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... but I'm loving the "progress" of the Brooklyn team. Losing, getting injured, acting old - it's all a dream come true. I want them to fail so we can get a lottery pick ... and I didn't even have to fix the brakes on the team bus.

Gotta admit, they look bad. Garnett and Pierce have come back to earth, Joe's a shadow of his former self, Williams is injured, even Lopez is getting banged up. Is it possible for them to continue their lousy ways (and deliver a lottery pick to us) or are they so talented that it's just a matter of time before they explode?

Just last night I was trying to figure a way to talk about this, but I figured there was simply no way I could while being somewhat tactful. Now that it's out there...

I really don't know what to make of them though. The Atlantic is terrible and it could be that a sub-.500 team takes the division. The Atlantic winner could be a team that snookers out another team a better record from the playoffs. This also means BRK has 16 games left against Toronto, Boston, NYK, and PHI.

OTOH, I could also see a situation where their divas start checking out of the season pretty quick. Sure, KG is a respected leader and all, but he's already blown up on the team once and his on the court play has been really, really bad. You have to wonder when people will start just tuning him out. If things break "right" (I'm not generally one to revel in another's misery, but... yeah, I'd like that pick), I could very well see this team 10 games under .500 before we hit the New Year. If things go this bad, then I've read at least one BRK poster who doesn't think that the coaching staff would have the wherewithal to get things back on track... that poster blamed it on the staff, but in all honesty, I don't think even Phil Jackson or Pat Riley could keep a team with this many divas in check if things went badly awry. Let's just hope Prokhorov doesn't get any of his "business associates" involved...

Only thing tempering my excitement is just how awful their division and the rest of the East has been. Make up 2 games on the Sixers and they are all of a sudden the 4th seed (likely coming to Atlanta to start their playoff series). The Knicks are imploding just as badly, Toronto still sucks, Boston is tanking and you have to imagine that Philly is going to go ahead and say "alright, we proved our point. Time to pack it in guys, for real this time".

If there ever was a time to root for Woody.....come on MCW, get your ass out of that walking boot and back on the court....you too, Rondo.....Raptors....sorry, I can't see any hope for you guys.

The biggest problem with that team to me is coaching. J.Kidd has no experience and no style of playing. I still think that great players rarely do well when coaching. When you watch them play, they seem lost and unsure of what they want to run. Now, Garnett has too much pride to let that team just lay an egg every night. I don't see how they don't make the playoffs given how weak the East is except for about 4-5 teams. They have to play through Lopez, their best player now, and D. Will, my favorite PG in the league needs to get back to all-star shape. They have the pieces to be competitive, it's just a matter of putting them in a position to succeed, that can be done, even with J. Kidd being the coach.

Skyhawk1 wrote:The biggest problem with that team to me is coaching. J.Kidd has no experience and no style of playing.

Bingo.

A less talented Nets team contended for the division and a top two seed last season. Yet this iteration with better, veteran players is substantially worse.

Why put together the most expensive assemblage of players in NBA History, but put them under the guidance of someone with zero coaching experience at any level?

I was as critical of the JJ trade as anyone. But if we manage to pull a top 5 pick out of this draft, that single trade could be the most improtant transaction in Hawks History....

Forget Wiggins. Jabari Parker could be the absiloute answer to our prayers. The size, the range, the one-on-one skills.

I know it's a pipe dream, but that kid would fit perfectly on our roster.

With every Nets loss I get a little more hopeful.

Thirded on the Nets being done in by bad coaching. On a team with so much established veteran talent, it's amazing that they spend so much time posting up and taking isolation shots when they should be running high-percentage plays. Still though, I find it hard to believe that a team with so much talent won't eventually get it together.

I haven't watched enough college basketball to judge just yet, but all of the top 3 have some flags for me.
Wiggins - doesn't look that aggressive
Randle - No position, not explosive
Parker - fat

Not to say that they won't be great, just that I have some reservations.

Parker is legit as they come. Really had not thought of the division thing. What if the Nets win there division but have like the 10th best record in the east? Even though they made the playoffs would they still be a lottery team?

SBM wrote:Parker is legit as they come. Really had not thought of the division thing. What if the Nets win there division but have like the 10th best record in the east? Even though they made the playoffs would they still be a lottery team?

Nope, you make the playoffs you aren't in the lotto. They'll be nicely nestled in at the 15th pick.

I do think the NEts will figure it out enough in that division to at least get into the playoffs. They have played a lot of Road games to start the season and have already had one west coast trip. I doubt now that they will be a top 4 team in the east though. So, the pick will end up being in the 15th or 16th (could the east be so bad this year that the 10th worst team picks 16th because they make the playoffs? Crazy)

Would a package centered around Afflalo for Lou Williams and the nets pick work?

Afflalo is playing like an all star this year and would be enough to help the Hawks contend this year.

I'm assuming the nets pick isn't protected but can someone verify that for me? For example if the ended up with the number one pick, could or would we get it? or does it have to be outside the top five pick?

It is a swop without protection. Hawks have to give their pic for nets if nets is the better pick.
So, it's without protection but not a second pick.
Hawks just get the best pick even if it is number 1

alright thanks for clearing that up for me.

azuresou1 wrote:I haven't watched enough college basketball to judge just yet, but all of the top 3 have some flags for me.
Wiggins - doesn't look that aggressive
Randle - No position, not explosive
Parker - fat

Not to say that they won't be great, just that I have some reservations.

Parker is a little chubby and lacks explosive athleticism. A couple of draft sites compare him to Paul Pierce. From those here who've seen him play. Is this a somewhat accurate comparison? Their body makeup is certainly similar.

Wait... weren't you the one saying we should take Parker?

As of right now NBADraft projects us as having the 3rd pick =)

azuresou1 wrote:Wait... weren't you the one saying we should take Parker?

As of right now NBADraft projects us as having the 3rd pick =)

And I stand by that. I was agreeing with your statement that he looks unconditioned. Most scouts mention this and his lack of athleticism, comparing him to Carmelo and Paul Pierce.

A young, unselfish Paul Pierce-lite on this squad would be a wonderful addition.

I guess I can't complain about adding a rookie Paul Pierce or Carmelo to this team, LOL

Still... I'm a little greedy and would like to dream that we can draft Wiggins and he turns into a Paul George/LeBron hybrid.

Our team with Pierce becomes a contender. Our team with LeBron 2.0 becomes a championship favorite.

Figured I join this conversation although if we talk too much then we should add the Draft sticky that been up the last two years. Even though it might be a tad early to dream on a top 4-5 pick (I'll put that in another post below), it's still nice to dream...

In all honesty, I'd look hard at Exum and Smart after Wiggins. The O can go cold if Teague isn't hot and having a 2nd PG type (except one that can guard the SG) would add a lot to the O. If the PG isn't being a game changer on a particular day, then we can just switch over to letting the SG lead the O and see what that brings. Exum needs to gain some weight before I would think he could guard the SG position at the NBA level, but that really didn't stop Ferry from snagging the 3 guys he drafted and kept last year. Smart seems more ready made and is a class act to boot - I really don't know why he's generally considered a tier below the top 4.

If I was to score them 1-5 for our team, I'd have 1) Wiggins, 2) Exum, 3) Parker, 4) Smart, 5) Randle. That's just me though... in all honesty, I'd guess there's a decent argument for putting them in any order especially if you switch around the team you're selecting for.

Jamaaliver wrote:Parker is a little chubby and lacks explosive athleticism. A couple of draft sites compare him to Paul Pierce. From those here who've seen him play. Is this a somewhat accurate comparison? Their body makeup is certainly similar.

I'd guess I could see the comparison although I'd think it a bit lazy. Parker was in very good shape before a HS injury put him out for a year and you can see that he's still rounding into shape. The bigger deal about Parker is that I think his game is much smoother than Pierce's. Always looked like things didn't necessarily come naturally to Pierce and he had to eke out some extra advantages (like the kicking his legs out on a shot to get a foul called on someone) to get his. The game seems to come more naturally to Parker and he always looks in rhythm. For full disclosure, I absolutely hate Paul Pierce... always have - going all the way back to his days at Kansas. Might even be personal at this point although I've never met him and he wouldn't know me if I hit him in the face.

azuresou1 wrote:I guess I can't complain about adding a rookie Paul Pierce or Carmelo to this team, LOL

Still... I'm a little greedy and would like to dream that we can draft Wiggins and he turns into a Paul George/LeBron hybrid.

Our team with Pierce becomes a contender. Our team with LeBron 2.0 becomes a championship favorite.

I think there's been some confusion with Wiggins. The "best prospect since LeBron" tag he's gotten has people comparing the two which is really unfair to him. Their body types aren't similar which is why LeBron could be a PF in base while Wiggins shouldn't be and Wiggins doesn't have James' innate court vision that he had since (at least) his HS days. I would think the Paul George comparisons match up to what Wiggins could be. Just think Wiggins' upside would be closer to someone who can do everything you expect out of a wing (like George) and do it at a very good to elite level for the position instead of someone who can do anything on the basketball court - from the PG position to the C - at an elite level like LeBron. Even so, I can't think that anyone would be considered too heavily for the #1 slot outside of Wiggins - just because he isn't LeBron doesn't mean he isn't the best prospect since LeBron. Randle, Parker, Exum, and even Smart are nice prospects, but no one brings the full package of size for the position, athleticism, skills, age, and resume that Wiggins does.

OK guys, I think we'll know MUCH more about our draft position in the upcoming 2+ weeks. If BRK is going to wake up and get it together then it really has to happen over these next two weeks- they have 4 games in divisonal game (PHI 2x, BOS, NYK), 2 other very winnable road games (MIL and DET), and a schizo WASH team @ home - they also have a home game with LAC. I don't see another extended stretch of games where they are as set up as this one to have a nice winning streak that would calm down the egos on the team.

Here's my thoughts: they're 5-13 right now. Who knows when AK47 comes back (he doesn't); Terry is out for a week; Pierce is out for the duration; I don't know Deron's status. If they're 6-20 coming out of this stretch, then I think the thoughts of getting a top 5 pick in this draft go from being a really nice dream to something that's actually a concrete hope. If they go .500 for the stretch (and end up around 9-17), then I'm still guessing a late(-ish) lotto although the possibility of being an incredibly bad division winner is still very possible. OTOH, if they do wake up put together a 7-1/8-0 stretch here, then I'm not sure if we'll be swapping the picks.

Anyway, starting tomorrow, I'm officially one of the biggest fans of NYK... and then whoever is playing BRK on that day for the next 2+ weeks. Hope everyone joins the bandwagon!!

The fact the rest of the East is so bad right now is giving the Nets life to make the playoffs. They SHOULD be in a deep hole, but realistically, they are only 3 games out of making the playoffs with teams like Cleveland, Charlotte, Boston, Toronto and Philly in front of them(aka, teams that will simply not be very good)