Nets' Preseason Schedule Announced, 1st Game at Barclays is October 15th

This will be the place to be on October 15th, the first time the Brooklyn Nets will play a game there. I'll be in attendance, will you?

In a press release from yesterday, the Nets, among with all other NBA teams, announced their 2012 preseason schedule. This preseason, the Nets have six games, three of which are at the Barclays Center (10/15, 10/18, 10/19) and the rest are either on the road or at neutral sites (10/13, 10/16, 10/24). The first official game for the Brooklyn Nets franchise will be October 13th against the Philadelphia 76ers at a yet-to-be-determined site. The first official home game for the Nets at the Barclays Center will be October 15th against the lowly Washington Wizards.

Of special note, the Nets' 4th and last home preseason game will not be played at the Barclays Center but instead at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island where the New York Islanders play their home games during the NHL season. A possible attempt to spread the Nets' fanbase onto Long Island? If so, I love the idea. As a Long Island resident, I can first-hand tell that most Long Island basketball fans support the Knicks, but if the Knicks have another disappointing season, that barometer could easily shift in favor of the Nets. The more fans, the merrier.

Full preseason schedule for the Nets after the jump, courtesy of BrooklynNets.com:

Recapping the Nets' Offseason, A Very Big One Indeed

Brooklyn's brand new backcourt. Watch out Eastern Conference, this duo means business.

So, I'm back. I returned from sleepaway camp two days ago and I'm slowly catching up and coming to grips with everything that has happened regarding the Nets' roster over the past eight or so weeks. Let's review each Nets' transaction (or non-transaction, you'll see what I mean) going back to Draft Night, which fell on June 27th this year:

Portland Trailblazers trade the 41st overall pick in 2012 Draft (G Tyshawn Taylor) to Nets for cash considerations
Entering this year's draft, the Nets only had one pick, the 57th overall pick in the 2nd-round. I guess Billy King liked Taylor, a point guard from the University of Kansas, so much that he didn't want to wait for him at 57 and instead used some of Mikhail Prokhorov's extra cash to nab Taylor with pick 41. Tyshawn, a Hoboken, NJ native, figures to be a part-time player for this year's Nets team who will share back-up PG duties with recent signee C.J. Watson.

Philadelphia 76ers trade the 54th overall pick in 2012 Draft (F Tornike Shengalia) to Nets for cash considerations
I don't follow European/foreign basketball very much so I have no first-hand experience in watching any of the Nets foreign acquisitions play but according to some scouting reports, Shengalia is a physical rebounding/defense type who won't be an offensive superstar but has some decent moves down in the post. His 6'9" frame is better suited for the 4 than the 3 as one of his major weaknesses is lack of a reliable jumper. My best guess is that he's a project who figures to not make much of an effect in the meantime.

2012 NBA Draft Nets' Preview

I'm writing this post on the 22nd as I won't be around on the 28th (when you're reading this) and scheduling it to be published around two hours before the Hornets officially draft Anthony Davis with the 1st-overall pick. Obviously, the Nets don't hold many picks in this year's draft (just the 57th overall pick from Miami obtained in the Chris Quinn trade from a few years ago) but they have been reported as looking to buy or trade into the late or even middle of the 1st-round to pick a prospect for this rebuilding team.

This draft class was viewed, basically up until the end of the regular season, as one of the deepest in memory but in recent months has been slowly torn down by draftniks and experts alike who just don't foresee many future NBA stars coming out of this draft, unless, of course, your name is Anthony Davis.

Goodbye, At Least Until Mid-August

Later this morning, I'm leaving to spend seven weeks at the sleepaway camp that I've spent my last eight summers at. At camp, I will have only limited internet access and probably won't be able to post any reactionary pieces to the inevitable big free agency and trade news that will surround the Nets franchise this offseason. However, I do have a draft preview post scheduled to go out on the 28th that kind of looks at what this year's draft means for the Nets but other than that, don't expect any new content until the middle of August when I come back.

Thanks to the (not) many of you who read this blog that I pour my heart and soul into with the intentions of expressing my many ideas about this team that I belove and give you, the fans, the inside scoop of what's really going on with the Brooklyn Nets as the team makes a major transition into a brand-new arena in a new state. I know you guys are excited about what this upcoming 2012-13 season means for the Net franchise and I am as well. I can't wait to sit with my dad in our seats at the Barclays Center on Opening Night in either October or November.

Let's go Nets in the meantime and as they say, till next time folks!

Jason Kidd Willing to Return to the Nets: Sign Us Up!

Remember this guy? He led the Nets, yes the Nets, to a few Finals appearances in the early 2000s. Would a return to the Nets spark the same success? I don't know, but I certainly hope so

In a recent ESPNNewYork.com piece, former Net fan favorite and future NBA hall-of-fame point guard Jason Kidd said he would be open to a return to the Nets organization, presumably in a back-up role. Like Deron Williams, who J-Kidd would back-up if he re-signs with the Nets, Kidd is a free agent this offseason and counts the Mavericks and Nets as two of his most-favored destinations.

I know that Jordan Farmar will probably exercise his $4 million player-option to remain in Brooklyn next season and the potential clog at the point guard position if Deron and Kidd sign with the Nets would be salary-cap draining. Farmar is a solid player who obviously has more upside than Kidd but he would probably be moved via trade if D-Will and J-Kidd are Brooklyn Nets next season.

This is all speculation right now and mainly depends on what Deron decides to do this summer with his free agency, news of which has been varied and mainly non-committal from D-Will's camp. Deron has said that he wants to sign before the Olympics, which starts in July, so we should expect some more news to filter through the grapevine in the upcoming weeks and days. Getting a little ahead of ourselves, a point guard tandem of D-Will and J-Kidd would be very potent on offense and would make the Nets' backcourt extremely hard to defend for most NBA teams.

Kidd isn't as agile or youthful as he used to be but still plays as hard as he has done for his whole career and is a major facilitator on the offensive end. Imagine Kidd kicking it out to Morrow for some open second-team 3-pointers. Wouldn't that be a deadly proposition for the teams unlucky enough to face the Nets next year? Yes, yes it would be.

Gerald Wallace Opts Out of Contract; Will Become Free Agent

According to the Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell, Gerald Wallace has declined the option in his contract for next season with the Nets and is now on the open market. This was the expected move for awhile since it would make more sense for Wallace to sign a multi-year deal instead of exercise the option for one season. There is still a good chance Gerald will re-sign with the Nets and will be with the team in Brooklyn since the Nets hold his bird rights, but in free agency, anything is possible. However, if he doesn't re-sign with the Nets, this past March's trade will go down as one of the worst the Nets have ever made and quite possibly one of the worst in NBA history.

Season-In-Review: Deron Williams

This post, along with the other posts I will do in the Season-In-Review series, will take a deeper look at how all the Nets did last season on the court and possibly off of it. We continue with the (current and hopefully permanent) face of the Nets, Deron Williams. I covered DeShawn Stevenson first. 

Well, a (mostly) full (condensed) season with Deron Williams on the Nets the whole year was interesting, right? It's tough to give a fair analysis of D-Will's season right now because of the injury struggles, impeding free agency discussions, lack of teammate help, and even potential trades that undoubtedly affected his play on the court this past season. Deron came oh so close to being able to play with Dwight Howard in New Jersey but that deal with the Nets and Magic fell apart as fast as it was put together. However, even with all these distractions, Nets fans were able to see D-Will at his very best at some scattered points this season (the huge win against the Knicks at MSG where D-Will had 10 points in a minute and of course the 57-point effort in Charlotte), but were unable to see sustained superstar-like play.

Granted, Deron's short tenure with the Nets is a definite aberration as he is far better a basketball player than he has showed recently with awful supporting casts and teams decimated by injury. D-Will's stats also weren't helped out by his career-low shooting efforts in 67 games with the Nets which, according to him, are mainly due to the so-called terrible shooting background at the Prudential Center, a natural hockey arena. Even though he may have missed a lot of games due to injury, not tried 100% when on the floor, or just flat out didn't perform well, it is clear to Nets fans that Deron Williams, when healthy and on a good team, can be the top PG in the NBA and can easily lead a team far into the playoffs.