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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.

We apologize for the audio quality with Episode 26. Chalk it up to a lost Windows configuration for the trusty microphone. Rest assured, Episode 27 and beyond will return to the same level of quality of recent prior episodes.

Sorry for the inconvenience. Thanks for listening.

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.

One last time, for old time’s sake, to show his appreciation for 6 ½ years of service, Lawrence Frank started Jason Collins at center. Collins answered the bell with two handed rim rattler to open the game. Barring a reprieve, the Nets will officially ship Collins to Memphis for former Number Two pick (2000) Stromile Swift on Monday, making tonight Collins’ send off.

Offensively challenged, lacking athletic ability – his vertical leap makes it hard to slide a piece of paper under his feet – other than his 7-foot stature, Collins is not the prototypical NBA player. His offensive statistics rank among the lowest of all NBA players, and have perennially been the worst of any NBA starter. Teams did not even have to defend Collins, often leaving the Nets in 5-on-4 situations. Fans called for his head, stat heads ridiculed him, yet Frank stuck with him.

Through it all Collins acted professionally. Not only with his astute off the court comments, but with his workmanlike attitude on the court. For 6+ years Twin brought his best effort night in, night out. He never complained, not when Frank benched him, not when fans booed him. He played through injuries when the team needed him, as Frank echoed in his pre-game remarks on YES Network. Collins handled everything as a consummate professional, right down to this weekend, when the Nets – having already agreed to a trade with Memphis –short-handed with Malik Allen and Jamaal Magloire out of action, looked to Collins, already a lame duck, to step in. No problem.

Stats aside, Collins is by far the best defensive frontcourt player the Nets have. Coaches should play film of how he defends the pick and roll – hedge on the dribbler to push him away from the basket, and then quickly recover while cutting off the passing lane – for young players.

Collins became an easy target for fans when the Nets went south in recent years, given his lack of offensive output and continued playing time. On a struggling team that often needs help scoring, Collins simply does not fit, he no longer has a place on this team. Though Swift may not be the answer, he brings a bevy of unfulfilled potential. Collins defense, hustle, and solid screening belong on the bench for a championship caliber team, as a role player. Memphis may be furthest from the ideal destination, but no doubt Collins will give it 100% starting Monday.

By the end of the month, Richard Jefferson may remain the last link to the Nets back-to-back Eastern Conference championship teams. The Collins trade – and what follows with Kidd – will officially end the most successful era in franchise history. Collins soon to be former teammate should take some notes on how to act with class.

The Nets had all the stars aligned to end the losing streak and salvage one game on this horrific West Coast swing. A 15-point 4^th quarter lead, solid games from Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson, the worst opponent the NBA could offer in Minnesota. Then Poof. The Wolves dominated down the stretch, New Jersey went cold from the field, blowing a 7-point lead in the final 1:19 to lose 98-95. Nine straight losses, 10 of the last 11, 0 for 6 on the road trip, a disappointing 18-25 record, outplayed down the stretch by a hodgepodge of youngsters on the bottom feeders in the league – rock bottom.

Al Jefferson played like a man among boys, tossing in a career-high 40 points, and grabbing 19 boards, but his 2 free throws with 11 seconds left put the final nail in the Nets coffin.

RJ started out hot – 19 first half points despite foul trouble – yet Lawrence Frank called Carter’s number down the stretch. He rewarded the coach’s faith by missing a pair of off balance, 20-foot jumpers. Carter’s night was a microcosm of his season, flashes of brilliance - attacking the rim, getting to the foul line, abusing inexperienced defenders in isolation – mixed with long jumpers, slow passes off the double-team, and deferring to teammates too often.

After over three quarters of improved defense – not high praise after allowing over 100 points for six straight games – New Jersey reverted to its old ways in the fourth. Rashard McCants and Gerald Green, left open with the Nets forced to double-team Jefferson, buried backbreaking three point baskets to erase the Wolves deficit.

Led by RJ’s 35 points and Carter’s 25 points, the Nets offense played more aggressive, getting to the line 39 times against the NBA’s most penalized team. Once again, they could not capitalize, shooting only 67% from the line, leaving 13 free points on the court.

Outside of nailing three consecutive three-pointers late in the third – the last on a pray as the shot clock expired – Jason Kidd appeared to have one foot out the door already. Where was he when the Wolves made their fourth quarter run you ask – zero points, zero assists.

On a night the T-Wolves showcased the diamond of the Kevin Garnett package, the Nets received a reminder that their young frontcourt is still a work in progress. Jefferson dominated Josh Boone and Sean Williams, displaying every move in the book – baseline spins, jump hooks, outside shots – and scoring at will. Despite outrebounding Minnesota for the game, Jefferson single-handedly killed the Nets on the offensive glass leading to countless easy second chance points. Jason Collins did a solid job in the fourth of containing the 22-year old manchild, but too little too late.

At 18-25, with their star players head only half engaged, the Nets organization need to do some soul searching – everyone from the GM, to the coach, to the players. The team can go two ways after a loss like this, show resiliency, bounce back, and make a run at the playoffs, or fold it up and face the embarrassment of finishing behind the Knicks in the Atlantic Division.

In another reminder of how disappointing the Nets underachieving season, TNT broadcasts tonight’s visit to Golden State nationally. When the networks and the league make the television schedule, it usually focuses on good teams, and star players. At 18-23 riding a six-game losing streak – or blowout streak - Turner wishes it had the NFL’s flex schedule option.

Problems occasionally come to a head on nationally televised game. Another lackluster effort, non-competitive loss where the defense gets beat around like a piñata and the embarrassment may force Thorn to make a coaching move, or pull the trigger. May sound extreme, but how many more games where the Nets play with less urgency than a charity game before Thorn, or even Bruce Ratner, have to rattle the cage?

Conversely, the Nets can make a statement. With Frank under mounting pressure, trade rumors starting to rumble, the players can do more than verbally defend the coach – play hard for him. Forget the coach, each player needs to show some pride, dig in on defense, dive for loose balls, and play 48 minutes hard. At this point, a competitive game would do, a win seems far-fetched after the past few games.

Prediction: If the Nets come out like they did against Pheonix, Baron and the boys may go for 100 points in three quarters.

Now is no time for finger pointing with the New Jersey Nets, losers of five straight and six of seven. Blame the coach, blame the big money shooting guard, blame the hall of fame point guard, blame the ball boy – everyone in the organization should be ashamed of the performance over the past two weeks.

After a tough fought home loss to Boston, the Nets have mailed it in. Romped by Portland and Phoenix, sandwiched around a pair of losses to the league’s bottom feeders, the Clippers and Knicks, now a combined 5-0 against the Nets. Effort and defense are the root causes. Not who has a good shooting night, or the rotation Frank uses, or even a bad match-up, all comparatively easy problems. Hustle, hard work, enthusiasm – intangibles players take for granted – should have Nets management worried.

Opponents have averaged 105 points over the seven-game slump, dropping the team defense to 16^th overall on the season (98.6 ppg). Unacceptable for a team struggling without an identity on offense. Most alarming, only one opponent over that stretch sits in the Top 10 in scoring. The Nets have been slow on transition defense, immediately exposed by Phoenix with a 35-point first quarter. Outside of Josh Boone, nobody consistently rebounds or boxes out. Chris Kaman owned the inside with 12 boards and 9 blocks on Saturday, Curry and Randolph dominated for the Knicks, while the Suns held a ten rebound edge. Tipped rebounds, loose balls, plays where desire takes over, all go against the Nets.

Unlike earlier this season, when inspired comebacks followed the early double-digit deficits, NJ threw the towel in the past week. Instead of rallying around each other, the team comes unglued - miscommunication leading to throwing passes away, lazy dribbling become turnovers and an easy buckets the other way.

Boki Nochbar sums it up best, “we need to show more pride.” Talent-wise the Nets can go toe to toe with most of the Eastern Conference, but heart and desire erase close the gap quick. After a slow start, the Nets have no room for error, and the schedule will only get tougher from here. Up next a rejuvenated Kings squad with a healthy Bibby, Artest, and Martin to supplement the supporting cast that blasted New Jersey last month, followed by visits to Golden State and Denver, two Western Conference playoff teams. Shooting woes aside, if the effort does not improve immediately the Nets will quickly become the easy game on other teams scheduled – if they have not already.

            After the loss to Boston Friday night Richard Jefferson magically transformed from small forward to soothsayer. Taking no solstice in the effort against Boston, RJ proclaimed “we’re not a good real offensive team…truth be told,” followed up by explaining the Nets should not be considered one of the better teams until they reach at least 10 games over .500. The Nets took it to heart, literally, validating his first theory on Monday night, thus dropping below .500 moving again.
            Off a 9-point 4^th quarter barrage on Friday, the Nets shot a dismal 4-19 in the first quarter, quickly falling behind by double digits at home, yet again, en route to a 99-73 loss to Portland. Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, and Jefferson, the All-Star trio expected to carry the team most nights, and pick each other up, posted a putrid 7-33 shooting night for only 29 points. Portland’s bench, led by such household names as Jarrett Jack and James Jones, outscored the Nets starters.
            More disconcerting than the numbers was the effort, or lack thereof. Outside of a 10-2 spurt by the Nets backups in the 2^nd quarter, Portland outworked, outhustled, and outplayed the Nets all night. Led by Joel Pryzbilla, the Blazers dominated the glass, seemed to grab every loose ball, and contested rebound. The Nets were slow rotating on defense all night, back to old habits from earlier this season not contesting shooters. Portland took advantage burying 60% from beyond the arc.
            Unlike the Boston game, where New Jersey fought through its offensive struggles, the Nets threw the towel in against Portland. Frank tried a small lineup to start the 4^th quarter to apply a full court press and try to force turnovers. Ineffective puts it kindly. Even after the starters returned the team had zero energy in the fourth quarter, allowing the lead to balloon to 26 points. Instead of forcing turnovers, the Nets turned it over. Miscommunication led to embarrassing passes landing in the first row.
            Maybe its one of those nights you forget about and move on. Coach Frank shouldered the blame for the lack of preparation. His offense looked lost against Portland’s zone, in an endless loop of drives and kick outs, failing to penetrate the zone.
            No secret, the Nets will not win many games with Malik Allen leading the team with 17 points. Teams play to stop the Nets transition game, which Portland did. When Carter struggles, or they do not get him the ball in good position, and the running game is shutdown, the Nets need to have other options on offense. The pick and roll with Boone, Williams, and Allen, looks effective at times, but they do not use it often enough. After early success, Jefferson’s priorities have shifted to looking for a foul on every drive, rather than scoring.
            Before a six-game West Coast trip, the Nets need a win against the lowly Knicks, who have now posted two straight wins, and beat the Nets in both previous meetings this season, including the infamous Jason Kidd migraine fiasco. The Nets need to come out of the gate hard, look to run on every opportunity, get Carter the ball on the blocks and let him operate the offense, and play tough defense. Its one thing for a young, upstart team to outwork you, but the Knicks are another story. 

Other Notes:

Portland can play. We all know about the tremendous winning streak, now 18 of the last 20, but its not a fluke. They have great chemistry, young athletes that can shoot, and a born leader in Brandon Roy. Roy deservedly gets the most publicity, but LaMarcus Aldridge (20 points, 7 boards) will become a monster on the blocks. He already shows an ability to score from inside and outside, and will only get better. Portland will be a perennial title contender within a year or two, as this core group develops.

            The Nets proved they could play with an elite team for three plus quarters, even with their top two scorers only intermittently involved. Then the Jekyll and Hyde Nets offense reverted to its early December struggles – nine fourth quarter points, tying a franchise low, on 3-19 shooting – and what was a 12-point lead at one time ended as an 86-77 defeat to Boston.

            Holding Boston below 90 points is a major accomplishment, but scoring on the NBA’s top defense proved a tougher task. Despite a scorching hot 30-point opening quarter sparked by transition scoring, strong cuts to the basket, and a few open jumpers off drive and kicks, the Nets poor outside shooting caught up with them.

            In a shooting exhibition reminiscent of youth basketball, the Nets hit on only 37% from both the field and free throw line. Those numbers will not beat most NBA teams. Josh Boone’s 0-6 from the line was only the beginning. Jefferson, Carter, and Wright all added to the atrocity, continuing a worrisome trend from the line of late that must change for the Nets to continue winning.

            On offense, Carter, who admitted battling a touch of the stomach flu, was non-existent outside a burst in the third quarter. Instead of posting Carter on the wing, he found himself on the perimeter, unable to initiate the offense or consistently work for good shots, leading to 7-20 shooting and only four assists. Not establishing Carter hurts Jefferson, as well as foul trouble limiting his aggressiveness in the second half. RJ led the Nets with only 17 points.

Without any offensive flow, once Boston halted the transition game, points were scarce. Kidd tried to ignite some offense in the fourth quarter, forcing transition, trying to create by driving to the basket, but it led to turnovers and forced bad shots.

            Unlike earlier this season, the Nets continued to play hard for four quarters, not allowing the game to get out of reach until the last minute, never letting go of the proverbial rope that Jason Kidd referred shortly after an earlier Boston blowout.

The Nets stood toe to toe with Boston on defense, mixing in a zone in the fourth that confused Boston enough to halt their rally, though the Nets never capitalized. Boone owned the glass, gathering a career-high 16 boards, and played solid defense on Garnett forcing him into tough, contested shots. In fact, tough defense held Boston’s vaunted Big Three in check most of the night. James Posey and Eddie House each contributed nine points off the bench, Posey sparking the second quarter rally and House helping put the game away in the fourth.

            In the end, the Nets posted another uneven performance and lost to the league’s elite, falling to 0-5 against Boston and Detroit. Until proven otherwise, New Jersey stands among most of the Eastern Conference, in the second tier.

Richard Jefferson continues putting up career-best scoring numbers, Josh Boone and Sean Williams have invigorated a stagnant frontcourt with energy and scoring, while Jason Kidd’s face now appears next to Triple-Double in the dictionary, but it’s Vince Carter that has almost quietly spurred the recent offensive surge.

The Nets are at their best when the offense runs through Carter on the wing or in the high post, rather than at the three-point line. Carter has rediscovered the aggressive mentality that earned him the $66 million contract, taking the ball hard to the basket, drawing double teams, getting to the foul line, and even posterizing a few big men with vicious dunks in the process. When Vince plays aggressive, the whole team follows his lead, leading to better shots.

Carter will always get his 25-30 points when healthy, but how he gets there dictates the team’s success. Over the last eight games – seven Net wins – Carter has shot an efficient 47% from the field. Scoring 30 points on 19 shots, instead of 28 shots for example, means more opportunities for his teammates. With Boone and Williams finally providing frontcourt offense, and RJ taking his offensive game to the next level, Vince has weapons. A lot of Boone and Williams early offensive success can be attributed to setups from Carter, an adept passer off double teams, drives to the basket, and off the pick and roll.

But what the Nets most lacked early on, VC has re-emerged as the go-to guy. When the team needs a bucket, Carter has delivered. This win streak started with his clutch, last minute, three point shots in back-to-back games against Miami and Golden State, off kick outs from Jefferson. Then he torched Milwaukee for 8 points in the last 4:30 minutes, hit a layup and foul shots in the final minute of a one-point win in Orlando, and in Atlanta last game nailed a clutch jumper before initiating the offense on the Boone dunk that clinched the game. Early in the season ten and twelve point deficits quickly became twenty, against Charlotte on Friday Carter single-handedly kept the Nets in the game with 15 points in the first quarter, preventing a Bobcat blowout until his team woke up. That goes unnoticed in the first quarter, but the Nets never win that game without him.

Vin-sanity also brings some emotion and personality to the court. Kidd is a more stoic, quiet leader, Jefferson still defers to Kidd and Carter at times, but VC will rally the troops. He yells, gives the fist pump after a big play, jokes with the young guys on the court to keep things loose. Carter Kidd may be the captain, but Carter is the emotional leader.

After the 4-1 start, the Nets have had two win streaks, a mini three-game run on the Thanksgiving week West Coast trip, and the current seven of eight run. The first streak coincided with Carter’s return from an ankle injury, while the recent stretch marks Carter’s return to dominance on offense. Coincidence? I think not.

Number Crunching

Richard Jefferson has made the foul line his second home this season. After just 33 games he already has more Free Throw Attempts and Makes than during his 53 game injury shortened season last year. He is well on his way to shattering his career high in both categories.