At the trade deadline, the Nets floated him every which way and found no takers — the same result they encountered when they tried to move him for Al Jefferson and Luol Deng over the past two summers.

One Eastern Conference official, who requested anonymity so as not to devalue one of Thorn’s chief trading assets, said, “He’s developed a reputation for being a selfish player,” which was a mouthful, considering Jefferson was averaging 23 points on only 15 shots per game. “Not so much from his play, but his attitude. A lot of people think that Richard is mostly about Richard.”

Another East official was more blunt: “What’s the difference between him and Corey Maggette?” he riddled. “Maggette makes only $7 million a year. (Jefferson) is very good, but he’s way overpaid for his talent level.”

The changes Jefferson went through this season were noticeable, particularly during January, when Kidd’s intentions became apparent: Easily the Nets’ best wing defender, Jefferson no longer guarded opponents with the same consistency, Kidd had stopped calling him on it, and Jefferson ultimately rationalized it by saying the team’s stated approach — defense first — must undergo a shift once Devin Harris arrived, which was contrary to the wishes of the coaching staff.

enough said. i guess scouts and executives have been thinking along the same lines of what ive been writing all along on this sight.

and i guarantuee you people what ive been writing about frank , is the thinking of most executive and scouts league wide, and even people within the nets franchise, most notably kiki. kiki is probably in the process of working thorns brain into thinking about the obvious, frank isnt an NBA coach swho signifies leadership, player development, and leadership, and that swallowing the 9 mill will be much less catastrphic than crippling the franchise more and more under frank. mark my words, whther its this summer, or bnext year frank will be fired, its inevetable.

i’ looking foward to see what VandenThorn will do this summer!

For those of us who pay real money to watch and cheer on this product, they wont get another freakin cent from me until they convince me over the summer that they want to win a championship NOW!!! It is apparent that management feels as long as we put a decent product on the floor (they will come). Well the decent product principle has failed. Also why should the good people of Jersey who do attend these games just go through the motions until they go to Brooklyn.
Done, Done, Done. This group is a bunch of losers!!!
Also Carter sucks, its time to say it. SOFT, the most non-effective 25 points a game I have ever seen, Jefferson is selfish and not really a team leader (aside from the other issues), Kristic a great kid, love him but he cant defend low at all, Marcus William does not belong in the NBA, poor ball management and cant guard a barn, Sean William some athleticism but hes so immature 12 going on 11, Josh Boone could be, but just as easily might not be maybe one more year and LAWRENCE FRANK doesnt belong above an NBA scout ansd he would possible be happy do ing that. This team layed down on us and the leader of the sell out was Carter. He knows what is effective and wins games and what doesnt. Just like he did last year when he was ready to get home to Orlando ( he figured he giving us fans enough), when are we gonna stop making excuses for this guy. I finally understand why the people of Canada booed him. Before its over I have a feeling so will we.

I’ll be very very short in this.If Nets want better team next year they must make BIG BIG changes like this(or similar to this):

Harris/I’ll let this spot to Thorn decide
Carter/I’ll let this spot to Frank decide
Ron Artest/Mike Miller
Elton Brand/S Will
Diop/Boone
Everyone else should NOT be in Nets uniform next year(only Krstic but ???)
I hope that there is unless 1% chance something like this to happen sooo come on THORN it’s your move lets see if you can do this!!!!!!!

I bet if the Nets had the same roster Frank had/has but with Adelman or Carlise as coach they’d be in the playoffs and everyone would be saying how Sean Williams was the steal of the draft..Get rid of Frank and the rest will fall into place

@Temjan

You think the Nets can acquire RArtest,MMiller, and EBrand in a single offseason while giving up who, just RJ and MWilliams.

You know, I wish Thorn could pull that off, so the Nets can get back to .500 and the Frank supporters can give another list of excuses. (Ron Artest is a team cancer—Elton Brand is not 100%—Mike Miller can’t play good defense—Carter’s not shooting 75%).

If you think about Artest wouldn’t require alot of money. He doesn’t care for it. He just wants to win, and with his defense, Brand’s defense, the new Carter’s defense, Harris’ defense, and hopefully an improved Boone’s defense, we’d easily be one of the best teams in the league. Problem is, will Ron cause problems. Rasheed Wallace, put aside (for the most part) all of his personal issues, but at the same time those guys from Detroit are close friends. Carter is friends with everyone, but what about the rest of the roster? If we get Artest we better be ready to win, because that’s what will keep hi focused. They can bond in preseason when they go to France.

I think it would make more sense to see if we can get Brand without moving RJ, and then possibly move RJ for AK-47.

Just one thing, what makes you guys think these teams will give up the likes of Brand, Miller, AK-47, Artest? Or if those players even want to play for us?

Carter, Harris and Boone MUST stay. Sean and Curly should also stay, but you never know. We shouldn’t overpay Krstic and Williams, I don’t understand what is going on there, and I don’t know what to expect from management regarding him this summer.

Everyone else should be used as trade bait. I like RJ and Marcus, but if it’s necessary to sacrifice them in order to improve the team, then we should move them. Same thing for our draft picks.

the comments about jefferson from a rival gm are VERY TRUE … “it’s not so much his play, BUT HIS ATTITUDE” … jefferson is a FOLLOWER, NOT A LEADER … he needs someone like byron scott or eddie jordan or rick carlisle or any legitimate nba head coach to be on his case 247 … otherwise, it’s easy come, easy go with him … you know the line … “it’s an 82-game season … we’re not going to overreact to a few losses … we’ll get’em next time … we’ve made the playoffs 6 straight years … it’ll come down to the last game of the season, like it always does … blah, blah, blah” … pretty much the same
things you hear from lawrence frank on a regular basis … that’s why this team so desperately needs a REAL HEAD COACH, not the mickey mouse coach currently running things

after kiki signs his new contract with the nets, larry frank is history … it was reported by one of the knick beatwriters that kiki LOVES rick carlisle and would have hired him as the knicks’ head coach had he become the knicks’ gm … kiki knows that if the nets don’t grab carlisle this summer, the bulls will … i’ve got two words for larry frank … SEE YAAAA!!!!!

players I definately dont want to see back in october are:

AGER, HASSEL, M.Williams!! screw this guys!!!

players I want to see go for a Solid PF/C:

RJ, Boki, Armstrong

Players who have to stay:

Vince, Harris, Krstic, Stro, Boone, Diop, Swat

Players I really Like in NJ:

Mike Miller, Brand, JO??

Lets do it ROD!

the 8 mill (4 mill/year with 2 years remaining) that’s owed frank SHOULDN’T be that big a deal for the nets to swallow when you consider that NOT making the playoffs this year cost the nets somewhere between 6 mill and 18 mill in postseason revenue (3 mill/homegame) … and that’s assuming we went only one or two rounds … frank’s lousy coaching also cost the nets millions in regular season revenue … our attendance in ‘07-’08 was down about 1,300 per game from our attendance in ‘06-’07, mainly due to our lousy play on the court … a new head coach would dramatically improve our team’s performance, which in turn would dramatically improve both regular season and postseason revenue

i’ve said it before, i’ll say it again … if larry frank stays, sean williams goes … frank has ZERO ability to deal with “difficult” players such as sean … that is why, in my opinion, eddie house, hassan adams and possibly mikki moore were let go last summer … but i also don’t believe frank will last the summer, or at the very latest, beyond november

Kevin those are suggestions. Artest is opting out, and he wants to go to Denver, but Denver would rather have J.R Smith. He has to sign somewhere, why not with us where he is needed. LA is shopping Brand, and if we can get him for RJ i’d do it in a heart beat, and fill in the SF spot with Marion, Artest, Green, or Mickael Pietrus. Mike Miller I’m starting to have 2nd thoughts on. I’d keep Nenad, and sign Gerald Green to come off the bench, because that kid is 20 and has the skills to be great, if he learns correctly from Carter. Utah wants RJ for AK-47 and Millsap

@ jerrod

i love millsap, but ak47 is WAY overrated and WAY overpaid … would NOT do that trade in a million years!!!

i don’t know if the clippers are shopping brand, but HE’S the guy we need … maybe jefferson, krstic and/or picks for brand … but ONLY if brand has fully recovered from his injury

did anyone else see S.A.S mention on epsn today that Lebron thought the Mavs were an attractive team for him to possibly go to BEFORE the kidd trade? Smith then said that lebron really likes devin harris and thinks hes a great up and coming point guard. SAS then went on to mention now with devin in jersey, the proposed move to brooklyn and lebrons relationship with jayz that the nets will be in the mix along with the knicks because of the new york market. i thought that was interesting.

as for this team, we need a big shakeup. i like boki, but i think hes too inconsistent and is just horrible on defense. if he is not scoring and attackin the rim he is a liability. i want tougher players and players who have a winning attitude.

the first thing we need to do is decide what our identity is going to be and do everything to get a big man. i think the best case scenario would be to get veteran players with small contracts. i firmly believe that we should put ourselves in a position to make a run at LeBron. its not frequent that you can make a strong run at the best player in the games (or 2nd best if you consider kobe the best).

it would be risky going for lebron and have him stay in cleveland or go somewhere else, but the reward would be gigantic. it would be huge for business not just locally, but internationally. with lebron comes money, fans and players who will want to play with him in brooklyn.

also been wondering if thornki will make a move at josh smith. hes a RFA and im sure would want years past ‘10-’11, but he would be attractive if we could get him to run with harris. then again our offense is so stale it might be a waste because our guys just stand around and watch vince anyway.

“there is too much talent here and too much money being spent for this team to lose close to 50 games. The Nets aren’t the Knicks, after all.” – AI

If the Nets want the fans on their side the overwhelming feeling is to get rid of this coach….get someone with more experience who can handle, develop and trust young talent
This was a pathetic watershed year for the Nets ….let Frank go out with the bathwater.

mo

Nets would be fools to keep the same team intact and fire the coach. This team is seriously flawed. Thorn knows it. You cannot win without inside presence (We do not have that and nothing appears imminent – Swilliams is a way off, Diop and Boone are role players not real starters, Krstic is soft and perimeter oriented) And you can not win with two of your three wing defenders being indifferent defensively – so Carter or RJ have to go, or both! But let’s not expect miracles: it’s gonna take 2-3 years to build this thing. Next year we should be a decent team, but not a contender.

Harris, Carter, Boone, and Sean are the only keepers. I would keep Diop as a situational player if affordable, but I agree with Thorn…its time for aggressive moves.

the mavs and warriors each won 50 games (or close to it) this year, yet neither team has a low post scorer (both nowitski and harrington score almost all their points from the perimeter)

the wizards and sixers are both in the playoffs with no low-post scorer (both jamison and igoudala are primarily perimeter scorers)

even when frank had a healthy krstic, the big 3 and mikki moore in ‘06-’07, the nets went 11-14 before krstic tore up his knee … going 11-14 in the junior varsity conference with that kind of talent should have gotten frank fired on the spot

frank apologists are just looking for excuses … if it’s not one thing, it’s another … next year they’ll be blaming sly the mascot for the nets’ lousy play … they’ll blame anyone EXCEPT larry “i screwed the team” frank

i want everybody who reads this site, to go and read joe netfan’s latest article, or blog. he has perfectlly put into words what frank and this nets team is all about.

but, i wonder, ever since joe netfan has been somewhat critical in his analysis of the nets primarly frank and rj, netsdaily has tsopped accessing his artivles on his site.

maybe im just taking it too far, but what a coincidence.

but i lure all of you to plz go read his article, he actually makes some sense. he is just merely stating the facts.

Lucious Harris!!!!!

Uh, mina, didn’t Netsdaily link to Joe Netsfan like…three days ago or something? Way to jump to conclusions.

And for everyone hoping for coaching changes, how have the Mike Woodson, Chris Iavaroni, and Minnesota changes worked out? It’s easy to blame the coach, but sometimes those people getting paid millions do know better than those of us just watching on tv. There’s a reason they’re in the position that they’re in, most of the time.

Eugene
See this Ron Artest is a team cancer right but he want’s to win right? he want’s to win baddly that’s why he is so agressive.Elton Brend is not 100 % now but he will be for next year,Mike Miller is not good in defence but he is excelent 3p shooooter and with harris artest brand diop you don’t need to be soo good in defence.And about Carter if we get team like this he WILL shoot 75%!
AK-47 is good but i think he’s not for Nets and i like that about Green!
I don’t say that this is perfect player’s for Nets but i think that this is what Nets need solid CONSISTANT defender,shooter, ONE STRONG PF who can score from everywhere and make 10+ rebounds and of course BENCH +peces for bench that can be made when the season is on.

@Anthony
That statement made absolutely no sense whatsoever..First off yeah if you make the WRONG coaching change its not going to work(See what happened after Scott was let go for Frank as a perfect example)..Next so they’re getting paid millions does that make them automatically qualified for their job? HOw many times have scouts who get paid nicely been wrong about draft picks(who get paid millions) they’ve scouted for years as a sure thing? HOw many times has an owner paid a coach or player millions only to have the situation flop?
You can argue and debate this point of Frank being fired and not being fired all you want but the bottom line is the Nets are out the playoffs and have gotten worse as a team under Frank..
YOu can point to injuries but than so could Eddie jordan whose Wiz made the playoffs..
BOttom line.. the Nets stink and have a horrible record, the team has NO identity which the players admit, and they laugh at Frank’s teachings which was caught on tape so please if your going to defend Frank as a coach your going to need tangible evidence he still belongs as coach..Who’s looking better right now? Byron Scott/Eddie JOrdan/ or Lawrence Frank?? Frank had 3 All Star type players and has not once made it to a 50 win season in the East the closest was the 1st year after Scott was fired.. after that its been mediocre basketball and first round exits or 2nd round exits
Why is it the Nets get blown out after the half in most games?? because a good coach makes adjustments which people who wants Frank gone admits he sux at..
So please spare us all and look at the record before you make posts calling out mina or anyone who wants Frank gone..
I’ll make another guarantee like I did before the year started that the Nets wont make the playoffs AGAIN if Frank is coach, than you and other Frank defenders will have some lame excuse as to why its not Frank..
I thought the taste of winning would overcome years of accepting losses and no playoffs had finally gotten out of the Nets and Nets fans system but I see I was wrong..
Have fun with another Lottery pick next year with Golden Boy Frank as coach

Who looked better in Past season Frank , Jordan or Scott ?

Frank looked a lot better and most fans of these teams screamed for them to be fired now the Nets are bad and the Nets fans scream to fire Frank .

Bottom line is it’s not ( thank god ) in the Fans hand to do anything .

Thank you Stevie; the point isn’t that Frank is a great coach. The point is that his track record says he’s a better coach than he’s been this season, and if management were as hasty as the majority of the fans here, you’d end up with the Washington Redskins.

@Anthony

Frank’s track record suggests that he took over a team that won back to back Eastern Conference championships; Frank has led the team to the second round at best.

Yeah, the fans are being hasty.

hey the nets just cant feel bad for lawrance the guy has great players on this team he never got pass the second round and remeber byron scott he brought the nets to the nba finals!!!!! twice.
rod ypu have to pull the triger and not saying to fire frank just move frank down to the assistant coach and put carlice or marc jckson as head coach

a resigned boki and krstic to memphis for m.miller, rj + m.will for brand (throw picks into either trade if nec.) resign gana, hire d.a. as an assistant, draft chase budinger (assuming both other picks used in trades) and sign mickael pietrus, kareem rush, and fred jones, and give rod benson a chance….

C-Diop/Boone/Swift
PF-Brand/Williams/Benson
SF-Miller/Pietrus/Budinger
SG-Carter/Rush/Hassell
PG-Harris/Jones/Ager

i may be a dreamer, but im not the only one.

@ cjsakl17

i like your thinking personnel wise, but that roster would put us about 10 mill over the luxury tax threshhold, which ratner won’t allow … you need to trim about 10 mill in salaries (rough estimate) off that list of players … miller and brand make about 26 mill between them, so we can only afford one of them … check out hoopshype.com for a complete listing of player salaries

i’m not crazy about jones and pietrus because i’d rather acquire some pure shooters instead … my choice would be to draft both budinger and brandon rush (kareem’s brother), then sign kareem and juan dixon from the free agent pool

i like benson a lot, as well as hassan adams, but i don’t think we have room on the roster for either player

btw, do you really want frank coaching that group?! why not rick carlisle or mark jackson instead, guys who players, refs and fans would respect … let frank go back to being an assistant where he belongs

@ newark hawk

absolutely not, i pray kiki and rod get either carlisle or jackson

@ everyone else

lets get more suggestions about what kiki and rod should do this off season through draft, free agency, or trade, thanks for yours nh

Dave D. said that many GMs think the Nets will be shopping their draft picks for veteran talent. What do you think we can get for them (especially if we combine them with the other assets we have- Jefferson, some youngsters, the expiring contracts, etc)?

I’d try to make these moves:

1) Fire Frank.
2) Hire Mark Jackson as new head coach (I also like Terry Porter).
3) Trade Jefferson, KVH’s non-guaranteed contract and the Dallas’ pick (# 21?) to Miami for Shawn Marion (if he does not opt out this summer).
4) Trade both Swift and Ager’s expiring contracts and our lottery pick (# 8-10?) to Memphis for Mike Miller.
5) Re-sign Curly, Gana and Boki (in that order).
6) Sign FA Mickael Pietrus (Golden State) using the MLE.

The roster would look like this:

PG- Devin Harris/ Marcus Williams
SG- Vince Carter/ Mickael Pietrus
SF- Mike Miller/ Boki Nachbar/ Trenton Hassell
PF- Shawn Marion/ Nenad Krstic/ Sean Williams
C- Josh Boone/ Gana Diop

Coach: Mark Jackson

Jackson or Carlisle LOL , thank god you aren’t in charge .

Some of your plan make us a lot worse guys .

Just one thing , the recent years with Frank as our headcoach and the decent success he had with ateam that wasn’t getting better just worse ( and yes the second round was succed considering how the team looked like and what missed or who was injured ) makes him deserve a chance . A rookie coach or a strictly X and O guy ( Carlisle is also nothing more but a decent assistant ) won’t make this team any better.

@ stevie

do you really honestly think that this team as constructed couldnt perform better under another coach? i am not one of those fire frank at all costs type of people, but i do beleive that this nets team needs a major overhaul, including both player and coaching changes. would you rather the nets keep frank as the head coach? and if so, why? i think lawrence’s ‘chances’ (numerous) are absolutely used up. i think theyll keep him till next season, but if the team doesnt perform well with the (god willing) new players rod and kiki get in the offseason, then i think hes fired before the deadline.

This is at best a 45 Win Team currently constructed IF everybody is healthy and motivated . And this hasn’t happened this season . Right now there’s 4 players on the team able to score 10+ PPG a night and just two of them have been able to score 20 PPG . The rest of the team is either inconsistent or stinks on Offense .

The defense of some of our players is almost at the very least questionable and i don’t see any of our players able to coordinate the defense as a whole on the court .

This team just isn’t that good and the off-year will hopefully help .

@ newark hawk

Brand has a player option at the end of the year.
But don’t get your hopes up. We’re over the cap and he is in love with the film industry out there.

I agree with geo, this is a 2-3 year project. Personally, I bet we try to trade our picks and one or two players to get Beasley or Mayo.

stevie- “motivated”, isnt that where the coach needs to coach.

listen, this year whether it was pre or post trade, the nets were the only team with the most unispired performances of the league.

the NBa isnt about what you did for me last year or the year before. a good coach is one who builds something and lives through all the harsh tests of the NBA. it all crumbled down under frank.

maybe frank is a good coach. but the fact is that this team needs a new approach, a new direction, a new beginning. i havent heard of a coached being mocked by his teammtes like the nets payers do with frank. he’s not a leader period. and with kidd not around, as the previious player coach, this team needs a real leader of men. someone that can inspire the yougnsters to play up to their potential.

frank hasnt adapted to player personel changes. you cant play slow when you have athletic fast guys. and how can he be a defensive coach, when the nets are one of the worst defensive teams in the league. that just doesnt equate. none of the players have down pat any defensive principles.

this team has taken the personality of their coach. they have no identity, no personality, no character, soft, cant take a punch, cant play defense, is not consistent. thats not a talent issue. playing hard isnt a talent issue. its a coach issue. but some of you are just too hard headed to get the facts through.

and yes, the nets brass will fire frank if they come out and are just slightly similar to this year. he might get his chance to coach next year, but after evaluating the season, rod and especially kiki, who hasnt been on the same page with frank ruling by the trades he made, will fire him. this business is about results, period. and the nets have underachieved under frank, and thast a fact.

Actually not much tweaking is needed. Probably the team needs extra time together during the summer to make everything smooth. Priority is intense physical training by the two Williams not in basketball sense but to increase their stamina. And that goes for the whole team. Krstic should be watched very closely as far as his play with his national team. If he gets back to his old form then sign him. Nachbar should be signed if the price is right. Draft CDR and/or Joe Alexander so that Jefferson and Carter can have less minutes and would have energy to play defense.Keep Diop and Hassel. I don’t know the situation with Swift. Also the whole team should be programmed to play full tilt for whole game by good physical trainer who possibly could learn from Phoenix. I am sure they are watching Frank.

Mina,you are so in my head.you explain my thoughts so candidly.if you guys watch any games,you can recall M.Jackson saying that Frank was calling a play and Vince blew him of to get the ball to the hot player.although we hate Kidd for turning his back so quick,the guy knows when a ship is sinking.i’ll say it again,Kidd left because of Frank.