Nets GM focusing on the future
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
BY PETE CALDERA
The Record
STAFF WRITER
EAST RUTHERFORD — Nets general manager Billy King can't find much fault in his 9-25 club.
Nets GM Billy King admits there is plenty of work needed to rebuild the team.
"I think our guys have played hard for the most part," King said during Tuesday's practice. "With the injuries and our schedule, I think our guys have done a hell of a job."
The GM also admitted there's plenty of work needed to build the Nets back into contention – from re-shaping the roster through the draft to developing the skills of his young players.
"It's not going to be an overnight thing," King said. "The object is to try to build something to sustain for a long time."
With the Nets riding a five-game losing streak heading into tonight's game against the Bulls, King's focus is firmly in the future.
"You can't be shortsighted and try to do something quickly just to make people think, 'Oh, now they're doing something,' " King said. "In this league, if you try to do it quickly, and make a mistake … it takes a long time to recover."
The Nets' appetite to spend some of their windfall of draft picks on a star such as Carmelo Anthony remains a debate leading up to the Feb. 24 trade deadline.
"We're in conversation with a lot of different teams about a lot of different things," said King, speaking generally about the potential for any trades.
"There may be a small deal that we'll do in a month or two weeks."
In the interim, the Nets likely will sign a player to a 10-day contract, something coach Avery Johnson enthusiastically supports. However, "it's got to be somebody that we feel can have an impact on the team," King said.
Brook Lopez's impact has yet to be fully established, but King cut him some slack during this stretch.
"That's what you get with a young player trying to find himself, especially when he's one of the main focal points of the offense," said King, adding that he thought Lopez would never be a 10-12 rebound-per-game player. "I just don't think it's in him."
Lopez said he worked on spacing during practice, and acknowledged that he has to find a way around the double and triple-team defenses he's encountered, which he regards as a show of respect.
Despite the team-wide frustration, "It's tough to really get down on ourselves with the guys that we have around," said Lopez, who sees a chance "to do something special" down the road.
But the present could be improved if the Nets could score a little more.
"We can fix the offense all we want," Johnson said. "We just have to do a better job of finishing."
BRIEFS: Jordan Farmar (right knee bruise) practiced and is available tonight. Quentin Ross took an errant elbow during practice, suffering a cut lip that likely would require stitches, but he also should be available.
Hopefully, Billy will stay true to his word. So far, not so good but I'll continue to hope.
