***BREAKING: Kevin Durant + Nets come to Agreement. WE RUN IT BACK****

[3pt_chucker]

Only thing the roster is truly missing is a stretch 5 but I think that's a bit of a luxury position and reallyyy hard to find one that get legit mins. We will be seeing A LOT of small ball.

Claxton, Ben, KD, Royce, Sharpe will all see mins at the 5. Plus the team will probably sign Boogie and/or another 4 that can be a small ball 5.

The NBA right now is about wings. Only about 3-4 teams have a legit center we have to care about: Phil, Den, Minn. Every other team would have to adjust to the Nets and play smaller.

Depending on how the season goes(injuries etc) I can see a trade be made but it's probably smart to see how the roster fits first.

[Shark]

Not surprising. It's pretty obvious that there was no real market for KD without having to take pennies on the dollar. I just hope that this is mostly settled and that the toxicity was mostly for show. But I don't really have a great feeling for this season. On paper we're pretty good (aside from center), but I just wonder what the lockerroom is going to be like.

[MagicBagley18]

So y’all believe again?

[TheNetsFan]

Kyrie/Mills/Sumner
Harris/Curry/Thomas
O'Neale/Warren
Durant/Edwards
Simmons/Claxton/Sharpe

Simmons will see some time at the 4, but we need a reliable backup PF & a true PG that can run an offense.

[Netaman]

I think Blake would be a good add. His identity is absolutely what this team needs.

If we have any TEs left and anything Denver wants, Jeff Green would be a nice pickup too.

The thing they need more than anything else is to buy in with cohesion and realize they all need each other right now and that winning will cure all. Nobody wanted Kyrie except LA, the offers on KD were meh, and everyone still thinks Simmons is crazy.

Work together for 10 months and they can have the last laugh though.

[Netaman]

Kyrie/Mills/Sumner
Harris/Curry/Thomas
O'Neale/Warren
Durant/Edwards
Simmons/Claxton/Sharpe

Simmons will see some time at the 4, but we need a reliable backup PF & a true PG that can run an offense.

I think Simmons is going to be the PG and Kyrie is going to basically be a SG again like he was with Harden.

Simmons is great at getting guys open 3's, with KD/Kyrie/Harris/Curry/O'Neale that seems like the winning strategy on offense. Will also take some wear and tear of KD/Kyrie from needing to spend as much energy on ball creating.

Will be interesting to see how the D comes together. My biggest gripe with Nash is that he overplayed KD to such an extreme degree his defense was crap. I don't expect him to be all NBA D, but in the final 2m i think he can be good. O'neale, Simmons, and Claxton need to be the core of a consistently solid defense over full games.

[Netaman]

Shifting gears, what kind of small ball/stretch centers do we think are out there? Claxton could use a solid compliment able to play down the stretch without fear of missed FTs.

Aforementioned Jeff Green would be great. Someone with a little more size would be better. Blake can kind of fit that role.

Any other names?

[CalamityX12]

Can't help but feel desensitized to the whole thing... sure he's running back now but doesn't mean he'll ask out after week 2, so it's hard to rally behind this.

Also, speaking on the NETs end, i don't believe a effing word they publish, they all about the money and sales(rightfully so too, still a business). This speaks more about retaining ticket season holders, getting new season tix holders, jerseys sales, everything... getting back up for the season before the next pile of poop hits the fan. I believe that more so than this being a good omen for Nets Basketball.

How Nash is still here is BS and hope the fans(what's left) boo the sh*t out of him to get the point across(sorry, Nash, you're a great guy but not acceptable as a coach).

We running it back, like ok, whatever... talk to us when things get tough again lol

[MrDollarBills]

I don't see us starting Ben at C.

[MrDollarBills]

I think Blake would be a good add. His identity is absolutely what this team needs.

If we have any TEs left and anything Denver wants, Jeff Green would be a nice pickup too.

The thing they need more than anything else is to buy in with cohesion and realize they all need each other right now and that winning will cure all. Nobody wanted Kyrie except LA, the offers on KD were meh, and everyone still thinks Simmons is crazy.

Work together for 10 months and they can have the last laugh though.

Nash all but killed any good will between Blake and the team

[MGrand15]

Only thing the roster is truly missing is a stretch 5 but I think that's a bit of a luxury position and reallyyy hard to find one that get legit mins. We will be seeing A LOT of small ball.

Claxton, Ben, KD, Royce, Sharpe will all see mins at the 5. Plus the team will probably sign Boogie and/or another 4 that can be a small ball 5.

The NBA right now is about wings. Only about 3-4 teams have a legit center we have to care about: Phil, Den, Minn. Every other team would have to adjust to the Nets and play smaller.

Depending on how the season goes(injuries etc) I can see a trade be made but it's probably smart to see how the roster fits first.

IDK. I like small ball but a lot of the good teams are really big.

Milwaukee has Giannis and Portis/Lopez to punish smaller guys.
Boston has Williams and Horford. And size 1 through 5.
Philly has Embiid.

I think you can go small against A LOT of teams. But I'd argue the top 3 teams in the East have bigs that you need to at least kind of slow down. That's a big problem come playoff time. Clax and KD just don't have the bulk to deal with these guys.

[haosmoove]

The remaining FA options at centers are so limited that they either don't fit our switch everything scheme (Whiteside Cousins) or they aren't much of an upgrade over playing Simmons at small ball 5. I still like the Nets to trade for a starting caliber center to play 28-32 minutes. Couple of realistic options I like:

FRP + Cam Thomas + Harris for Myles Turner
FRP + Curry for Holmes

Of course if Griffin or LMA wants to come back, we should definitely bring one back. But we can still pursuit a starting center through trade. Given their age and decline I'd more comfortable with them as emergency 3rd center/matchup backup/injury replacement.

[MrDollarBills]

The remaining FA options at centers are so limited that they either don't fit our switch everything scheme (Whiteside Cousins) or they aren't much of an upgrade over playing Simmons at small ball 5. I still like the Nets to trade for a starting caliber center to play 28-32 minutes. Couple of realistic options I like:

FRP + Cam Thomas + Harris for Myles Turner
FRP + Curry for Holmes

Of course if Griffin or LMA wants to come back, we should definitely bring one back. But we can still pursuit a starting center through trade. Given their age and decline I'd more comfortable with them as emergency 3rd center/matchup backup/injury replacement.

I'm not trading Joe Harris.

I think Holmes has significant legal exposure right now if I'm not mistaken.

[TheNetsFan]

Kyrie/Mills/Sumner
Harris/Curry/Thomas
O'Neale/Warren
Durant/Edwards
Simmons/Claxton/Sharpe

Simmons will see some time at the 4, but we need a reliable backup PF & a true PG that can run an offense.

I think Simmons is going to be the PG and Kyrie is going to basically be a SG again like he was with Harden.

Simmons is great at getting guys open 3's, with KD/Kyrie/Harris/Curry/O'Neale that seems like the winning strategy on offense. Will also take some wear and tear of KD/Kyrie from needing to spend as much energy on ball creating.

Will be interesting to see how the D comes together. My biggest gripe with Nash is that he overplayed KD to such an extreme degree his defense was crap. I don't expect him to be all NBA D, but in the final 2m i think he can be good. O'neale, Simmons, and Claxton need to be the core of a consistently solid defense over full games.

This team should be running a 5 out or preferably the late, great Pete Carril Princeton Offense.

A smart post player with good passing skills is important as the offense will tend to revolve around the center, who is often a playmaker. When in the 4-out high or 2-3 high set (diagram A), all players are located at or above the free-throw line extended. This creates space underneath for cutting, especially back-door cuts. The high set and constant motion help eliminate inside helpside defense.

https://www.coachesclipboard.net/PrincetonOffense.html

[haosmoove]

The remaining FA options at centers are so limited that they either don't fit our switch everything scheme (Whiteside Cousins) or they aren't much of an upgrade over playing Simmons at small ball 5. I still like the Nets to trade for a starting caliber center to play 28-32 minutes. Couple of realistic options I like:

FRP + Cam Thomas + Harris for Myles Turner
FRP + Curry for Holmes

Of course if Griffin or LMA wants to come back, we should definitely bring one back. But we can still pursuit a starting center through trade. Given their age and decline I'd more comfortable with them as emergency 3rd center/matchup backup/injury replacement.

I'm not trading Joe Harris.

I think Holmes has significant legal exposure right now if I'm not mistaken.

With Turner, we can put 4 shooters around Simmons. I know Harris is one of the best shooter in the league, but with our situation, trading him for Turner can actually improve our spacing.

You are right on Holmes facing legal trouble. His ex accused him of domestic violence. (Maybe it explains why he played like garbage last year) Interestingly, the court awarded him full custody of their son, so I am leaning toward the evidence of his accusation is weak. Maybe we can even offer multiple SRP instead of future FRP. (Because it's Kings and they have Sabonis)

[TheNetsFan]

Only thing the roster is truly missing is a stretch 5 but I think that's a bit of a luxury position and reallyyy hard to find one that get legit mins. We will be seeing A LOT of small ball.

Claxton, Ben, KD, Royce, Sharpe will all see mins at the 5. Plus the team will probably sign Boogie and/or another 4 that can be a small ball 5.

The NBA right now is about wings. Only about 3-4 teams have a legit center we have to care about: Phil, Den, Minn. Every other team would have to adjust to the Nets and play smaller.

Depending on how the season goes(injuries etc) I can see a trade be made but it's probably smart to see how the roster fits first.

IDK. I like small ball but a lot of the good teams are really big.

Milwaukee has Giannis and Portis/Lopez to punish smaller guys.
Boston has Williams and Horford. And size 1 through 5.
Philly has Embiid.

I think you can go small against A LOT of teams. But I'd argue the top 3 teams in the East have bigs that you need to at least kind of slow down. That's a big problem come playoff time. Clax and KD just don't have the bulk to deal with these guys.

When did Portis, Horford and Williams become really big? They're all 6'10" or less, and roughly 240lbs. They're not bruising centers. They just have a willingness to play physical.

[gigantes]

I think Blake would be a good add. His identity is absolutely what this team needs.

I feel like Nash betrayed him this past season, particularly late last season.

Maybe Blake only works in limited matchups anymore, but at the least he should have been a rotation guy IMO.

Which brings us round to Nash, yet again.
I.e., I've no doubt he's learning and getting better, but if he keeps letting KD&KI dictate their own minutes (too many), then once again I see this team falling well short, probably due to injuries.

[3pt_chucker]

Only thing the roster is truly missing is a stretch 5 but I think that's a bit of a luxury position and reallyyy hard to find one that get legit mins. We will be seeing A LOT of small ball.

Claxton, Ben, KD, Royce, Sharpe will all see mins at the 5. Plus the team will probably sign Boogie and/or another 4 that can be a small ball 5.

The NBA right now is about wings. Only about 3-4 teams have a legit center we have to care about: Phil, Den, Minn. Every other team would have to adjust to the Nets and play smaller.

Depending on how the season goes(injuries etc) I can see a trade be made but it's probably smart to see how the roster fits first.

IDK. I like small ball but a lot of the good teams are really big.

Milwaukee has Giannis and Portis/Lopez to punish smaller guys.
Boston has Williams and Horford. And size 1 through 5.
Philly has Embiid.

I think you can go small against A LOT of teams. But I'd argue the top 3 teams in the East have bigs that you need to at least kind of slow down. That's a big problem come playoff time. Clax and KD just don't have the bulk to deal with these guys.

I kind of disagree. The team has so much more size now compared to the team in the playoffs.

Team can run a lineup where KAI is the smallest player on the court surrounded by guys that are all 6-5 and above. ex:

Smart - KAI
JB - Royce/Harris
Tatum - Ben
Horford - KD
RWIII - Clax

Jrue - Royce/Harris
Mathews - KAI
Middleton - Ben
Giannis - Clax
Lopez - KD

Harden - Royce/Harris
Maxey - KAI
Harris - Ben
Melton - KD
Embiid - Clax

Team matches up sooo much better than last season. Plus now TJ and Kess are wings off the bench with size. No more lineups where Patty or Seth are stuck guarding Horford etc. unless Nash is truly brain dead...

Also we saw last season that Clax could hang with Embiid, Giannis and if he gets a bit stronger, he would be even better.

I think the lack of a center is a bit overblown. Would it be nice to get another big body? Obviously yes but I don't think it's an absolute necessity.

Only big I truly worry about anyway is Giannis but that's a problem for every team and it takes a team effort to defend him.

[Tha King]

O'Neale has been a solid 3&D starter on a perennial playoff team the last few years and the team gave up a first round pick. I think he's going to start.

Simmons and O'Neale give you two good/elite defenders in the starting lineup to take on the best perimeter scorers and let KD just focus on scoring. For example, against the Celtics you can have O'Neale on Brown and Simmons on Tatum instead of KD needing to defend one. It's also been a while since Simmons has been out there so O'Neale might be the primary defender initially.

[3pt_chucker]

O'Neale has been a solid 3&D starter on a perennial playoff team the last few years and the team gave up a first round pick. I think he's going to start.

Simmons and O'Neale give you two good/elite defenders in the starting lineup to take on the best perimeter scorers and let KD just focus on scoring. For example, against the Celtics you can have O'Neale on Brown and Simmons on Tatum instead of KD needing to defend one. It's also been a while since Simmons has been out there so O'Neale might be the primary defender initially.

Exactly this. The team has the tools to be highly switchable.

Imagine a team trying to force switch on a PnR from Ben Simmons, to Royce, to KD, then to Clax

Unless Nash is a total disaster this team can easily be a Top 5 defensive unit. Only worry might be rebounding..