Am I a homer...

[8 Mile Ilic]

Am I a homer to think that the 2002-2003 NETS could have competed with and beat virtually any team in the league today in the playoffs?

I read a post today where someone was claiming the championship Nets teams would be at best the 6th best team in the East this past season, but if you sit down and analyze how the 2002-2003 Nets would match up against the top teams in the league today I just don't see how that is a valid argument...

Note: I'm not saying the 2002-2003 Nets would be the favorites to win every hypothetical series but just that they could compete with and potentially beat most teams in the league today (Dallas, Miami, Los Angeles, Orlando are the teams I think the Nets would struggle with).

[SpeedyG]

Am I a homer to think that the 2002-2003 NETS could have competed with and beat virtually any team in the league today in the playoffs?

I read a post today where someone was claiming the championship Nets teams would be at best the 6th best team in the East this past season, but if you sit down and analyze how the 2002-2003 Nets would match up against the top teams in the league today I just don't see how that is a valid argument...

Note: I'm not saying the 2002-2003 Nets would be the favorites to win every hypothetical series but just that they could compete with and potentially beat most teams in the league today (Dallas, Miami, Los Angeles, Orlando are the teams I think the Nets would struggle with).

Chicago - Yes (likely lose, but possible)
Miami - Yes (likely lose)
Boston - Yes (likely lose)
Orlando - Yes (possibly win)
Atlanta - Win
NY - Win
Philly - Win
Indy - Win

SA - Yes (likely lose)
LA - Yes
Dal - Yes
OKC - Yes
Denver - Yes
Portland - Yes
NO - Yes
Mem - Yes (likely lose)

[8 Mile Ilic]

I don't really see any argument for Chicago over the 2002-2003 Nets (we're going to see just how overrated the Bulls were come next year) and my thing with Boston is that the Nets matchup pretty perfectly with them.

KG is strictly a jump-shooter nowadays, Kittles could chase Allen around screens (ditto for young Kidd, though one of the two would likely split time with RJ on Pierce), throw in the GIANT hole the Celtics have in the middle and the Nets lack of an adequate center themselves would be a non-factor in this series.

I think a lot of people haven't come to terms with how much Boston has dropped off compared to when they first put their Big 3 together.

Good call with San Antonio though, assuming a healthy Manu they'd give the Nets trouble...

[SteveNets15]

We would beat the Spurs.If Scott played Mutombo The Nets would've beat them in 03.

[crazykidd2k6]

I think the only team that we probably lose to are MIA and ORL

[Da big3]

that team was epic regardless considering there was almost no stars besides Kidd and Martin

[SpeedyG]

I think the only team that we probably lose to are MIA and ORL

I actually like our match-up against Orlando. As we saw in the playoffs, Twin does a good job on Dwight. Dwight can have his, and the rest of the Magic team...is meh.

[SteveNets15]

Nets vs Lakers on NBA tv. 2002 finals

[SIC]

It think we would have been able to beat most of those teams, because the make up of the team was different then. It was all about defense. Guess what the reason why the Mavs beat the Heat was because of the defense on Wade and Lebron. Kidd, Stevenson, Marion and

One thing is for sure one of the mistakes thorn did was trade KVH. It is not KVH's fault the he got that ridiculous contract. KVH was a sixth man type of player. Unfortunately Thorn thought Mutombo would have been a better fit the next year, but we actually needed more Half Court Offense that KVH would have provided. To trade him because K-Mart(Not a half court player) called him out was a big mistake.

[SteveNets15]

I liked KVH but you needed size to beat the western teams back then.

[SpeedyG]

It think we would have been able to beat most of those teams, because the make up of the team was different then. It was all about defense. Guess what the reason why the Mavs beat the Heat was because of the defense on Wade and Lebron. Kidd, Stevenson, Marion and

One thing is for sure one of the mistakes thorn did was trade KVH. It is not KVH's fault the he got that ridiculous contract. KVH was a sixth man type of player. Unfortunately Thorn thought Mutombo would have been a better fit the next year, but we actually needed more Half Court Offense that KVH would have provided. To trade him because K-Mart(Not a half court player) called him out was a big mistake.

This was similar to what OKC did. The Nets got destroyed by Shaq in the Finals. So they felt that, with the emergence of RJ, that KVH was the one they can use to get themselves that big body to help them when they go back.

You want to blame someone, blame Scott. Him playing Lou vs. Manu and not playing Dikembe were crucial mistakes in that San Antonio series.

[enetric]

I think the only team that we probably lose to are MIA and ORL

I actually like our match-up against Orlando. As we saw in the playoffs, Twin does a good job on Dwight. Dwight can have his, and the rest of the Magic team...is meh.

I agree. And I think the Bulls are highly overrated. To me....Heat playing well as in Heat against Chicago not Heat against Dallas...would have beaten that team....but it would have still been a good series....better than the Bulls gave them. I mean I will say it..I think that Nets team WAS better than the Bulls...no question for me.

Boston? I dont like that match up for that Nets team because they are bigger AND they also excel at D. That Nets team won games off their D. Shaq hurt...despite being a shell of who he once was...was a big hit for them. Nenad hurt. That team wasnt who the Celtics really were the last 6 weeks of this season. I think Boston was 20-2 in games Shaq played 20 minutes or more?

With a center...huge difference. We wouldnt have gotten all the quikc rebounds for transition...hate that match up for us.

So to me? Boston and a clicking Heat are the only EC teams right now I think were better. I am not impressed with the Magic at all. I think we would have taken them in 5. Hawks would have been a tougher match up than the Magic IMO for that team. And I think we take the Bulls in 6. I dont care what their record was. They are at best the 3rd team in the EC.

LA healty and Pau not playing like he had nothing left crushes that team. But the team that actually showed up in the playoffs? We take that team. Thunder would have been a crap match up for us...but we would have beaten them. I cant say with the Spurs....I really cant. I just see that team from back then and see that they were able to land a 1 seed...so for some odd reason I want to respect them more than Chicago...I know makes no sense. I just think there is a poise to them...that I am not sure was it just a crap series for them and they flaked this year? Clearly...they are declining...so it would have been more competitive than back then.

Dallas is perhaps the most similar team. They do it off execution. Sure...we had NOTHING like Dirk...and they have more three point weapons. But to me...Dallas isnt about its players...its about how they feed off each other. That was what made that Nets team work as well.

No one else worth discussing.

[enetric]

I just realized...are we talking year one against LA? The team that came back the following year was better. We had a level of confidence that proved...NO FLUKE. And the Spurs series? Well? We had a lead in the 4th quarter of game 6. Crap substitution by Byron putting Lu in for Kerry. Manu OWNED Lu. And when he went in...I was screaming...that would be the turning point...and to me it was. Anyway...we were oh so close to a game 7. That was a close series.

[SpeedyG]

San Antonio ran into a bulldozer in Randolph. Our Nets team don't have that guy, and TD, even at his age, would have controlled the paint.

[crazykidd2k6]

I actually like our match-up against Orlando. As we saw in the playoffs, Twin does a good job on Dwight. Dwight can have his, and the rest of the Magic team...is meh.

I thought our defense was one of the best styles. I just didn't think our centers were athletic enough to stop Dwight. We would've gotten beat Rebounding the ball. Other than that, I thought our defense was impenetrable.

Boston? I dont like that match up for that Nets team because they are bigger AND they also excel at D. That Nets team won games off their D. Shaq hurt...despite being a shell of who he once was...was a big hit for them. Nenad hurt. That team wasnt who the Celtics really were the last 6 weeks of this season. I think Boston was 20-2 in games Shaq played 20 minutes or more?

I think we could've beaten the C's if you think about it, we were like a young version of that team. With less offense on the half court but a lot more athletic. I thought KG took a BIG decline this year. He wasn't the emotional leader he once was and didn't have the post offense he had 2 years ago. I think we would've beaten them on everything except for shooting.

This was similar to what OKC did. The Nets got destroyed by Shaq in the Finals. So they felt that, with the emergence of RJ, that KVH was the one they can use to get themselves that big body to help them when they go back.

You want to blame someone, blame Scott. Him playing Lou vs. Manu and not playing Dikembe were crucial mistakes in that San Antonio series.

I don't think you could've blame Byron for what he did. Loucious Harris was our best bench player and he was terrible. We had to match up with the Spurs and we weren't as talented as they are As for Dikembe I remember thinking he was terrible everytime he played. People were so mad at Byron Scott for not playing him but the whole team's scheme is base on athleticsm and Dikembe just slowed down the team and didn't give as good screens the way Twin did.(not to mention Set Shot Willie) I thought Byron pulled the right move on that. I remember he was posting up on the playoffs and he did this pivot move and he took 4 step and no one called travel and still miss the basket. Then he started complaining. I hated that guy. I remember he got like 10 blocks in one game for our team. Half of the blocks was a gimmie and the other half were goaltending.

I think the 2003-2004 team was our best team. I believe if Jkidd didn't get injured that triple overtime game over Detroit we would've won the finals that year. If Mourning played the season it would've been a sure thing.

I thought our main weakness was our halfcourt offense. Our best half court offense was K-Mart on a high post and he does a spin move hook which I thought was terrible. What we should have done was to trade KVH and RJ to a better offensive minded small forward and stacked up our roster with big men thats willing to hit Shaq.

[enetric]

I actually like our match-up against Orlando. As we saw in the playoffs, Twin does a good job on Dwight. Dwight can have his, and the rest of the Magic team...is meh.

I thought our defense was one of the best styles. I just didn't think our centers were athletic enough to stop Dwight. We would've gotten beat Rebounding the ball. Other than that, I thought our defense was impenetrable.

Boston? I dont like that match up for that Nets team because they are bigger AND they also excel at D. That Nets team won games off their D. Shaq hurt...despite being a shell of who he once was...was a big hit for them. Nenad hurt. That team wasnt who the Celtics really were the last 6 weeks of this season. I think Boston was 20-2 in games Shaq played 20 minutes or more?

I think we could've beaten the C's if you think about it, we were like a young version of that team. With less offense on the half court but a lot more athletic. I thought KG took a BIG decline this year. He wasn't the emotional leader he once was and didn't have the post offense he had 2 years ago. I think we would've beaten them on everything except for shooting.

This was similar to what OKC did. The Nets got destroyed by Shaq in the Finals. So they felt that, with the emergence of RJ, that KVH was the one they can use to get themselves that big body to help them when they go back.

You want to blame someone, blame Scott. Him playing Lou vs. Manu and not playing Dikembe were crucial mistakes in that San Antonio series.

I don't think you could've blame Byron for what he did. Loucious Harris was our best bench player and he was terrible. We had to match up with the Spurs and we weren't as talented as they are As for Dikembe I remember thinking he was terrible everytime he played. People were so mad at Byron Scott for not playing him but the whole team's scheme is base on athleticsm and Dikembe just slowed down the team and didn't give as good screens the way Twin did.(not to mention Set Shot Willie) I thought Byron pulled the right move on that. I remember he was posting up on the playoffs and he did this pivot move and he took 4 step and no one called travel and still miss the basket. Then he started complaining. I hated that guy. I remember he got like 10 blocks in one game for our team. Half of the blocks was a gimmie and the other half were goaltending.

I think the 2003-2004 team was our best team. I believe if Jkidd didn't get injured that triple overtime game over Detroit we would've won the finals that year. If Mourning played the season it would've been a sure thing.

I thought our main weakness was our halfcourt offense. Our best half court offense was K-Mart on a high post and he does a spin move hook which I thought was terrible. What we should have done was to trade KVH and RJ to a better offensive minded small forward and stacked up our roster with big men thats willing to hit Shaq.

I dont think we compare to the Celtics at all...and I think KG was BETTER this year than the last couple of years as that he was relatively healthy. I did NOT think he took a big decline although I expected him to. Not sure how much you are basing your opinion solely on the playoffs...which is never a good move. The guy that wasnt right late this year was Rondo. His season just get kept tailing off. And not having Shaq and Nenad who had both helped tremendously was an issue. Had they been healthy? I think they would have won it all this year.

[SpeedyG]

Crazy, you can ABSOLUTELY blame Byron for that loss. First, the Luscious Harris thing. This was one of the things I HATED the most about Byron...his set rotations. Doesn't matter what was happening in the game. When its your time to go out, you go out. Think back to that game. You know what was happening before Byron put in Lou?

KERRY KITTLES WAS ON FIRE!!!! Kittles was red hot, and in that rare occurrence, actually confident in taking and making his shot. Byron should have kept him in. Instead, he sits him out, Lou gets destroyed by Manu, KK comes back and is ice cold after sitting on the bench.

As far as Dikembe, again, I disagree. Yes, Dikembe wasn't the most fleet footed guy out there, and in a sense, he did slow us down. But it didn't matter. Why? Because the Spurs ALREADY slowed us down. They made an adjustment to leak out on defense early to prevent our break, and let TD dominate us in the paint...which he did against Twin. With them geting back on defense and us not securing rebounds as well compared to other teams, we were basically forced to play half-court most of that series.

The one game Dikembe got significant minutes, we were going toe-to-toe with them and really gave them a hard time. Dikembe was a presence in the painted area like Twin could never be.

He gave us a dimension we didn't have.

[crazykidd2k6]

I dont think we compare to the Celtics at all...and I think KG was BETTER this year than the last couple of years as that he was relatively healthy. I did NOT think he took a big decline although I expected him to. Not sure how much you are basing your opinion solely on the playoffs...which is never a good move. The guy that wasnt right late this year was Rondo. His season just get kept tailing off. And not having Shaq and Nenad who had both helped tremendously was an issue. Had they been healthy? I think they would have won it all this year.

I see K-Mart being an emotional leader like the way KG handled his role. Both were one of the best post defenders in the league. The C's also had a lot of point guard play with Rondo which is the same with JKidd. C's main Style of defense is also for forcing turnovers which is the same for the Nets. Difference is the wings are the C's are a lot more skilled but we were faster and more athletic. I think the C's had a slightly better wing players but KIdd/K-Mart combo is better than Rondo/KG which is why I think we could win. I have to disagree with KG playing better, I thought he played way too passive this postseason and he wasn't being that leader like he was before, like the way he gets his team going. BTW i'm just basing all my opinions on just the playoff's for both teams. I guess if you add in Krstic and Shaq I would change my opinion. However, I still think we have a good chance.

Crazy, you can ABSOLUTELY blame Byron for that loss. First, the Luscious Harris thing. This was one of the things I HATED the most about Byron...his set rotations. Doesn't matter what was happening in the game. When its your time to go out, you go out. Think back to that game. You know what was happening before Byron put in Lou?

KERRY KITTLES WAS ON FIRE!!!! Kittles was red hot, and in that rare occurrence, actually confident in taking and making his shot. Byron should have kept him in. Instead, he sits him out, Lou gets destroyed by Manu, KK comes back and is ice cold after sitting on the bench.

As far as Dikembe, again, I disagree. Yes, Dikembe wasn't the most fleet footed guy out there, and in a sense, he did slow us down. But it didn't matter. Why? Because the Spurs ALREADY slowed us down. They made an adjustment to leak out on defense early to prevent our break, and let TD dominate us in the paint...which he did against Twin. With them geting back on defense and us not securing rebounds as well compared to other teams, we were basically forced to play half-court most of that series.

I agree with you, with the terrible rotations Byron made. However, that really wasn't the difference maker on why we lost. The Spurs just put us out of sync because they didn't let us score in the paint at all. I remember in game 6 the Twin Towers got like 20 blocks combine just by themselves. Even if you add in Dikembe defense wasn't really the problem. Tim Duncan and David Robinson would've still had there share of points. The problem was the half-court offense and team depth. That Spurs team was dominant. If they would've went in the finals this year I bet they would've won. Look at their players..

Parker
Jackson
Bowen
Duncan
Robinson
Manu

[SpeedyG]

I dont think we compare to the Celtics at all...and I think KG was BETTER this year than the last couple of years as that he was relatively healthy. I did NOT think he took a big decline although I expected him to. Not sure how much you are basing your opinion solely on the playoffs...which is never a good move. The guy that wasnt right late this year was Rondo. His season just get kept tailing off. And not having Shaq and Nenad who had both helped tremendously was an issue. Had they been healthy? I think they would have won it all this year.

I see K-Mart being an emotional leader like the way KG handled his role. Both were one of the best post defenders in the league. The C's also had a lot of point guard play with Rondo which is the same with JKidd. C's main Style of defense is also for forcing turnovers which is the same for the Nets. Difference is the wings are the C's are a lot more skilled but we were faster and more athletic. I think the C's had a slightly better wing players but KIdd/K-Mart combo is better than Rondo/KG which is why I think we could win. I have to disagree with KG playing better, I thought he played way too passive this postseason and he wasn't being that leader like he was before, like the way he gets his team going. BTW i'm just basing all my opinions on just the playoff's for both teams. I guess if you add in Krstic and Shaq I would change my opinion. However, I still think we have a good chance.

Crazy, you can ABSOLUTELY blame Byron for that loss. First, the Luscious Harris thing. This was one of the things I HATED the most about Byron...his set rotations. Doesn't matter what was happening in the game. When its your time to go out, you go out. Think back to that game. You know what was happening before Byron put in Lou?

KERRY KITTLES WAS ON FIRE!!!! Kittles was red hot, and in that rare occurrence, actually confident in taking and making his shot. Byron should have kept him in. Instead, he sits him out, Lou gets destroyed by Manu, KK comes back and is ice cold after sitting on the bench.

As far as Dikembe, again, I disagree. Yes, Dikembe wasn't the most fleet footed guy out there, and in a sense, he did slow us down. But it didn't matter. Why? Because the Spurs ALREADY slowed us down. They made an adjustment to leak out on defense early to prevent our break, and let TD dominate us in the paint...which he did against Twin. With them geting back on defense and us not securing rebounds as well compared to other teams, we were basically forced to play half-court most of that series.

I agree with you, with the terrible rotations Byron made. However, that really wasn't the difference maker on why we lost. The Spurs just put us out of sync because they didn't let us score in the paint at all. I remember in game 6 the Twin Towers got like 20 blocks combine just by themselves. Even if you add in Dikembe defense wasn't really the problem. Tim Duncan and David Robinson would've still had there share of points. The problem was the half-court offense and team depth. That Spurs team was dominant. If they would've went in the finals this year I bet they would've won. Look at their players..

Parker
Jackson
Bowen
Duncan
Robinson
Manu

Well that's exactly the point I was talking about. Our team had problems scoring in the half-court...so our red-hot SG, who was giving us outside shooting...was taken out. Poof! There goes our half-court offense.

And again, you're missing the point. Since we couldn't score in the half-court, the way to score is on turnovers and fast breaks, as well as securing rebounds off their miss. Dikembe is better in all of those aspects (forcing turnovers, be it steals or blocks) and rebounding. This is also a veteran Mutombo who has had more playoff experience than Twin.

And I don't agree that it was a dominant team. Parker wasn't the Parker we know yet. In fact, TP was relatively quiet in that series. It was Claxton who hurt us, as well as Jax and Manu (who again, still not playing at his peak).

[NyCeEvO]

8 Mile...you were a good homer. Will we see you again?