Welcome a New Era in Nets Basketball

[NjNeTs1029]

what if we don't even land lebron?

then we're screwed.. but we're getting lebron. Plenty of cap space, moving to Brooklyn, friends with jay z, shot at a championship if he comes.. it all fits.

Harris
CDR
LBJ
Yi
Lopez

[Stone]

Weather or not we get LeBron we had to rebuild. Its good to see were going in the right direction. I was hoping we missed getting into the playoffs last season then we'ed be in year two of the process. Its going to painfull to watch the next couple of seasons but hey, most of us have been there and done that.

As a Jersey guy I would have loved to have seen a champianship here. But the magic of those two trips to the finals and the dogfights the following years were a great memory that not all teams get to say they were a part of.

Now it comes down to developing our young guys. I'm pretty sure Opie has the green light to do so.

[Preludepunk27]

Weather or not we get LeBron we had to rebuild. Its good to see were going in the right direction. I was hoping we missed getting into the playoffs last season then we'ed be in year two of the process. Its going to painfull to watch the next couple of seasons but hey, most of us have been there and done that.

As a Jersey guy I would have loved to have seen a champianship here. But the magic of those two trips to the finals and the dogfights the following years were a great memory that not all teams get to say they were a part of.
Now it comes down to developing our young guys. I'm pretty sure Opie has the green light to do so.

I find it funny, even with the 2 finals appearances, my favorite series the Nets were in was the Pistons/Nets series the year the Pistons won it. That overtime game (how many were there like 40?) was the best Nets game I've seen in a decade. I stood in front of the TV from the 4th quarter on. Scalabrine catching fire. It was simply amazing. Too bad NBA fans don't care about the Nets or Pistons because that game beat 90% of the games in this years playoffs and basically nobody watched that entire series.

[wiff]

what if we don't even land lebron?

then we're screwed.. but we're getting lebron. Plenty of cap space, moving to Brooklyn, friends with jay z, shot at a championship if he comes.. it all fits.

Harris
CDR
LBJ
Yi
Lopez

You realize that you are putting your hopes on a great young point guard, two rookies who dropped like led in the draft and a second year player who had a horrible rookie year?

Mmmmmmmm....yeah that screams LeBron

[60cent]

what if we don't even land lebron?

then we're screwed.. but we're getting lebron. Plenty of cap space, moving to Brooklyn, friends with jay z, shot at a championship if he comes.. it all fits.

Harris
CDR
LBJ
Yi
Lopez

You realize that you are putting your hopes on a great young point guard, two rookies who dropped like led in the draft and a second year player who had a horrible rookie year?

Mmmmmmmm....yeah that screams LeBron

It's more like VC than CDR. We can still afford LBJ with VC in there.

LBJ will surely go to a big market that season. Nike will give him an extra 100 million dollars (according to the commentators from ESPN radio) if he signs with any NY team, LA or Chicago. And with Jay-Z on our side, i think we really have a big chance to land LBJ. Plus, i don't think Knicks, LA or Chicago will have money by that time unless they make a huge adjustment and are able to get under the cap.

[DowJones]

There is no way that Nike will give LeBron an extra $100 million. Not only would it be a HORRIBLE business move, it is not legal according to the NBA. There is no way that Stern would allow shoe companies to subsidize select franchises like that.

BTW, the shoe industry has really fallen over the last few years. A sports economist on CNBC mentioned that the $4 billion industry is now worth a little over $2 billion. That is just about a 50% drop, for all of you math-majors. OJ Mayo got a deal with Nike that will give him barely over $1million a year, which is far less than he would have got a few years ago. How do you imagine that Nike will give James an EXTRA $100 million for moving to a major-market when the ENTIRE industry is worth only $2 billion?

Jay-Z and LeBron are friends, but you are delusional if you think the Cavs don't have many members on staff that are CLOSER to LeBron than Jay-Z is. Google Maverick Carter and Richard Paul, both of whom are from the Cleveland area. They are much closer with LeBron than Jay-Z is.

[Preludepunk27]

There is no way that Nike will give LeBron an extra $100 million. Not only would it be a HORRIBLE business move, it is not legal according to the NBA. There is no way that Stern would allow shoe companies to subsidize select franchises like that.
BTW, the shoe industry has really fallen over the last few years. A sports economist on CNBC mentioned that the $4 billion industry is now worth a little over $2 billion. That is just about a 50% drop, for all of you math-majors. OJ Mayo got a deal with Nike that will give him barely over $1million a year, which is far less than he would have got a few years ago. How do you imagine that Nike will give James an EXTRA $100 million for moving to a major-market when the ENTIRE industry is worth only $2 billion?

Jay-Z and LeBron are friends, but you are delusional if you think the Cavs don't have many members on staff that are CLOSER to LeBron than Jay-Z is. Google Maverick Carter and Richard Paul, both of whom are from the Cleveland area. They are much closer with LeBron than Jay-Z is.

You're correct in that they're not like "well you're in one of the 3 major markets now...he's a check from us to you saying thank you." It's more like "you're in a major market, you open more doors for us in terms of marketing you. Because of this you will probably bring more revenue into the company. In your contract, you get a percentage of the revenue we make off you...therefore, you can probably expect a nicer check from us in the future."

I think that is what the kid was trying to say. Not that his contract just goes up. That's illegal. What I said, is legal. It's not necessarily a guarantee, but it's common knowledge that is what would probably happen. I actually read about it when Kobe was demanding a trade. They were discussing the money he'd actually lose if he didn't go to a team in Chicago or New York if he left the LA market.

[DowJones]

That increase is going to be minor though. More people may buy his shoes, but the increase won't even be enough to cover the difference in contracts that Cleveland can offer. It sure as heck won't be in the $50 million range.

LeBron is already a global name. He is already the highest paid American athlete in all of the team sports. LeBron goes beyond the question of "what market does he play for". His sales won't increase that much by moving to New Jersey. He will get more local sales, but that is really minor compared to everything else. LeBron is already at or near the peak when it comes to endorsement dollars.

[Kosar86]

Carter, Harris, Yi, Swill, and Boone (counts about 6 mil as a FA) combine to count 39 million against the cap in the summer of 2010. That is far enough under the cap to offer a max contract. You do have to account for the 5 1st round draft picks the Nets would have between now and then however. Adding about 10 million more for that puts the Nets at 49 million for that summer with 10, young aside from Carter, guys under contract. This makes them big players in that free agency whether Carter is moved or not.

Question is, do they simply not add anyone else over the next 2 years? The nets are prime for a top-3 pick next year which is about $4.5 mil itself...it wil be interesting to watch how they manuever this.

[Preludepunk27]

That increase is going to be minor though. More people may buy his shoes, but the increase won't even be enough to cover the difference in contracts that Cleveland can offer. It sure as heck won't be in the $50 million range.

LeBron is already a global name. He is already the highest paid American athlete in all of the team sports. LeBron goes beyond the question of "what market does he play for". His sales won't increase that much by moving to New Jersey. He will get more local sales, but that is really minor compared to everything else. LeBron is already at or near the peak when it comes to endorsement dollars.

You'd honestly be surprised that, yes he is a global name, but not as much as you think. I've been to Japan and China a few times over the last 5 or so years and yeah he's there but I wouldn't say he's like godzilla huge. Honestly, the 2 most global names in the NBA are Kobe and Shaq in terms of active players.

And Nike doesn't just make shoes by the way.

It's not gonna be in the $50 million range but unless the Cavs win a title in the next couple years, and depending on how other teams build/set up cap space, a major market is more enticing...even if it only means a few more dollars.

[NetsForce]

Weeeeeeeee updated salaries, including my best estimates for the 2008-2009 Salary Cap, Luxury Tax, Mid-Level Exception, and CDR's salary...

http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/8521/12569678pu9.jpg

(I'm pretty sure Lopez's and Anderson's contracts are spot on, those are the maximum they can earn under the rookie scale and generally speaking teams just give first rounders the max they can possibly pay them under the rookie scale)

[DowJones]

That increase is going to be minor though. More people may buy his shoes, but the increase won't even be enough to cover the difference in contracts that Cleveland can offer. It sure as heck won't be in the $50 million range.

LeBron is already a global name. He is already the highest paid American athlete in all of the team sports. LeBron goes beyond the question of "what market does he play for". His sales won't increase that much by moving to New Jersey. He will get more local sales, but that is really minor compared to everything else. LeBron is already at or near the peak when it comes to endorsement dollars.

You'd honestly be surprised that, yes he is a global name, but not as much as you think. I've been to Japan and China a few times over the last 5 or so years and yeah he's there but I wouldn't say he's like godzilla huge. Honestly, the 2 most global names in the NBA are Kobe and Shaq in terms of active players.

And Nike doesn't just make shoes by the way.

It's not gonna be in the $50 million range but unless the Cavs win a title in the next couple years, and depending on how other teams build/set up cap space, a major market is more enticing...even if it only means a few more dollars.

Not even close. LeBron is easily the NBA's most marketable star, which is why he earns the most in endorsements....he almost doubles what Kobe makes. LeBron has been on the covers of SI, ESPN, Sporting News, etc but he has also been on the cover of Fortune, Wall Street Journal, and Vogue. He goes beyond the NBA and basketball already.

LeBron is also much more popular in Asia than Shaq and Kobe. He is HUGE over there.

[kdot99]

Will you guys be in in Brooklyn for the 2010-2011 season aka LeBron's first season with the Nets?

[Preludepunk27]

From what I remember, if we don't break ground this summer, we're not gonna move by the start of the 2010-2011 season. We'd move at some point during that season. Thanks to the help we got from the Supreme Court last week, we may be able to get it done on time. Even if the whole project isn't done, I'm probably assuming getting the stadium done first is now top priority so we can be in at the start of that season.

[YounGunnCam9395]

I can't stand all this talk about Yi being a soft bust. You're judging him after one year playing on one of the worst teams in the league. Most of you haven't even watched him play more than 5 games last season to come up with this conclusion. The kids got all the fundamentals needed plus incredible athleticism and range. Once he bulks up a little and adjusts to the speed of the NBA game he will be a very solid if not spectacular ball player. He's definitely better than any big men the Nets currently have so stop your whining. Rj is GONE whether you like it or not so just deal with it and be optimistic about this young talented team we have now.

[Preludepunk27]

That increase is going to be minor though. More people may buy his shoes, but the increase won't even be enough to cover the difference in contracts that Cleveland can offer. It sure as heck won't be in the $50 million range.

LeBron is already a global name. He is already the highest paid American athlete in all of the team sports. LeBron goes beyond the question of "what market does he play for". His sales won't increase that much by moving to New Jersey. He will get more local sales, but that is really minor compared to everything else. LeBron is already at or near the peak when it comes to endorsement dollars.

You'd honestly be surprised that, yes he is a global name, but not as much as you think. I've been to Japan and China a few times over the last 5 or so years and yeah he's there but I wouldn't say he's like godzilla huge. Honestly, the 2 most global names in the NBA are Kobe and Shaq in terms of active players.

And Nike doesn't just make shoes by the way.

It's not gonna be in the $50 million range but unless the Cavs win a title in the next couple years, and depending on how other teams build/set up cap space, a major market is more enticing...even if it only means a few more dollars.

Not even close. LeBron is easily the NBA's most marketable star, which is why he earns the most in endorsements....he almost doubles what Kobe makes. LeBron has been on the covers of SI, ESPN, Sporting News, etc but he has also been on the cover of Fortune, Wall Street Journal, and Vogue. He goes beyond the NBA and basketball already.

LeBron is also much more popular in Asia than Shaq and Kobe. He is HUGE over there.

Have you been to Asia or Japan? Just curious because that isn't accurate. Yes...he is huge over there, but Kobe is still bigger. Is he a household name for sports fans over there? Yes. Is he the biggest as of today? No.

[S.I.C. GM]

undecided...I understand the perspective on this trade...just not 100% sure I like this...

Re-signing Carter signaled the end of RJ, I think. Having both RJ and Vince without JKidd was redundant. It seems like the Nets are in rebuilding mode and RJ's contract was getting in the way.

That plus the thinking that Yi would entice the heavy Chinese population in NY into watching Nets games must be a major breaking point that this deal fell through. After all, in the end, it's still about the money right?

IMO Kidd leaving was the end of this team. If VC didnt get hurt, both guys would have been on the chopping block. All that BS about staying competitive was another Thorn Jedi Mind Trick. VC will be traded as soon as he comes back to health. Some team will need him for the playoff run.

[S.I.C. GM]

what if we don't even land lebron?

then we're screwed.. but we're getting lebron. Plenty of cap space, moving to Brooklyn, friends with jay z, shot at a championship if he comes.. it all fits.

Harris
CDR
LBJ
Yi
Lopez

IMO Thorn will get a star SG either by FA or draft since we will be in the lottery for a few years.

IMO VC is not part of this equation.