Nene is the top free agent in the class of 2011 but in spite of a hectic day or rumors, as of 5:30 p.m. ET, he remained a free agent and according to most pundits, the Nets remained on the 6'11" Brazilian center's short list ... as they do for Josh Howard, Jamal Crawford and Shawne Williams, to name but a few.

BUT..

The Nets do not seem to be willing to pay top price, meaning the max of $70 million over four, for his services. Also, it seems the Nuggets, who can give him that lucrative fifth year and bigger raises, are back in the mix. As Adrian Wojnarowski tweets, "Nets trying to learn from lessons of last year, when they overpaid for players in free agency. They eased back on Caron Butler today."

Of course the Nets have to worry that if they don't go into the Barclays Center with a solid, even if overpaid, team, will they face the same fate as the Mets: beautiful new house but nobody home. Not to mention, what's Deron Williams thinking?