ESPN's Marc Stein thinks Avery Johnson is one lucky coach.  He points out how he fell into a good situation six years ago when he replaced Don Nelson at the helm in Dallas, being given a top flight roster in a top flight organization.

Now, writers Stein, it's happening again ...with the Nets!?  "The set-up might not be as unreservedly inviting as it was with the Mavs, but there's little doubt Johnson just landed the best of the four jobs he's interviewed for this spring."

The reasons New Jersey is a better fit than Philadelphia, New Orleans or Atlanta are mostly familiar to Nets fans: the empty canvas; the solid young core; the $28 million in cap space; the nine draft picks in three years and the new owner from Moscow who he meets Sunday.

"There's only one direction to go with the best 12-win team in league history, given New Jersey's copious salary-cap space to use for roster upgrades this summer and the quality building blocks already in place -- center Brook Lopez and point guard Devin Harris -- to go with the No. 3 pick in the draft later this month."