Frank sticks with Jason Collins so often. Collins plays tough D. The Magloire-Kristic combo, while enticing on the offensive end, looked scary on defense, almost as scary as the Knicks.

By the way, Ben Gordon can light it up. Overall, Gordon struggled shooting (8-25 FG, 3-10 3pt), but the streaky guard almost single-handedly erased the Nets lead during an impressive third quarter stretch.

After what amounts to a half night off, since the starters sat most of the second half, the Nets travel to Philly, who comes off a surprising win in Chicago. The game marks Nenad Kristic’s first back-to-back after the ACL surgery, and a chance to quickly erase any memory of the disgraceful performance against Toronto. Lets see how the Nets respond.