Stefan Bondy profiles Billy King Sunday and how "he has defied odds, bucked trends, and will have to do it again."

Bondy writes about how King made it through one crisis after another, excited by the reward but also by the race itself. He pursued Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard but failed. He snatched an unlikely prize in Deron Williams, which Bondy details. Now, of course, he is being pilloried by pundits and fans alike for seemingly trading a lottery pick for the right to negotiate a new contract with Gerald Wallace. Most pundits give him no better than an even shot at getting Williams signature on a new deal that could seal his tenure as Nets GM...or end it.

He knows what it's going to take. "It’s not about him liking me or liking Brooklyn, it’s about giving him a chance to win," says King.

• Meet the Nets' King and his court - Stefan Bondy - New York Daily News