Game 66 Preview: Nets (22-43) at Toronto Raptors (22-43)

Goodbye, see you guys in Brooklyn

That's all folks. In the last game of another much-maligned Nets season, the team takes on the Toronto Raptors, another lottery team, in what is officially the last game ever of the New Jersey Nets. Tonight will be bittersweet for anyone that is a Nets fan because we have to wait until October of next year for basketball in Brooklyn in addition to the fact that the last time that Deron Williams is on the Nets could be tonight as he might leave the team this offseason as a free agent. However, the biggest feeling that Nets fans should be feeling is excitement because, as mentioned above, the next Nets game after tonight will not include the New Jersey Nets but instead it will be the Brooklyn Nets.


Oh yeah, the actual game. In terms of playoff chances, this game means nothing for both teams but it has incredibly coincidental lottery implications. The Nets and Raptors have exactly the same record right now so the winner's lottery chances will be worse than the other. Honestly, that's why I don't necessarily want the Nets to win because I would rather take the slight increase to our chance of getting our 1st-round pick this year than a meaningless April win. Sorry for all the people who want the Nets to get that elusive 23rd win of this condensed season. 


Background on Toronto

Toronto, like the Nets, is missing a ton of their good players due to injury so there really isn't much healthy talent to talk about on this Toronto team right now other than  DeMar DeRozan, James Johnson, and possibly Ed Davis. Another thing to note; former Net Ben Uzoh is on Toronto and might even start tonight. If you don't remember Uzoh's relatively short tenure with the Nets, then you didn't miss much. In 42 games last season, the Tulsa graduate scored just 3.8 points per game in around 10.4 minutes per. Not exactly lighting up the scoreboard, huh?

Previous Game 

Monday night, the Raptors lost to the Milwaukee Bucks at about the same as the Nets lost to the 76ers, guaranteeing Philadelphia would be the 8th-seed in the East for the playoffs and eliminating the Bucks from contention. Toronto faded after taking an 8-point lead in the 1st quarter as the desperate Bucks just wanted the win more than the hapless Raptors. James Johnson scored 22 points and nabbed 13 rebounds while Kleiza and Gary Forbes added 15 points apiece off the bench.

In the final New Jersey game for the Nets, an extremely injury-depleted Nets team hung around with the 76ers for around 2 and a half quarters but completely fell apart late in the 3rd and into the 4th. Marshon Brooks dropped in 18 points while Kris Humphries collected yet another double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds).

Probable Lineups

NJN- Gaines (PG), Brooks (SG), Stevenson (SF), Green (PF), J. Williams (C)

TOR- Uzoh (PG), DeRozan (SG), Al. Anderson (SF), James Johnson (PF), Amir Johnson (C)

Three Keys to a Nets Loss (for lottery purposes)

1. Let DeMar DeRozan go crazy- Since the Raptors are missing almost all of their good players due to injury and DeRozan is basically the only one left. And boy can he score. Two meetings ago between these two teams, a 94-73 win by the Raptors at the Prudential Center, DeRozan dropped 27 points and was simply unstoppable. He has a game like that tonight and the Nets will have more lottery balls than Toronto. In other words, the game would be a success.

2. Don't guard Linas Kleiza- He's not having a great season, but Kleiza is a very good 3-point shooter for a front-court player. Leave this guy open a few times and he'll rack up the points pretty fast.

3. Play Sundiata Gaines more than Armon Johnson- No explanation required.