Posts tagged ‘Vince Carter’

Vince Carter underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle Wednesday, to remove bone spurs and loose bodies, plus perform a debridement of the ankle, according to the Nets website. The team provided no exact timetable for recovery, but after several weeks on crutches and rehab, the Nets expect Carter to be ready for training camp.

Criticized in the past for not playing through injuries, tagged as soft in NBA circles, Carter showed his heart playing in 70 games after initially injuring his ankle in a loss to Boston on November 10. The extent of the injury makes his season look even more remarkable.

Give Carter credit on two fronts. He played hard right until the last day of the season, elevating his game – on and off the court - after the Kidd trade, while the ankle continued to give him problems. Not once did he complain about the injury. That should quiet any questions about his heart, or devotion to the team. Ankle injuries can be serious, unlike, say, a migraine.

Having the surgery immediately after the season to gives VC as much time to rehab for next season as possible. Too many times injured stars wait after the season, talk about rehabbing, talk about resting, wind up having surgery later in the summer, then next thing you know they show up unprepared for the season, or miss regular season games. By taking care of the injury a week after the season ended, barring an unforeseen setback, the Nets can count on Carter.

Missing the playoffs has its benefits, a high draft pick, and extra rest for the veterans. Giving Carter a few extra weeks, and others that hobbled to the finish line like Devin Harris, Josh Boone, and Boki Nochbar – if he returns – will benefit the Nets playoff run next season.

Vince Carter could hang up his number 15 Nets jersey and called it a season last week with the Nets playoff hopes on life support. Other teams would almost force Carter to do so, not risking the team superstar and its biggest investment, trying to improve draft position by not fielding the best team possible. Miami threw the towel in weeks ago, Boston and Memphis were accused of throwing games last season, its an almost annual occurrence.

After sitting out Friday, watching a listless Nets loss to a Detroit team with nothing more to play for, Carter had even more reason to sit out. Not only did he play on an injured ankle Saturday, Carter starred with 32 points, including 21 in the second half when he carried New Jersey past Toronto for an otherwise meaningless win. Carter played 45 minutes, but showed so much more than you can see in a boxscore. After the game Carter said, “I refuse to quit on the season, or quit on this team.” Coach Lawrence Frank acknowledged the effort “says a lot about him,” playing on a swollen ankle likely to require offseason surgery.

Frank alluded to “professional responsibility” in a pre-game interview with YES Saturday, a responsibility to the league, the team, and the fans. Toronto is still fighting for playoff position, the Nets owe it the competition and integrity of the league to play hard. As Frank said, its about the name on the front of the jersey too, not just the back. Carter mentioned how important it was for the young guys – Sean Williams, Marcus Williams – to see him and Jefferson finish strong, even with nothing at stake, to set the right example, the lunch pail mentality. In a season where Jason Kidd deserted these same teammates, Carter has stepped into that leadership role by example.

Sadly, NBA players get commended for just doing what they are paid an obscene amount of money to do. But look at Miami, Dwayne Wade and Shawn Marion took an early vacation, even the head coach sits out games, a first in my memory. Pat Riley subscribes to theory that racking up losses by playing with an NBA D-League team will earn the Heat a top draft pick, leading to a quick turnaround.

He should know better. Boston and Memphis pulled the plug early last season, deciding to battle for Greg Oden and Kevin Durant rather than play Detroit or Chicago. Neither team received a top 3 pick, the only selections determined by the lottery. Boston still managed to turnaround, but not through the draft lottery. A year earlier, Portland finished with the worst record, yet finished out of the Top 3. Back to 2005, Atlanta, Charlotte, and New Orleans all finished with under 20 wins, yet only Atlanta picked in the Top 3. 2004 is the last time the worst record won the lottery, yielding Dwight Howard for Orlando – sometimes losing does help.

Go a step further, evaluate the past three drafts, last year’s prize sat out the entire season with injury, the two best players from the 2006 draft were selected sixth and eighth (Rudy Gay and Brandon Roy), and while Milwaukee struck gold in the lottery in 2005, Utah and New Orleans have Deron Williams and Chris Paul. If fate holds, the lottery will not reward Miami for the tank job, and Memphis will not benefit from fielding a terrible team.

Back to Carter, his turnaround dates back to the Kidd trade. Widely criticized throughout his career, fairly and unfairly, for being soft, and getting comfortable after signing long term contracts, Carter has elevated his all-around game. Compared to the first half of the season, in 23 games since the All-Star break Carter increased his scoring by over 3 points per game, plays 2 more minutes, and grabs about 1.5 more rebounds a night. Carter has truly tried to fill every void left by Kidd. Rebounding, often overlooked for big scorers, proves the point. Thanks to a big second half on the glass, when the team needed help to replace its leading rebounder, Carter has elevated his season average to 6.1, on pace for a career high.

Perhaps the NBA draft gods will reward the Nets for playing hard – Gay, Amare Stoudemire, Andrew Bynum, and Andre Igoudala all fell between 8^th and 10^th in the draft, where the Nets will likely pick, unless the ping-pong balls bounce the right way.

The Nets never had a chance on this road trip. Five games against teams a combined 50 games over .500 at the time, a history of failure against the Texas triple, an MVP candidate and hot franchise in the fourth game, two teams riding double-digit win streaks, all while integrating a new starting point guard into the fold. Even with those odds, you figure the Nets could steal one game, or at least beat the Grizzlies. Think again.

Only the Rockets, riding an 18-game win streak, stand between the Nets and an 0-5 road trip, the second extended winless trip in two months after dropping six straight out West in mid-January. Do they miss Jason Kidd? Did the matchup in Dallas with Kidd’s Mavs Saturday distract the young team, who struggle to focus without any unneeded stress? No, on both fronts. They have played terribly inconsistent, on all fronts – similar to with Kidd before the trade.

Finally, everyone can put the Kidd hoopla aside – we think – now it’s time the Nets truly put up or shut up for the 2007-2008 season. Since the trade, Carter’s quotes have sounded like a countdown, “It’s the next 28 games,” “25 more games like that,”, …, now its down to 19. Time to stop talking about finishing the season strong and making the playoffs, and play like it.

Sitting outside the playoff picture in ninth place, even if the Nets earn a seventh playoff appearance it will likely end similar to this road trip, four painless blowouts. Lawrence Frank needs to start using players with an eye towards the future, towards evaluation, while still trying to win in the process. How you say, do they do that?

• Start in the fourth quarter, where New Jersey continues to fall apart every game. Get the ball to Nenad Kristic. He continues to improve, working his way back to pre-injury form, but only does his damage early in games.
• Stop shooting quick jumpers late in games. It starts with the point guard and the coach. Devin Harris needs to penetrate and run the offense, not take 15-20 shots a game from long range. If Harris insists on shooting too much, and Marcus Williams continues to play within the flow of the offense, Frank has to finish games with Williams on the floor until Harris gets the message.
• Attack the zone. Team will continue to throw 2-3 zones at the Nets until they show an ability to beat it. 63 games into the season and they still quiver at the site of the defense. Before the season ends, just once, look prepared to attack the zone. Flash Kristic to the high post, penetrate the seams, throw a lob over the back line.
• Use a rotation that gives the best chance to win…and allows Thorn and Kiki to make decisions about players for next season. Is Trenton Hassell in the Nets plans? Does he help them win? Self-explanatory, bench him. Ditto Darrel Armstrong. Is Swift in the plans? Lets find out.

The rest of the season starts tonight, now truly in the post-Kidd era. More than wins, the Nets need to compete, not show up for half the game. Show some resiliency in the fourth quarter. It starts with the leadership – RJ, VC, and Frank. Carter and Jefferson don’t need to score every basket, but act like leaders, make the big play, take the charge, throw the extra pass, get to the line, encourage the new guys and young players.

Check out the podcast for more thoughts on who the leader of the team, it’s more clear cut than you think.

Some people just need a wake-up call to get going. Vince Carter took a standing eight count after a shot to the face from Brandon Bass, following Richard Jefferson as the second Net knocked out in a week. When Carter returned to the floor later in the 2^nd quarter, Nets trailing Dallas by ten about to have the doors blown off again, then something amazing happened. The old Vince Carter emerged.

The Nets ran off 21 straight points, only slowed by halftime, led by an array of dazzling Carter moves. Fade away jumpers, back cuts to the hoop for lay-ups, and the showtime drives to the basket off transition. Carter found the “zone”, rattling off 25 points on efficient 10-14 shooting after absorbing the elbow, en route to a game-high 29.

His partner in crime, Jason Kidd, commanded the game, dominating for a second straight outing. Assuming the floor general role, Kidd led the Nets to 21 fast break points, threading the needle on countless bounce passes to setup easy baskets. Toss in a few highlight reel lob passes among the 14 assists. Stats aside, Kidd controlled the game, forced the action, ran the offense, and even cracked a smile while doing it. Jason Kidd, enjoying the Nets play? Stop the presses.

Arguably more impressive than the Carter and Kidd offensive duo, was the Nets defensive effort. The high-powered Mavs managed only 84 points, and a combination of Boone, Sean Williams, Jefferson, et al. limited MVP Dirk Nowitzki to 4-16 shooting for a quiet 21 points.

Dallas shot only 36% from the field, but captured the first half lead with easy second chance opportunities, and a few layups on defensive breakdowns, leading to 18 first half points in the paint. When Carter reemerged the whole team came alive, started to box out and attack the defensive glass. Three-point defense, a recurring defensive problem for the Nets, excelled. The Mavs shot a putrid 2-18 from deep with the Nets contesting shots all night, ant Mavs having an off night.

In his second game back on the bench, Sean Williams excelled. Appearing refocused after Kristic replaced him the starting lineup, Williams provided a few highlight reel dunks and a thunderous block on a Nowitzki jumper that led to a Carter breakaway dunk, a microcosm of the night. He finished the night with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and two blocks, and exhibited good footwork in the post and nice touch from the outside. Rather than sulk after the demotion, Williams has stepped up.

The most promising play of the night might be a simple post move that resulted in two foul shots. Nenad Kristic caught the ball with his back to the basket, then put a quick baseline spin move to go by Josh Howard – reminiscent of the pre-ACL injury Kristic, the Kristic New Jersey needs. A small step, but Kristic emanated the confidence he lacked the first four games of his return, nailing a jumper, getting to the line, and crashing the boards for 8 rebounds. Knee problem, what knee problem.

While it’s only two games, barely a streak, this win was the most dominant outing of an otherwise disappointing season. Kristic, Carter, Kidd, a solid contribution from RJ, Sean Williams off the bench, suddenly the Nets have hope.

With Mark Cuban in full view, the Mavs starting PG JJ Barea netted zero assists as he watched Kidd tear his defense apart. Based on last night, Dallas needs guard help, albeit Devin Harris remained on the bench injured. Kidd played possessed, same as Friday, expect more of it Tuesday and Wednesday, during this extended audition. The question remains, if the Nets keep Kidd at the Meadowlands, will these performances come and go along with the trade deadline?

I know, a day late, and a dollar short – as the old saying goes – but LA’s impressive performance on Tuesday night, given the circumstances, warrant discussion. The circumstances – Gasol’s first game with the team and in the triangle offense, no Andrew Bynum, a season-low scoring performance from Kobe, and the middle of a prolonged road trip – enough excuses for a subpar outing.

The Lakers served notice the first week of the season, whitewashing the Suns in Phoenix without Lamar Odom. Most impressive was team passing, and the ability to run the offensive with Kobe, not necessarily through Kobe. It proved LA, at its best, had the right mix of role players and star players to compete with the best of the west.

Insert Pau Gasol, proven scorer. Tuesday night LA reaffirmed my belief to take them seriously in the Western Conference. When the offense clicks, they are the best passing team in the league. All night players passed up open 10 foot jumpers, made the extra pass to get a teammate a layup, or point blank opportunity in the paint.

They move the ball quickly and efficiently in the triangle. With Gasol, LA now has enough scoring weapons to drive opposing coaches crazy. Kobe and Gasol will play off each other. Try to double team, or converge when they get into the lane, Fischer, Radmonovic, and Vujavic, all shoot over 42% from beyond the arc – the Nets had a taste of that. Don’t forget the athleticism of Lamar Odom, who creates matchup problems, and can dominate the offensive glass.

Most important, Kobe only scored six points – slowed by a combination of Net defense, an injured pinky, and a decision to involve his teammates – and the Lakers still won going away. The Nets had no defensive answer for Gasol inside, nobody put a body on Odom, and the guard trio beat them with three point shooting, and dribble drives. While New Jersey has struggled defensively in those areas much of the season, they will not be the only team the Lakers leave in the rear view.

LA also plans another big acquisition after the trading deadline, a potentially healthy Andrew Bynum. Watch out West.

On the Nets front, Carter showed the offensive aggressiveness, dazzling with a thunderous dunk and a few highlight reel drives – reminiscent of the old VC. Despite 27 points, he still settled for too many long jumpers, shooting an underwhelming 10-26 from the field. Good to see him take initiative, now he needs to involve his teammates and improve his decision-making. Some possessions turned into one on one battles.

Again the Nets matched wits with a solid opponent for most of the game, as they did with Boston a few weeks back, before wilting down the stretch. Bad shots, lack of defensive intensity, for only a few minutes allowed the Lakers to take the lead into double digits and pull away late with a 21-9 run. It takes four quarters of focus – not three.

One farewell, one long awaited return, one rumored departure – after two straight wins, the Nets looked distracted last night. Jason Collins started his final game with a thunderous dunk on a back cut off a Jason Kidd assist. From there the Nets appeared old, slow, and disinterested.

Atlanta used a 9-0 run in the first quarter to jump ahead, and an extended 20-7 burst against an apathetic second unit to start the second quarter, to blow the game open. Richard Jefferson came out shooting duds, leading the brigade of Nets settling for long jumpers. While Vince Carter, slowed by foul trouble, made his biggest impact by picking up a technical foul in the second quarter, then sitting the final 9+ minutes of the half.

Meanwhile, the Hawks athleticism and speed overwhelmed the Nets defense. Atlanta, known for its transition offense, scored 23 fast break points and finished with 58 points in the paint, thanks to 15 offensive rebounds, and countless drives to the basket.

Jefferson showed up for the second half, opening the third with five quick points. However, the lack of transition defense killed the Nets, each time the Nets showed a surge Atlanta struck back with easy baskets on the other end, beating the NJ down the floor. Jefferson finished with 23 strong points, and got the Nets within nine points early in the fourth before Atlanta capitalized on the offensive glass with a putback.

Boki Nochbar was the only Net to provide offense in the first half. Following a dreadful offensive outing in Miami, Nochbar buried his first shot and took off from there. He mixed aggressive moves to the basket with touch from the outside to finish with 16 points. More disconcerting, Nochbar and Antoine Wright were the only Nets to visit the foul line in the entire first half – a sign of the lack of aggressive play and offensive rhythm. The second unit had no flow, with Marcus Williams struggling to setup the offense or trigger the transition game.

If you blinked, you missed Nenad Kristic’s return. Kristic played 2:45 late in the first quarter before icing his knee on the bench the rest of the night. If Kristic is not ready to play 20 minutes a night, he should not play at all. If he is, Frank should use him, the Nets have nothing to lose. Atlanta poses a tough defensive assignment for Curly, but nobody else contained Marvin Williams or Josh Smith last night, why not have Kristic try to get into the flow?

Kidd slid into second on the All-Time rebounding list for guards, moving past Clyde Drexler. Lost in his 10 rebound, 7 assist performance was a woeful shooting night, 2-9 from the floor for only five points. You can sum the night up with two plays, Josh Smith pinned a Carter layup – later appeared to be goaltending – then ran the floor for an easy dunk on the other end. While earlier in the fourth, Kidd went to swing the ball around the perimeter and threw what appeared to be a simple pass to Carter into the first row. Lack of concentration, lack of energy – double digit loss.

Note: If Atlanta had 18,102 fans in attendance, I must have won the lottery last night. The building looked almost as empty as most nights at Izod, yet still had more energy.