Brooklyn Nets 2017/18 End of Season Review: Awards and Grades

[Keith Van Horn]

Great assessments Churns!

Quick thing before I go one... don't want to harp on this or even say it really mattered much in the long run, but the Trevor Booker trade probably had a bigger impact on this season than most of us realized. I think if we kept him and didn't go for that trade (value in the pick though, I know) we probably would of had around 35 wins. Wouldn't have changed anything long term as he would've been gone after this season, but winning a 7 or so more games could have been fun.

-------

I still have faith that D'Angelo will figure it out. From his perspective, I'm sure it was a weird season.

1. Get traded to a brand new franchise so early in your career and have to listen to crap from the former organization.
2. Lose your starting backcourt mate in game 1.
3. Have a hot stretch to start the season, only to have an injury setback.
4. Need unexpected (maybe expected?) knee surgery as a 21 year old.
5. Come back in a bench role with mixed results. Maybe shaking off rust and rebuilding physical confidence. Is it Spence's show now?
6. Return to the starting lineup, and still have mixed results. Is he a PG, SG, or what?
7. Get some much needed tough love from the coaching staff, including 4th quarter benchings and a late 1st-4th quarter benching.

Not one to make excuses, but it's always best to get a complete understanding of a situation when you really try to look through someone else's perspective.

I'm not sure what Lin's future with this team holds... but I believe a full year of healthy Lin providing veteran leadership to Russell will help with a lot of things like turnovers, late game decisions, and some intangibles.

Bottom line, I like D'Angelo a lot and have faith that in another 2-3 years, he'll be a bonafide NBA stud that people will respect.

Outside of DLO....
(these are just my short assessments bc I don't have all the time to really commit)

RHJ -- I think RHJ was so amazing this year. I definitely had my doubts about the guy, criticized him as a SF, criticized his 3 point ability... and he proved me wrong by being a super useful and versatile PF.

However... I'd like to think we still need a real stretch 4 to make it in the NBA today. I'd love to see us hang onto RHJ, but what about moving him into a reserve role going forward, and still guaranteeing him big minutes every night (like 25+)?

CLV -- It was awesome to see him transform his game into a passing guard's one and improve his 3 point shot. I think he's going to improve leaps and bounds next year too and really surprise us.

Harris -- This guy better come back. To me, him, Rondae, and DMC were the real leaders this year. He did a little bit of everything for us and I was so happy seeing him have the success he did at driving to the rim.

DMC -- Posted about him in his thread, basically saying if we don't trade him, I'd like for him to end his career here. The leadership and role modeling he provided was super important to this team and probably prevented us from falling apart at times.

Allen -- How can you not love him? I'm sure we all agree that this kid has a bright future. Glad the Nets landed him and no regrets at all.

Dinwiddie -- Still on the fence with him... Love his performance mid season, but if anyone is expendable this off season it'd be him. A lot of guys are probably thinking the same thing; if we can trade him.

Crabbe -- Just super inconsistent, but when he was on, he was on. Crazy to think too he hit 201 3's this year. If he can be more of a nightly presence on the floor next year... I say he hits 220 next year.

Okafor -- Not much to say other than a disappointment. Really intriguing if they actually bring him back next year, which is what we're lead to believe with all the Atkinson talk "need an off season to prepare". Can you imagine if he was able to do what Cunningham did for us by stretching the floor? They'd easily be wanting to bring him back in a reserve role.

Acy -- thanks for the memories, and good luck with your next team.

[Trader_Joe]

My grades..

JA: A
Wasn't sure he was ready, he was.

RHJ: A-
Good season overall, would have liked to see the 3 added and some bigger rebounding #'s but still a great season

Harris: A-
Probably should be an A, but oh well

Carroll: B+
An A+ when you factor in the picks we got

CLV: B
Had a slow start, but his ability to transition to PG was huge

Dinwiddie: B
He hit the wall at the end, and wasn't a great fit with D.Lo but overall a great season

Cunningham: B-
Loved what he gave us post trade deadline

Crabbe: C
Another slow start and he really needed to be over 40%, but his rebounding and D was a nice bonus as were some monster offensivr games

Russell: C-
Expected more. Injuries didn't help

Acy: C-
I was hoping for more consistent 3 point shooting. He was awful from deep for a long stretch

Stauskas: D
Had a promising start and then showed nothing

Mozgov: D
I don't think he's as bad as we think and I think KA should have played him more, but still a terrible contract

Okafor: D-
Not sure any coach or team could salvage him

Whitehead: INC
Need to see him the big league. G.League means little

Lin: INC
I think he was primed for a good season, but that injury hurt badly.

Other:
Atkinson: B-
His rotations and decision making need some work, but I like his development of players and offensive philosophy.

Marks: B+
Jury is still out on his biggest move (Russell) and the Crabbe deal is looking better, but I'm still not sure he was worth trading for.


Overall: B
If not for injuries and refs hosing us, this should have been a team with 35 wins or so. Overall, a good season and one that gives good hope for next year.

[Prokorov]

I would love to here what everyone thinks. What do you agree with? What do you disagree with? What do you all think about the season?

To be honest i think you pretty much hit it spot on. only 2 things id change is flip RHJ as MVP with carroll runnner up and id bump Acy's grade from a C to a B- (he was arguably our best defender this year).

but spot on and great break down

[MrDollarBills]

Quincy Acy was hitting nearly 40% from downtown and his TS was 59% post all star break, I'm not sure why people piss on the guy.

speaking of 3point %, Caris LeVert ended the season with 35% and shot an excellent 37% post all star break. The one thing we wanted to see from LeVert improve from last season is headed in the right direction.

Piggybacking off of Curn's post:

Jarrett Allen (8ppg, 5rpb, 1 blk, PER 17.6): A
One of the biggest steals in the draft, he will indeed go onto become one of our franchise players.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (14ppg, 7rpg, 3apg, 1spg, PER 16.9): A+
I can't really say much more. Evolved into a two way player and is deadly in the midrange game. He was the best player on this team all season long.

Joe Harris (11ppg, 3rpg, 2apg, PER 13.4): A+
Deadly from downtown, and by far one of the best players we have ever had at cutting, catching, and finishing and this is WITHOUT elite athleticism. Retain this man or suffer dearly, Nets.

Caris LeVert (12ppg, 4rpg, 4apg, 1spg, PER 14.3): B
After a rough start, he really found his niche at playing PG and I would prefer to see him play that position full time. Improved 3point shot and he got physically stronger.

Spencer Dinwiddie (13ppg, 3rpg, 7apg, PER 15.9): B-
Spencer did a ton of heavy lifting this season that goes unappreciated, but he really hit a wall mentally and physically after all star break. Still, he proved that he is a capable NBA starting PG and is excellent at taking care of the ball. I have no problems with keeping him or using him to move up in the draft, but hats off to this guy who will be making some nice change in the future.

DeMarre Carroll (14ppg, 7rpg, 2 apg, PER 14.3): A
Consistent, hard working, and professional to the core. We were lucky that the Raptors traded him to us and gave us their pick to do so. Excellent three point shooting and defense. I'd welcome him back next season in a heartbeat.

Dante Cunningham (8ppg, 5rpg, 1apg, PER 13.8): B-
Loved his hustle, boards, and the fact that he could stretch the floor a bit. I like him a lot but not as a full time back up center. Either way, he was a welcome addition in the wake of losing Tyler Zeller, who I was a big fan of and would welcome back here.

D’Angelo Russell (16ppg, 4rpg, 5apg, PER 15.3): C+
The knee surgery, while necessary, really threw things off for him, but overall I see a lot of upside especially if he can get his shooting percentage from downtown up into the 36-38% range. He needs to become more consistent and become better on knowing when he needs to distribute and when he needs to put the team on his back. His best games were not the games where he exploded scoring wise, but the ones where he played a balanced overall game (and those games, not surprisingly, were the games we won). I have faith in him that he can pull it together.


Allen Crabbe (13ppg, 4rpg, 2apg, PER 12.3): B-
He also is another guys that needs to become more consistent (his offensive aggressiveness is off and on). We need "AC" to show up 4 out of every 5 games, not just every now and then. On defense I thought he exceeded all expectations. Very disruptive in the passing lanes and challenging shots. He was excellent on the defensive glass. Also, we can say what we want about his paygrade but this guy was not taking possessions off on D.

Quincy Acy (6ppg, 4rpg, PER 8.2): C+
Acy did his job, hit threes, played physically, grabbed boards. He was lights out post ASB.

Isaiah Whitehead (16 games played, 6ppg, 2rpg, 1apg, PER 11.6): N/A
I can't really give Whitehead a fair grade, the kid barely played. Lets hope he is still working hard regardless, i think he's a capable combo guard that just needs to get his 3point shot in order.

Jahlil Okafor (26 games played, 12 minutes per game, 6ppg, 3rpg, PER 15.9): N/A
It's hard to grade the guy as well....he didn't play much. He had some good moments, but his defense and rebounding techniques need serious work. I don't know what will happen with him. He really needs to develop a 3 point shot if he even is going to have a chance.

Nik Stauskas (5ppg, 2rpg, 1apg, PER 9.8): D
Nik had some hot moments but overall I don't really see a future here for him unless we let Joe Harris walk.

Timofey Mozgov (31 games played, 4ppg, 3rpg, PER 12.3): F
The cost of doing business sometimes is very steep.

Sean Marks: A, this guy continues to build this franchise back up brick by brick with his barehands and little else. Now he has young assets, 3 picks in the 2018 draft, our pick in the 2019 draft and a collection of assets at his disposal. We're in good hands.

Kenny Atkinson: B-, needs to improve in game decision making and he needs to change his defensive philosophy. On offense, we need to maintain the 3point barrage but we need to incorporate kinks into the offense to fully maximize what our main guys can do. He continues to be a master at player development. RHJ and LeVert took a huge leap this year. kudos.

Overall, with better health our record would have been easily 32 wins. Next season we will improve more and with Lin back in the mix we should be even more fun to watch. Hopefully we can find a way to infuse some size and athleticism in with our core bunch.

[kamaze]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

Rhondae matured a lot over the summer and during the season starting behind Booker ending as the starter. He was tops for the team in scoring and rebounding.
The team needs help in the rebounding department hopefully they address that in the offseason.
They also can use a younger power forward that can hit the three and give the team a different look.

DeMarre Carroll was a steady influence on the team knowing the coach's system and what was expected oh him. His leadership was more important than his stats.

Spoiler:

DeMarre Carroll played perhaps the best basketball of his career. He led by example for the team’s younger guys. His leadership inside the locker room is simply immeasurable, like we said, an intangible.

Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson told him from Day One this would be his biggest role, Carroll said. The role doesn’t end with the end of the season either.

Allen Crabbe started off slow (that's what the word on him was) but he got a lot better defensively early in the season. Offensively he was an inconsistent scorer he's a passive player the coaches wanted him to be more aggressive.
Overall he had a good 1st year in Brooklyn I'm confident he'll get better.

D'Angelo Russell was traded for in the offseason and the plan was to play he and Jeremy Lin together. Aftetr Lin went down DLO became the point guard but had knee surgery 12 games later.
The team felt cursed at that point but Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris LeVert stepped up as point guards and the team kept fighting.

DLO came back off the bench first and then playing next to Dinwiddie as shooting guard. That didn't work so Dinwiddie was sent back to the bench with DLO as the starting point guard. He had a rough season (turnovers,bad defense) hope he stays in the gym with DeMarre and Caris over the summer to improve on his weaknesses.

Joe Harris was great this year efficent from the field thanks to him driving past defenders running out to stop him hitting threes :)
He worked hard on that part of his game.

Quincy Acy was a good three point shooter as MDB pointed out and he was a great teammate the only player willing to fight. That's not what makes him a good teammate though. He was always uplifting his brethren and celebrating on the bench every game. :lol:
Like Demarre Carroll, the intangibles he brings make him more valuable than just his stats.

Dante Cunningham played good to end the season shooting threes and adding toughness he just isn't big enough to play center I don't know if they bring him back or not.

[MrDollarBills]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

Rhondae matured a lot over the summer and during the season starting behind Booker ending as the starter. He was tops for the team in scoring and rebounding.
The team needs help in the rebounding department hopefully they address that in the offseason.
They also can use a younger power forward that can hit the three and give the team a different look.

DeMarre Carroll was a steady influence on the team knowing the coach's system and what was expected oh him. His leadership was more important than his stats.

Spoiler:

DeMarre Carroll played perhaps the best basketball of his career. He led by example for the team’s younger guys. His leadership inside the locker room is simply immeasurable, like we said, an intangible.

Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson told him from Day One this would be his biggest role, Carroll said. The role doesn’t end with the end of the season either.

Allen Crabbe started off slow (that's what the word on him was) but he got a lot better defensively early in the season. Offensively he was an inconsistent scorer he's a passive player the coaches wanted him to be more aggressive.
Overall he had a good 1st year in Brooklyn I'm confident he'll get better.

D'Angelo Russell was traded for in the offseason and the plan was to play he and Jeremy Lin together. Aftetr Lin went down DLO became the point guard but had knee surgery 12 games later.
The team felt cursed at that point but Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris LeVert stepped up as point guards and the team kept fighting.

DLO came back off the bench first and then playing next to Dinwiddie as shooting guard. That didn't work so Dinwiddie was sent back to the bench with DLO as the starting point guard. He had a rough season (turnovers,bad defense) hope he stays in the gym with DeMarre and Caris over the summer to improve on his weaknesses.

Joe Harris was great this year efficent from the field thanks to him driving past defenders running out to stop him hitting threes
He worked hard on that part of his game.

Quincy Acy was a good three point shooter as MDB pointed out and he was a great teammate the only player willing to fight. That's not what makes him a good teammate though. He was always uplifting his brethren and celebrating on the bench every game.
Like Demarre Carroll, the intangibles he brings make him more valuable than just his stats.

Dante Cunningham played good to end the season shooting threes and adding toughness he just isn't big enough to play center I don't know if they bring him back or not.

One thing about this team that I love is how supportive they are of one another.

And yes, Acy's willingness to beat someone's ass is a great asset. in fact, we could use another guy on the roster who will knock someone's head in imo. got to protect these young players.

[kamaze]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

Rhondae matured a lot over the summer and during the season starting behind Booker ending as the starter. He was tops for the team in scoring and rebounding.
The team needs help in the rebounding department hopefully they address that in the offseason.
They also can use a younger power forward that can hit the three and give the team a different look.

DeMarre Carroll was a steady influence on the team knowing the coach's system and what was expected oh him. His leadership was more important than his stats.

Spoiler:

DeMarre Carroll played perhaps the best basketball of his career. He led by example for the team’s younger guys. His leadership inside the locker room is simply immeasurable, like we said, an intangible.

Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson told him from Day One this would be his biggest role, Carroll said. The role doesn’t end with the end of the season either.

Allen Crabbe started off slow (that's what the word on him was) but he got a lot better defensively early in the season. Offensively he was an inconsistent scorer he's a passive player the coaches wanted him to be more aggressive.
Overall he had a good 1st year in Brooklyn I'm confident he'll get better.

D'Angelo Russell was traded for in the offseason and the plan was to play he and Jeremy Lin together. Aftetr Lin went down DLO became the point guard but had knee surgery 12 games later.
The team felt cursed at that point but Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris LeVert stepped up as point guards and the team kept fighting.

DLO came back off the bench first and then playing next to Dinwiddie as shooting guard. That didn't work so Dinwiddie was sent back to the bench with DLO as the starting point guard. He had a rough season (turnovers,bad defense) hope he stays in the gym with DeMarre and Caris over the summer to improve on his weaknesses.

Joe Harris was great this year efficent from the field thanks to him driving past defenders running out to stop him hitting threes :)
He worked hard on that part of his game.

Quincy Acy was a good three point shooter as MDB pointed out and he was a great teammate the only player willing to fight. That's not what makes him a good teammate though. He was always uplifting his brethren and celebrating on the bench every game. :lol:
Like Demarre Carroll, the intangibles he brings make him more valuable than just his stats.

Dante Cunningham played good to end the season shooting threes and adding toughness he just isn't big enough to play center I don't know if they bring him back or not.

One thing about this team that I love is how supportive they are of one another.

And yes, Acy's willingness to beat someone's ass is a great asset. in fact, we could use another guy on the roster who will knock someone's head in imo. got to protect these young players.

Preferably a legit sized center to throw some elbows in practice Jarret has to toughen up.

[Prokorov]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

[kamaze]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

Chandler would be a perfect player for Allen to learn from but how the hell can they get him? I think trading for him would cost too much. Maybe they can offer DeWayne Deadmon a contract if he opts out.

[kamaze]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

Chandler would be a perfect player for Allen to learn from but how the hell can they get him? I think trading for him would cost too much. Maybe they can offer DeWayne Deadmon a contract if he opts out.

Aaron Baynes is another option also Alex Len from PHX.

[Prokorov]

Jarret Allen exceeded expectations this year he'd benefit if Marks can find another center to help him progress. He said Zeller taught him a lot.

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

Chandler would be a perfect player for Allen to learn from but how the hell can they get him? I think trading for him would cost too much. Maybe they can offer DeWayne Deadmon a contract if he opts out.

Carroll + 29 might get it done.

[Curns13]

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

Chandler would be a perfect player for Allen to learn from but how the hell can they get him? I think trading for him would cost too much. Maybe they can offer DeWayne Deadmon a contract if he opts out.

Carroll + 29 might get it done.

If Phoenix gets the first pick and drafts Ayton, there is no way known to man I am moving Chandler, for the exact same reason we might want him.

[Curns13]

I'm not expecting anything major this offseason but if marks can find a way to get tyson chandler in here id be extatic...

Chandler would be a perfect player for Allen to learn from but how the hell can they get him? I think trading for him would cost too much. Maybe they can offer DeWayne Deadmon a contract if he opts out.

Aaron Baynes is another option also Alex Len from PHX.

As an Aussie I would love to see Baynes on the Nets, that would guarantee my next jersey. But as a Nets fan, I’m not sure if he’s really what we need. He doesn’t shoot 3s at all and last season he played his most minutes and his shooting and advanced stats tanked (2nd worst fg% of his career and worst PER, VORP and WS/48 since 2013/14). He absolutely killed Allen in our last game, so maybe he’s worth $3M just to throw elbows at the kid all summer long.

[MrDollarBills]

I like Baynes regardless of the regression. Baynes is exactly the kind of guy who would whip Allen into shape. He's an ass hole and engages in thuggery on the court.

We need guys like that in the front court and on the wing. You guys think I'm crazy when I say that we need a player or two on this team who is down to get into a fist fight on the court but I'm dead serious. Look at how that Portland/New Orleans went down today. The Blazers committed some hard fouls today that were pretty suspect. That hard foul by McCollum on Moore would have resulted in a clock cleaning back in the mid 80s to early 90s where hard fouls were dealt with appropriately. he shouldn't have gotten a forearm to the chest, he should have been punched in the face. that was a foul that could have easily resulted in catastrophic injury.

Anthony Davis, E’Twaun Moore, and Rondo were all ready to scrap today on their way to finishing the Blazers off. we have some good dudes on this roster, but the climb upwards will require that we have some players on this roster who will not take **** from anyone

[kamaze]

I like Baynes regardless of the regression. Baynes is exactly the kind of guy who would whip Allen into shape. He's an ass hole and engages in thuggery on the court.

We need guys like that in the front court and on the wing. You guys think I'm crazy when I say that we need a player or two on this team who is down to get into a fist fight on the court but I'm dead serious. Look at how that Portland/New Orleans went down today. The Blazers committed some hard fouls today that were pretty suspect. That hard foul by McCollum on Moore would have resulted in a clock cleaning back in the mid 80s to early 90s where hard fouls were dealt with appropriately. he shouldn't have gotten a forearm to the chest, he should have been punched in the face. that was a foul that could have easily resulted in catastrophic injury.

Anthony Davis, E’Twaun Moore, and Rondo were all ready to scrap today on their way to finishing the Blazers off. we have some good dudes on this roster, but the climb upwards will require that we have some players on this roster who will not take **** from anyone

Yup like Malcom X said "if you're not willing to die for it put the word freedom out of you're vocabulary."
In other words if you aint willing to fight for it you don't want it bad enough.