My Season Preview Of The Nets

Additions: Troy Murphy, Travis Outlaw, Jordan Farmar, Anthony Morrow, Johan Petro, Derrick Favors, Damion James, Sean May, Brian Zoubek, Ben Uzoh, Quinton Ross

Losses: Courtney Lee, Josh Boone, Bobby Simmons, Yi Jianlian, Chris Douglas-Roberts,Tony Battie, Jarvis Hayes, Chris Quinn, Trenton Hassel

Head Coach: Avery Johnson

Assistant Coaches: Sam Mitchell, Larry Krystkowiak, John Loyer, Popeye Jones, Tom Barrise

Projected Depth Chart:

PG: Devin Harris, Jordan Farmar, Ben Uzoh

SG: Terrence Williams, Anthony Morrow

SF: Travis Outlaw, Damion James, Quinton Ross

PF: Troy Murphy, Derrick Favors, Sean May, Kris Humphries

C: Brook Lopez, Johan Petro

Roster Analysis:

I will Break Down each position and how It improved or Worsened, I will rate it based in how i think it compares to the rest of the league by rating it from 1-10, 1 being terrible, 5 being average, and 10 being excellent. I will then explain how i think the roster will do as a whole, give my OPINION on their projected record.

PG: Devin Harris had a down year last year averaging 16 PPG, 5 points down from his previous 21 PPG the year before. However, he did spend most of the year injured, and did not have a coach to provide leadership, plus playing on a 12 win team can cause lack of effort. I feel that the addition of Troy Murphy will spread the floor which will make it easier to penetrate and either dish to a perimeter shooter like Morrow, score, or draw a foul. Harris will also get much needed leadership from Avery Johnson. One of his weaknesses is his playmaking abilities, he is more of a scorer than a natural PG. Harris can be a good defender with the right style of play. I think Harris has an improvement in scoring and defense, he needs to be a leader for the nets to be competitive. The addition of Farmar brings championship experience and a solid backup to Harris.

Rating: 7

Both can provide a very good tandom at PG, if Harris goes back to all star form, Farmar will push Harris because of the threat of Farmar taking his job, Farmar is very young, and could be a starting PG eventually. I think the Nets remained the same at PG

SG: Terrence Williams has a tremendous upside, he is a good defender and blossomed at the end of last year. He was also inconsistent and has not proven to be a solid starting SG yet. He shows signs of scoring ability and is an above average rebounder. T Will has to show that he can consitantly produce every night. The addition of Morrow will provide much needed perimeter shooting, though it ends there. He is a liability on defense and is below average getting to the basket.

Rating: 4

Though both have tremendous upside, both have proved to be very inconsistent, Morrow lacks other tools to be an elite SG while Williams has not proven himself yet.Though the Nets Improved at SG with the addition of Morrow, it was hard to get worse.

SF: Travis Outlaw is an average scorer, and defender, and is known to take big shots. I feel that he was overpaid and was the least effective move off the offseason, Outlaw has been a very good bench player, but has never shown that he could be an effective starter. He will get a chance in a diffrent situation, hopefully he will capatilize. Damion James shows the potential to be a solid NBA player, though he has never played a game so you cant say he will good or bad. I cant judge his game until he plays a few games.

Rating: 4

Outlaw and James can end up being very good, or very bad. Outlaw will have to prove that he can perform in a starting job.The Nets Improved at SF, but they are still below average.

PF: Troy Murphy is a double- double machine. He is a great rebounder and a decent scorer. He will be a great compliment to Brook Lopez and take some of the pressure of him while also possesing a great shooting ability. Murphy will spread the floor for the wing player to penetrate. Favors is only 19 years old, you cant expect him to contribute much this year, though he has a tremendous upside. Kris Humphries and Sean May will be not play much, mostly during injuries.

Rating: 7

Murphy will be a vital part to this team, he will spread the floor, while providing a 3 point threat and a rebounding threat. No one knows what Favors will contribute this year. The Nets greatly improved here, they finally got rid of Yi, he was terrible on defense and overall was just a bad player. Getting Favors provides the possible PF of the future.

C: Brook Lopez is becoming one of the best centers in the league and is only entering his third season. He is still improving. He is a questionable rebounder and a post presense and is the Nets future. It is very hard to find a good young center, and the Nets have one. Petro is an average backup who can rebound. He is a below average scorer.

Rating: 9

In my opinion, Lopez is the Nets most vital piece to success, and petro will be a great compliment to him. The Nets got better, but not by much, Petro is an upgrade over Battie.

Coaching: The Nets got one of best coaches in the League in Avery Johnson, he is a great leader and preeches defense. The also have 2 former coaches, one a Coach of the year. The nets vastly improved in coaching

Rating: 9

The Nets as a whole got much better. They changed the whole roster and added a solid group of young, role players. They got a great coach, and one thing that cant be replaced, a great big man. They addresed many needs, a PF, shooting, and a coach. They still lack one thing, a star player. They dont have a guy that you can go to in the 4th quarter, a leader. The Nets have all of the pieces together, the just need to add a big name player to the roster to be a contender. Everything has to go right for them to make the playoffs. They are a young, unexperienced group. I think they have a shot at the 8th seed, but a lot of players have to step up.

My Prediction: 31-51, 3rd in Atlantic, 11th in Eastern Conference