At the beginning of March, the New Jersey Nets were 6-53. With 23 games left, they needed three wins to tie the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers for the least amount of wins in NBA history and four wins to avoid futility all together.
Well, since March began, the Nets have rattled off six wins. Not only have they completely obliterated the 1972-73 76ers record of just nine wins, but, in the span of a month, they have doubled their win totals from the previous five months.
It’s not that surprising if you really look at it. Those who follow the league closely know that this team is a lot better than their record shows. Constant injuries have subdued this team from enjoying a potentially enticing season for this summer’s free agent crop to a club that gave a lot of playing time to Josh Boone, Keyon Dooling, and Jarvis Hayes.
Courtney Lee, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Yi Jianlian and, most notably, Devin Harris all missed significant time this season.
Now, in no way am I saying that the Nets could have enjoyed a playoff caliber season with a healthy squad. But, the fact of the matter is, this Nets team has a solid core that could compete for a playoff spot if it wasn’t for their awful bench.
Their core consists of five players at this point: Devin Harris, Brook Lopez, Yi Jianlian, Courtney Lee and Terrence Williams.
Terrence Williams Photo Credit: Jeff Zelevansky/Icon SMI
Harris is 27 years old now, older than you’d want your franchise point guard to be when you’re just beginning to resemble a playoff team, and there have been some doubts about Harris within the organization, which aren’t completely unwarranted considering the team has a (25%) chance at getting once-in-a-lifetime prospect John Wall in the draft, but he still possess a lot of skills that are vital to New Jersey’s future.
Devin was an all-star last season and is still one of the quickest guards with the ball in his hands in the league. He’s very adept at getting to the basket with blow-bys on his defender and he still has somewhat of a jumpshot from mid-range. Because of injuries, specifically some ankle issues, Harris hasn’t reproduced his 21.65 PER from last season, but he is still above league average and has a lower usage rate this season. Harris isn’t the same defender that he was in Dallas, which could be the product of the players around him, but with a better defensive scheme, he could return to his old ways.
Brook Lopez is one of my favorite players in the league. Dwight Howard will most likely maintain the “best big man” title for the duration of his career because of his dominating strength and athleticism, but Lopez will challenge Andrew Bynum for the brand of “most complete center” in the game for years to come. Lopez has every offensive ability that a seven footer can have. He’s got an expanding outside game, with a decent mid-range shot right now, a turnaround jumpshot and can finish in a variety of ways around the rim. He’s long on the defensive end and is growing as an NBA player. He can defend the pick and pop well and is getting there with the roll.
I expect both Harris and Lopez, who’s in just his second season and is 22 years old, to be the cornerstones of this team for years to come (if they get Wall, then I think they have to play him with Harris for at least 20 games to see how they work together). Though not as important as those two, Jianlian and Lee will be nice complementary players for years to come.
Jianlian gives the Nets another seven footer, but one who does his work from the outside with long two’s and some occasional drives to the basket. It’s not fair to Yi to use the comparison, but if Lopez is as skilled as Bynum, Jianlian can be his Pau Gasol in a way. Lee is a kid who just gets it. He’s already been through the toughest task in basketball, checking Kobe Bryant in the NBA Finals last season and was rewarded for his respectable job with a trade to from East’s best team to the East’s worst team. He’s a good shooter and works hard on defense. He may have to be a reserve if John Wall comes to town as the team plays around with Wall and Harris at the guard spots, but he did well in a back-up role in Orlando and that shouldn’t change with the Nets.
Those fours guys form a solid base for a franchise. Like I said, with a couple of competent reserve players and a healthy season from their stars, this team could be fighting with the Bulls and Raptors for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. However, the guy that’s got me thinking he can take this team to a higher level because of his abilities is rookie forward Terrence Williams.
More on Terrence Williams and what he can bring to the Nets after the break…
Terrence Williams Photo Credit: Chris Keane/Icon SMI
Coming out of Louisville, Williams was regarded as a wacky kid that carried around a Barbie backpack with an outgoing personality and absolutely tremendous athletic abilities. At 6-foot-6, 215 pound, there was no question he was an NBA player. As a senior, he made his athleticism reflect through his play as he developed into the Cardinal’s most important player. In fact, Williams was the main reason that Rick Pitino’s squad received the number one overall seed as he was their leader on offense, on the boards, and on defense.
Before the draft, I predicted the Nets would go with Gerald Henderson out of Duke instead of Williams mostly because I was dreaming of Terrence playing with Chris Paul in New Orleans (which is why I prayed he dropped to the Hornets). Either way, I thought the Nets needed a two guard that could play the forward spot as well and that would fit in with Vince Carter or back him up. The Nets ended up dealing Carter, replacing him in the deal with Lee, which made it somewhat easier for Williams to get minutes.
But despite the opportunities, T-Will hasn’t had a great season. He’s averaging just eight points, four rebounds and three assists in 22 minutes a game. Like most rookies when they come into the league, Terrence has struggled with his outside shot, which is the main reason he is shooting just 39% from the floor. He’s had some real problems hitting the NBA three even though he takes a a little more than one a game, he’s struggled adjusting to the Nets’ team defense, and he’s had a rough go of things just to get on the court. He looked like a D-League player, but since the Nets were so bad, they never ended up sending him there.
Not a whole lot of positive there.
There has been some improvement, however. Since the Nets focused on not finishing with the worst record in league history, which was at the beginning of March, Williams has had increased minutes and production. In 16 March games, Terrence averaged 14 points on 43% shooting, seven rebounds and five assists. Other than a 4-for-16 performance, most of Williams’ scoring outputs were efficient and he was able to reduce his turnovers with increased touches.
Even though there have only been three games in April, Williams has continued to impress. He’s putting up 16 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and just two turnovers in 32 minutes a game on 46% shooting. This includes a 27-point (12-of-25 shooting), 13 rebound, 10 assist performance against the playoff hungry Chicago Bulls last night. That’s a LeBron-line.
Williams has the ability to do this on a night-to-night basis. As a scorer, Terrence still has a ways to go with his jumpshot, but his athleticism is unmatched by most even at the NBA level, which allows for him to attack the basket and finish with electrifying dunks. If they put this kid in the dunk contest this year, he would have easily won it. Easily. He’s very good at slashing to the lane but he needs to be reminded that this is his biggest strength sometimes. If the Nets drew up plays for this guy and got him cutting to the lane, nobody in the league is going to be able to contest him at the rim because of his ability to dunk over anybody and finish with either hand.
With the ball in his hands, you’d think Terrence was a point guard as he is an extremely nice playmaker. He has a knack for drawing defenders when he enters the lane and is willing to pass out to the wing for the open three, he can run the pick and roll with a guy like Lopez effectively, and he is excellent in transition with the basketball. His ball-handling skills are fantastic which helps him get by his defender and into the lane where he earns his points.
While his offensive abilities are nice, Williams can be most valuable to this Nets team on the defensive end. While Harris, Lee and (maybe) Wall are all good defenders, none of them have the size to go up against Kobe, Dwyane Wade, Brandon Roy, Carmelo Anthony, or other guards and forwards between 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-8. Williams is thick, long and very athletic, making him a good player to put against any of the top perimeter scorers in the league. Terrence is very good at reading passing lanes and deflecting balls the opposition tries to pass the ball around him. Its on plays like these when Williams is most dangerous, because once he gets the ball in transition, there’s no stopping him.
On the glass, Williams has always excelled. Rebounding the ball was his main calling card in college other than his athleticism and he is one of the most talented and instinctive rebounders in the NBA for his size. He knows how to time his jumps, his ability to elevate makes it easier for him to hang in the air, and his long arms give him a long reach when going for the ball.
I said before the season started that I thought Williams could be a 16-8-5 guy at some point in his career. With the Nets dialed in to close out the year, Williams has been seeing more consistent minutes and has come pretty close to those numbers over the past month. 19 games may be a small sample size but its not as if he is doing some out of the ordinary for him. He’s capable of doing this and with a new mindset individually and as a team, Terrence has been able to put it all together and produce.
With this kind of play from Williams, the Nets would be better off giving him the starting small forward job next season. Jarvis Hayes isn’t the future and he doesn’t have nearly as well-rounded of a game as T-Will does. I’d like to see what he can do as a starter. As long as he’s dedicated to winning, he’ll be the X-factor on a playoff team for years to come.
The bad part? This all goes out the window if Mr. James decides he’d like to move to Brooklyn.
