Brook Lopez was impressed by a number of things the other day after facing off against Yi Jianlian at the Nets’ practice facility. Some new post moves, better upper body strength…and his stamina.

“Yi’s been playing a lot stronger,” Lopez said. “He looks like he’s polished up a lot of stuff. He still looks like he’s going well, even though he’s playing basically year round. So he doesn’t look withered (worn down) or anything like that. He looks like he’s in pretty good shape.”

Yi himself admitted Wednesday that his confidence, after being down “a little bit” at the end of last season, is up again, in part because his summer workout regimen is yielding results.

“That’s what I focused on the past month, work on more post moves, some hand stuff, hook shot, left hand, right hand,” said Yi, who’s added five pounds (not ten) since the end of the season. “Just playing, (using) some post-moves, working on that, trying to get the feeling.”

He admits that some of his summers have been grueling with his dual commitments to Team China and the Nets.

Yi’s “year-round” schedule has been a concern for the Nets since he was acquired from the Bucks on Draft Day 2007. How much can he take before getting worn down and/or burned out.

No Net has had the long “season” Yi has had in the past year and a half. He has been in training or playing almost non-stop (other than two injury rehabs) since he joined the Bucks in October 2007.

And other than a quick visit to see his parents in Guangdong the week after the season ended, he’s been training in one of three gyms…Joe Abunassar’s Impact Athletics facilities in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, where he worked out from the last week in April til the last week in June and now, the Nets’ training facility since.

He’s returning to China in mid-July to prepare for the FIBA Asia Games, which run August 6-16, in Tianjin, his latest turn with Team China. More significantly, Yi will be filling a temporary hole that could become permanent–the role of team leader long held by Yao Ming, now hobbled with a broken foot that’s not healing. The extent of Yao’s foot injury is such that his career may be threatened, say Rockets’ doctors. That would vault Yi and, to a lesser degree, Sun Yue of the Lakers, into an even brighter spotlight…with all the accompanying pressure.

This summer’s schedule, while hectic, is nowhere near as tough as last summer’s. Yi played in 18 games for Team China last summer–12 exhibitions plus six Olympic games–training with them from his return in early May through the end of the Olympics in late August. When he flew 20,000 miles round trip to New Jersey for his introductory press conference in July, he spent only four days away from training camp.

He’s been rewarded, of course, becoming one of China’s leading celebrities–and receiving endorsement deals from companies like Nike and Coca-Cola. But his production with the Nets was inconsistent…at best. Part of it was due to his broken finger, but there was lingering concerns that he was burnt out as well.

It’s hard to know how much of a toll the physical–and mental–stress of his schedule has affected him, but there’s no doubt he’s been busy. He signed with the Bucks later than most lottery picks, following a holdout engineered by his agent, Dan Fegan, hurt his wrist and knee during the season and missed 16 games. From then on, it was an intercontinental shuttle, with side trips around Asia thrown in.

Here’s a summary:

April 4, 2008 – Yi shuts down for the season after spraining his knee in Milwaukee. Tells Chinese press that the NBA season, with twice as many games as the Chinese Basketball Association, has been a challenge. He has played in 66 out of 82 games.

April 18, 2008 – Yi completes first NBA season, leaves Milwaukee for China, where the rest of Team China has been practicing since March.

May 4, 2008 – Runs with Olympic torch in Hainan Province in south China.

May 6, 2008 – Participates in Torch Relay Celebration in Beijing.

June 13-25, 2008 - Pre-Olympic Friendly Series – Plays in five exhibition games in 12 days vs. Croatia, Czech Republic and Lithuanian teams after recuperating from sprained knee.

June 27 – Yi is photographed celebrating his trade to the Nets with his girlfriend at karaoke bar, causing a “media frenzy”. State media expresses shock that Yi would break his Beijing Olympic Games training regime to attend night spots, and widely report that sports officials were about to punish the star player. They didn’t.

July 4-6, 2008 - Team China vs. Australian All-Stars, Ningpo, China. Yi plays in a two-game exhibition series against a team of all-Stars from the Australian National Basketball League.

July 6-10, 2008 – Yi Heads to New Jersey. Immediately after the tournament, he flies non-stop from Shanghai to JFK for Nets’ press conference three days later. The day after the press conference, he has to return to Beijing to resume Olympic training.

July 17-21, 2008 - Stankovic Cup, Huangzhou, China. Yi plays three games in five days vs. Angola, Russia and Serbia.

July 23, 2008 - Visit from China President Hu. On its return to Beijing Olympic Training Site, Team China is greeted by China’s President Hu Jintao. He tells Yi and the rest of the Chinese team, “We Chinese people pay lots of attention to basketball and expect your superb performance in matches. I hope you can show your best at the Games,” Yi later says it’s the most pressure he’s ever felt.

July 29-August 1, 2008 - FIBA Diamond Ball Tournament, Nanjing, China. Yi is part of the host nation’s team in this two-game tourney. China plays Australia and Iran.

August 10-24, 2008 - Olympics, Beijing, China. Yi plays six games vs. USA, Spain, Angola, Germany, Greece and Lithuania, is the Olympic’s fourth leading rebounder. After miserable game vs. Team USA, he redeems himself vs. Germany, hitting “the biggest shot in Chinese basketball history”, an 18-footer that gets China into the medal round for the first time.

September 8, 2008 – Workouts in New Jersey. Yi arrives in New Jersey two weeks after end of the Olympics. He tells Sina.com three weeks later, “I’ve been working out to try to regain my strength. I hope to do that before the competition. Right now I’m working on my whole body. I’ve also been busy looking for a place to live and settle in so I can focus on upping my game.”

October 1, 2008 – Nets Training Camp Begins. Having suffered mild ankle sprain September 25, his training is limited for a week.

January 8, 2009 – After a near month-long slump, Yi puts together back-to-back-to-back strong performances, with games of 22 and 13, 20 and 6 and then 16 and 4 through three quarters in Milwaukee before breaking the fifth metacarpal in his shooting hand. He’s out 37 days.

February 17, 2009 – Yi returns but never regains his confidence. Over the next 24 games, he scores in double figures three times, never exceeding 12 points or 7 rebounds. His confidence is hurt by his fading shot and fans’ booing. He loses his spot in the rotation to Ryan Anderson. Later, team officials concede he may have come back too soon.

April 12, 2009 – Yi’s agent defends his client in an end-of-the-season interview with the Star-Ledger. Fegan tells Dave D’Alessandro that Yi didn’t get the minutes he deserved, “What happened, and who’s accountable?” He notes the Nets were 18-18 when Yi went down.

April 16, 2009 – Yi returns home at season’s end for a week to visit his parents. At one point, Rod Thorn said he expected Yi would have to play in the CBA Finals for his old team, the Guangdong Southern Dragons, but that never materializes. In his blog, Yi admits, “I have to do my best to rest and train myself. I need to improve everything and prepare for the third season.”
and says he understands fans’ disappointment.

April 23, 2009 – Yi sets up house in LA to work out at Impact Athletics, where he trained before the 2007 draft. Fegan had demanded Yi have his choice of trainers. He later moves to Las Vegas, where Impact Athletics has another facility to work on different things.

June 27, 2009 – Yi lands back in New Jersey for more training with Kiki Vandeweghe who pushed to acquire Yi. He’s working out daily with Lopez and Sean Williams.

The Nets have lauded Yi in the days since the draft and Vince Carter trade, saying he is the “incumbent” at the power forward position and that they continue to have high hopes for him, surprising reporters and fans alike.

In his conference call with season ticket holders, Thorn explained, “Yi has been working out since a week after the season with one of the top trainers in America, trying to get stronger upper body wise. I saw him in the gym today. He’s 10 pounds bigger, MUCH more definition in his chest and arms. Our feeling is that as he gets stronger, particularly in his upper body, it will help him defend his position better and it will also help his offense, make it much more difficult to knock him off balance.

“Yi has terrific athletic ability. There’s no reason if he gets stronger and continues to have that same GREAT attitude that he shouldn’t be a viable NBA player.”

Yi understands the pressure on him from the Nets’ end of things.

“I still have a long career. It was my second season. Take your time and don’t think about it. Just work hard, do the best I can,” he said.

What was left unsaid was the other pressure, from China, and how the Nets have played a delicate game with the CBA to get him more training time in the US. They have argued, as did the Rockets with Yao, that NBA-level training is a winner for both sides, that a stronger, more skilled–and more rested– Yi is more likely to help China win in international competition.

Yi is not so sure Yao is done, saying: “A lot of people are saying a lot of stuff.” He adds that Yao himself isn’t sure. Nothing is conclusive.

Yi has always deferred to Yao. Now, he’ll be forced to be a leader, if not THE leader, for Team China in Tianjin, a chance perhaps to work his way out of Yao’s giant shadow and boost his confidence even more for the NBA season. Yi is always going to be more Chinese than anything else, more than being a basketball player. His dual commitment need not be burdensome. As Yao has proved it can also being an opportunity.

It’s no longer about free agency in 2010 for the Nets. It’s about “flexibility”.

Quietly, Nets brass have shifted the rationale for their cost-cutting efforts…from the free agent bonanza next summer to increased “flexibility” to go in different directions with their roster.

One possibility is free agency, but another raised this weekend is not signing big time stars but using all that cap space on younger players, their own included. No one will commit to either. In fact there has been a studied avoidance of any financial commitment beyond “flexibility” since the Vince Carter trade created the windfall.

The Nets certainly will have a lot of cap room next summer—somewhere between $25 to $27 million–if they don’t add to their payroll, and they’re not likely to.

In his email to season ticketholders announcing a Monday conference call for season ticketholders, Rod Thorn was vague:

“On Thursday, we made some critical personnel decisions to secure financial flexibility for player moves now and in the future in order to give you the best product on the court,” he wrote, adding later, “the rest of the summer will be dedicated to preparation and building team chemistry”…not spending money.

In his interview with WFAN’s Mike Francesa, Thorn said only, “Our thinking was, Let’s clear cap space if we can get a good young player.”

Kiki Vandeweghe said a bit more, but he wouldn’t be pinned down either.

In his interview with WFAN’s Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts Friday, Vandeweghe alluded to the possibility of using it on younger players rather than star free agents.

“We’ve got a long of young players that are really good and some veterans that we think are excellent basketball players,” said Vandeweghe. “If we don’t get the big free agents that everyone’s talking about, you continue to build from within, you continue to add young players that are good. That’s a way to do this also.”

At another point in the interview, Vandeweghe noted the amount of money the Nets would have at their disposal starting this year and said, “So to us this move created a ton of salary space an additional $17 million that you can spend on free agents if that’s your direction next year and possibly this year.” (emphasis added)

No doubt, the Nets have to make a lot of financial decisions on younger players over the next four summers, and if players progress, re-signing them could get quite expensive. It’s the downside of having such a young roster. Between 2010 and 2013, the Nets will have to make contract decisions on Josh Boone, Sean Williams, Yi Jianlian, Jarvis Hayes (Vandeweghe included him in the list of “young players”), Brook Lopez, Courtney Lee, Chris Douglas Roberts, even Devin Harris at one end of contract length and Terrence Williams at the other. Of course, giving the money to the kids would stretch things out unlike signing a star free agent.

Vandeweghe also noted that the Nets have been “stockpiling” draft picks, which will turn into still more young players. The Nets do have six draft choices over the next two years: four first rounders: their own in 2010 and 2011, the Mavs unprotected pick in 2010 and the Warriors lottery-protected pick in 2011, plus their own second round picks. And at least next year, their own pick is looking like it will be quite high, which will mean a bigger financial commitment than they’re use to.

Vandeweghe wouldn’t be pinned down on how the Nets would use their flexibility…not that he was hard pressed by Benigno and Roberts. One answer was particularly vague and somewhat rambling, offering up every virtually every possibility for using the space without saying which he or the Nets preferred.

“You look at our team and you say this is not our finished product,” he said. “So you’ve got to continue to improve whether that means we continue to improve internally or…we have a lot of expiring contracts, we have a lot of young pieces that people like, we have a lot of really good players. And whether you mix and match in a different way, whether you add free agents. We have a lot of flexibility. I mentioned the trade exceptions. Those are very valuable right now. We have some extra draft picks in the future that we’ve stockpiled.

“So to me, you’ve got a lot of different ways to improve. And we just got to find the right way and we have to do it as quickly as possible.”

How long is quickly as possible? Again, it was hard to tell.

“For where we’re going and when we believe we’re going to be good, over the next…maybe in a year or so, you had to look at this type of a deal,” he said.

There’s nothing wrong with waiting to see how things work out, with the free agent market or your own roster. If Lee follows Harris’ arc and takes off next season, you’ll want to gauge how much he’ll have to be paid in 2012-13, when the bill for Lopez’s services also comes due.

Of course, there’s also another possibility: that the Nets won’t spend lavishly and just continue to conserve what they have. They’re losing, depending on which accountant you believe, between $35 and $77 million a year, more than half of which is being picked up by Bruce Ratner’s corporate parent, Forest City Enterprises in Cleveland. FCEA has its own problems. The team’s ownership also has the carrying costs associated with Atlantic Yards…the land they have already acquired for Barclays Center, specifically the interest on various mortgages and refinancing packages

The Nets CFO recently said that “everything changes with Brooklyn” and certainly, long term that’s true. The arena would be owned by the Nets and they would reap the profits from booking the non-sporting events like concerts and family shows. But that’s unlikely to happen until the middle of the 2011-12 season.

The question is how much money will they spend–and on whom–between now and then.

On Thursday, we made some critical personnel decisions to secure financial flexibility for player moves now and in the future in order to give you the best product on the court. That being said, I feel very good about the players we received in return, talented players that will have a positive impact for us in the short and long term for our franchise.

Terrence Williams is a very versatile player who possesses a talent that other players like - he loves to pass. And when you distribute the basketball, your teammates want to be on the court with you, which leads to good chemistry amongst your players. Terrence’s versatility is exhibited on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor, as he can guard the 1, the 2 or the 3, and we feel his overall game will only improve over time.

Courtney Lee was a vital component in the trade, because we feel very strongly that he is going to be a very good player in this league for a number of years. We almost drafted him last year, and we are very pleased to be able to add him to our team at this juncture.

I cannot say enough good things about Vince Carter. He was a true professional both on and off the court, and his leadership last season had a direct impact on the development of our young players. We only wish him continued success in this next phase of his basketball career.

The rest of the summer will be dedicated to preparation and building team chemistry. We look forward to seeing you on Opening Night.

Written by Ghoti

I have spent the last month reading all of the different indicators to help predict which team will draft what player.

History tells us, I was informed, that the Bulls like Final Four participants, the Kings only like players they work out, the Spurs like players from around the globe, the Bobcats only consider players from the ACC, yada, yada, etc.

The Nets? They like tall players for their position, no medical issues, and intelligence.

But what I didn’t see anywhere is the most reliable indicator of all - one that would have nailed this selection with 100% rock-solid, assured accuracy.

The guy’s name is Williams.

I don’t know if any franchise out there has so much history with one surname. It’s a varied and interesting group to say the least.

Buck Williams - He’s the granddaddy of the Nets’ Williamses. Played eight seasons for the Nets. One of the league’s most fearsome rebounders. He brought the organization respect during some tough times. Still the franchise leader in several categories.

Ray Williams - Gus’s younger brother averaged over 20 PPG for a pretty good Nets team in 1981-82. Was reacquired and played briefly in 1986-87.

Reggie Williams - “Silk” was best known as a Denver Nugget. He did end his career as a Net in 1997, suiting up for 11 games.

Kevin Williams - The small guard played 41 games as a Net in 1988-89 averaging 4.3 PPG.

Jayson Williams - The troubled PF finally shed his demons and became one of the league’s most ferocious rebounders. Played seven seasons for the Nets, retiring as the franchise’s second leading boardsman. Was an All-Star in 1998. Wrote a well-received book called “Loose Balls”. Lost his way after being forced to retire in 1999. Drunkenly killed a man in his house and haphazardly tried to cover it up. Currently punching random people in the face and getting tazered by police while awaiting re-trial for manslaugher.

Aaron Williams - Rugged PF was a key component on the Nets’ two finals teams in 2001-02 and 2002-03. Had his best seasons during his five year tenure as a Net. Was an efficient scorer, fine rebounder and extremely strong defender who could guard players much larger than his 6′9″. I never heard a Net fan say a bad word about him. Very popular. A real lunchpail guy. Part of the trade that brought Vince Carter to the Nets.

Eric Williams - The New Jersey native was another popular player in his travels around the league. Played 21 games for the Nets in 2004-05. Another piece sent to Toronto in the Vince Carter trade.

Marcus Williams - Notorious for his involvement in a scheme to sell laptops stolen from his fellow UConn students, this pudgy PG showed tremendous court vision during his college career. The Nets were thrilled to nab him with the 22nd pick in the 2006 draft. Initially showed flashes, but failed to shoot 40%, played out of control most of the time and seemed unequipped and uninterested in playing defense. After two tumultuous seasons was traded to Golden State, where he flamed out. Not currently close to playing in the NBA.

Sean Williams - Quirky, hyper-athletic forward with incredible energy and shot-blocking ability who has so far not been able to harness that into NBA success. Was suspended from Boston College and banned from the basketball program for repeated violations of team policy. Associated strongly with Marijuana use. Very immature guy who fell out of favor with the organization and his teammates after prolonged strange behavior - including an incident where he abused a store clerk and broke a computer monitor after being told he could not purchase a mobile phone without ID. As of today, still a Net, but it seems unlikely he will be after this season.

Terrence Williams - Another offbeat character. Known to wear a Barbie backpack and Spongebob Squarepants socks around campus. Drafted by the Nets with the 11th pick. Rod Thorn says he was rated in the team’s top five.

With this acquisition, another chapter can now be added to this epic tale. There are legends, thieves, murderers, drug users, Spongebob Fans - a cast of characters so diverse and crazy you couldn’t make it up if you tried.

Good luck, Terrence. I’m sure whatever happens with you it won’t be boring.

Every Sunday, we’ll be updating the Nets’ off-season with bits and pieces of information, gossip, etc. to help take the edge off missing the playoffs, relying on the Nets’ beat reporters and others who have slipped interesting stuff into larger stories and blogs.

Picking up the pieces…And there are so many of them

We’ve always said that when a superstar goes on the block, his old team rarely gets a equal value in return. Instead, it’s almost combination of expiring contracts, young player(s), draft pick(s), cash considerations and trade exceptions.

The more of those elements you get, the better. The Jason Kidd trade had all the above. The worst superstar trades have fewer, like the Shaquille O’Neal trade to Cleveland for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic plus $500,000 and a second round pick.

In the Vince Carter deal, the Nets did well in three of the five categories and got nothing at all in the two others. The Nets got two expiring contracts—and more than $20 million in cap space between this year and next; a promising if not spectacular young player and two trade exceptions, worth $3.75 million and $1.2 million, only the former is likely to be used.

They got no cash and no picks…and the value of the young player they received, Courtney Lee, is in part off-set by the loss of Ryan Anderson. (We now know, thanks to Al Iannazzone, that the original deal offered by the Magic was Rafer Alston, Tony Battie and J.J. Redick for Carter. The Nets wanted Lee and the Magic agreed but only if Anderson went the other way. Thorn says the first conversations took place Tuesday, intensified on Wednesday and were completed on Thursday.)

So the big value of the deal, other than Lee, is in the expiring contracts. The problem of course is that Cap Space has never scored a point, dished an assist or grabbed a rebound in the NBA. As Chicago learned after Michael Jordan retired, all the cap space in the world is not going to guarantee that a quality free agent is going to sign on the dotted line. Considering the Nets’ luck in luring All-Star caliber free agents (none in more than 30 years qualifies as bad luck), we fear the Nets could wind up like the Bulls.

As we have already noted, we believe what’s going on here is not “cap management” but a fire sale.

Back Spin

You could argue (that is, spin) that the Nets, a 34-48 team, was somehow able to trade for the starting backcourt of the Eastern Conference champions! When was the last time a conference champion gave up its starting backcourt less than two weeks after the end of Finals? How about never?

Lee started 16 playoff games and Alston all 23. In the opening round, they combined to average nearly 28 points a game, Alston 15.2 and Lee 12.6. By the time of the conference finals against the Cavs, they were still averaging 20 ppg, Alston 12.2 and Lee 7.7. Yeah, they fell apart in the Finals and Kobe Bryant was last seen abusing Lee, but they got them there. (Also, we should point out that Lee missed 3+ games after catching a Dwight Howard elbow in the face, and then came off the bench the first 5 games after he returned.)

We can’t believe the Nets didn’t spin THAT!

Listening between the Lines

We listened to Thorn and Vandeweghe ’s interviews on WFAN from Friday morning. Surprisingly, there was more questions about the drafting of Terrence Williams than the trade.

Here are some excerpts, first from Thorn.

On Williams:

“We rated him in the top five on our board…he is not a finished product as a shooter…he is extremely versatile…he can play three position…huge hands. I can envision Lee, Williams and (Devin) Harris on the court at the same time.”

On who else they liked in the draft:

“Blake Griffin is a MAN.”

“Rubio is like Gretzky…extraordinary court sense—he can see what can happen before it happens…a reluctant shooter with a chance to be a good shooter. His shot is not broken. Body wise, he has a ways to go. To me he’s a guy who plays a lot better when he has good players around him that he can make better, like with the Spanish National Team.”

“We liked Jonny Flynn a LOT….we liked Tyreke Evans.”

“I think he (Tyler Hansbrough) is going to be good. We worked him out. He’s a LOT more athletic that people think. He can jump head high on the rim. He is ferocious. His balance is not great. He will be foul prone early.”

On who he thought would go higher:

“I was surprised at Patty Mills dropping. We had him at the end of the first round. I liked him.”

“We had Sam Young as early as #20…very surprised.”

On who he didn’t like:

“(James) Harden is not very athletic. He has no mid range game. It will be interesting for him.”

On the rationale for the trade:

“We felt we were a 30- to 40-win team. Our feeling was that let’s clear cap space if we can get a good young player. We’re not necessarily done. We are liable to do some other things”.

Here’s Vandeweghe.

On the rationale for the trade:

“It’s part of our process…we had to take a hard look at ourselves. We now have a ton a ton of cap space. We can spend on free agents if that’s what you want to do…This is a flexibility move. Now you get at least the opportunity to see how good you are. Sometimes, you look at things just for economic reasons. This is not that.

“We have a lot of flexibility. We have trade exceptions, lot of draft picks we’ve stockpiled. We have young pieces people like.”

“At the end of the day, had Vince been five years younger, we wouldn’t have made this deal. When we’re going to be good, maybe in a year or so. We got a need position in Lee, a good player at the wing.”

On the “technical” aspects of the trade:

“You get some salary trade exceptions, which are REALLY valuable.”

On previous offers for Carter:

“Vince Carter got calls…but nothing that brought you a real good young player…We also sent Vince Carter back home, where he wanted to be. That sort of thing comes around to help you in the end.”

On whether the Nets will need a new Brooklyn arena to sell free agents:

“Of course not. New Jersey is a great place. You have a lot of great fans. They know their basketball. We’re very close to the New York metropolitan area…in the end, free agents like to play with good basketball players…”

On free agency:

“If we don’t get the big free agents that everyone’s talking about, you continue to build from within, you continue to add good young players…that’s a way to go too.”

On Yi Jianlian:

“Yi is going to be a very good player. He has a lot of talent.”

On the immediate future:

“Look at our team…not our finished product. Got to improve”.

Bottom line for us: they certainly have a “ton of cap space” but no commitment to spend it…at least not now. Vandeweghe noted twice that the Nets are about the “flexibility” it gives them. His line, “If we don’t get the big free agents…” is yet another signal that they have yet to decide how big to go in the free agent market. With as much as $27 million in cap space next summer, they need to.

Who are the “young pieces” others are interested in and why would Kiki bring it up? By process of elimination, it gets down to CDR and Josh Boone. Is CDR expendable with the acquisition of Lee and Williams? Is Boone expendable with the acquisition of Tony Battie. Thorn talked about Battie backing up Brook Lopez. That was Boone’s job last season.

As for the draft, it seems the Nets targeted Williams very early, were very high on him throughout the process and that it was up to the others to match or pass him on their board. Hansbrough and Gerald Henderson came closest, but didn’t make it.

By the way, Bruce Ratner’s name did not come up once in either interview.

Trading the Big Three

In less than 18 months, the Nets traded their three cornerstone talents, all with huge contracts, all in multiplayer deals.

What did they get back? Lump it all together and here’s what they got…expiring contracts at the time of the trade are marked with an asterisk.

Devin Harris, Desagana Diop*, Keith Van Horn*, Trenton Hassell, Mo Ager, Keyon Dooling (TE), Yi Jianlian, Bobby Simmons, Courtney Lee, Rafer Alston*, Tony Battie*, an unrestricted first round pick in 2010, two trade exceptions valued at $3.75 million and $1.2 million and $3 million in cash. (We eliminated Anderson since the Magic trade wipes out the 2008 pick they acquired from Dallas in the Kidd trade).

In addition, the Nets traded three other players in those deals: Antoine Wright, Malik Allen and Anderson and one other player, Marcus Williams, in a separate transaction.

The prizes are obviously Harris, Lee, potentially Yi (who did average more points in fewer minutes than Lee) and that 2010 Mavs’ first round pick…which they seem willing to move if the right deal came along.

Net Asset Update

What do the Nets have now that they use in trade? A lot more than they had Thursday morning.

–Six draft picks in the next two drafts—four first rounders (one protected) and two second rounders.

–Three trade exceptions—the two from the Carter trade and the $1.3 million exception from the Marcus Williams trade, which expires July 22. The Nets record of using trade exceptions is mixed…at best. They haven’t used all that they acquired and only two of those they did use worked. Since 2001, they have used TE’s to acquire Marc Jackson, Elden Campbell, Cliff Robinson, and Keyon Dooling. They were ready to use one on Shareef Abdur-Rahim before his knee condition became known.

–Seven expiring contracts. At the risk of being redundant, here they are: Simmons at $11.24 million; Battie at $6.61 million; Alston at $5.25 million, Hassell at $4.38 million; Boone at $2.26 million, Jarvis Hayes at $2.06 million and Sean Williams at $1.63 million. Boone will have a qualifying offer for 2010-11 and Sean Williams can be extended in October. Neither is likely to be. In addition, The Nets hold a team option on Douglas-Roberts after this season. Dooling has only a $500,000 one year guarantee in 2010-11 and Eduardo Najera has a $4.75 million two year guarantee through 2011-12 after this season. In addition, they still hold the Bird Rights on Boki Nachbar.

–As a result of the above, between $25 million and $27 million in cap space next summer, depending of how high the salary cap is set.

The big question again is, with all the financial woes of the franchise, will they?

Farewell to VC

Rather than try to explain what Vince Carter meant to this franchise, we will just direct you to Maxamillion 711’s great YouTube channel’s archive. Couldn’t have said it any better than Max. Enjoy.

Final Note

Leroy Dooling, Jr., 60, of Ft. Lauderdale, FL passed away on June 20, 2009, the day before Father’s Day. Dooling was the father of Keyon Dooling. The elder Dooling had been ill for some time. He owned a small flower shop in Ft. Lauderdale. Keyon Dooling has taken time during the Nets schedule this season to visit his ailing father and his father attended at least one Nets game late in the season. The funeral was Saturday.

Rest in peace. You did good.

One big question after Thursday is, of course, how good can Courtney Lee be? He isn’t going to become Vince Carter, the man he was traded for, but could he become Devin Harris, or more precisely, could he become as good a shooting guard as Harris is at the point?

One quick–and admittedly imprecise–comparison might be helpful and hopeful.

Like Lee this year, Harris emerged as he helped his team get to the NBA Finals. Lee, of course, played shooting guard on a Magic team that lost to the Lakers this month. Harris played for the Mavericks when they went up against the Heat three years ago and lost. Like Lee, Harris was 23 at the time. Both also played on a team with a dominating big man, Lee with Dwight Howard, Harris with Dirk Nowitzki.

It’s hard to compare their regular season work in those years. Harris missed 26 games in the regular season. Lee missed only five. Harris was also in his second year, Lee a rookie. And of course, Harris is a point guard and Lee a shooting guard.

So let’s compare how they did in the playoffs, again at age 23, as a key part of an NBA Finalist. The variation in the numbers isn’t that great…and you hope that the rising arc of Harris’ career can be matched by Lee.

Harris vs. Lee – On the Road to the Finals

Harris averaged 9.4 ppg in 23 games, helped by his best game as a pro, a 30-point performance against San Antonio. He started in 15 of them. Lee averaged 8.0 in 21 games and like Harris has his best game of the year in the playoffs, scoring 24 against Philly.

Other differences aren’t that great either. Harris shot a bit better overall, but Lee hit 12 three’s in the playoffs. Harris didn’t connect on any of his eight attempts. Both shot over 80% from the line, but Lee shot much closer to 90. Harris went to the line almost three times as often, taking 74 free throws to Lee’s 26. Naturally. What was surprising was that Harris averaged only 2.2 assists in the playoffs, only one assist more than Lee.

Of course, Harris didn’t miss a potentially Finals-altering layup at the buzzer. But then again, Lee didn’t lose Game 3 in a total collapse after going up 2-0.

Lee is reportedly upset with the trade, incommunicado according to HoopsWorld. Not surprising. His last few weeks has been a whirlwind of emotions–beating the favored Cavs and dunking on Lebron James, losing to the Lakers and being abused by Kobe Bryant, then getting traded for Vince Carter. Nice company, we think.

Bottom line, though: if he follows that same arc Harris followed, helped by more minutes and opportunites in New Jersey, the sting of Thursday night might be lessened for him and for Nets fans.

And he and Harris, at some point, might have a chance at getting back to the Finals.

The Nets have invited three undrafted rookies, LSU center Chris Johnson, Texas sharpshooter A.J. Abrams, and UConn power forward Jeff Adrien, along with Jason Ellis, a D-League power forward, to play for the combined Sixer-Nets summer league team. They’ll join Chris Douglas-Roberts and Terrence Williams, the Nets’ first round pick. Brook Lopez, already invited to the Team USA mini-camp at month’s end, travel to Orlando but the Nets are still uncertain he’ll participate. (He will no doubt go Disney World.) The Sixers chose a more experienced group with only one undrafted rookie, Temple swingman Dionte Christmas. Christmas joins small forward Rob Kurz who played for Golden State last season, point guard Blake Ahearn who played brief for San Antonio, shooting guard Gary Forbes of the NBDL’s Tulsa 66ers, and power forward Marcus Slaughter of France’s STB LeHavre. In addition, the roster will feature Sixers’ first-round pick Jrue Holiday and second-year big man Marreese Speights as well as the Nets’ first round pick.

Johnson, an athletic 6′11″ shot blocker from LSU; Abrams, a foot shorter with a quick trigger, and Adrien, an undersized power forward at 6′7″, were all seen as possible second rounders at various points in the season, but didn’t make the final cut.

Camp begins in Orlando on Friday. Games begin Monday. In addition to the combined Sixer-Nets team, the Orlando Magic, Indiana Pacers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz and Boston Celtics will have full teams. The Sixer-Nets open against the Pacers entry at 3 p.m. July 6. Here’s the link to the schedule. No word on webcasting.

Two former Nets will be playing for the Magic entry: Ryan Anderson and Maurice Ager.

Let’s face it. This franchise is a mess.

After yesterday’s trade and last night’s draft pick, the New Jersey Nets are back where they were in 2000, a mismanaged operation that is a joke to its fans and the larger NBA universe.

It’s traded away its stars. It plays in the worst venue in the NBA, if not professional sports. Its fan base is shrinking and its move to Brooklyn questionable at best. Its respected basketball managers spend most of their time making excuses for an owner who is increasingly unavailable and when he does speak says little anyone believes.

There is no longer trust between those who are most passionate about the team and those who own and manage it. And quite frankly, it’s not going to get better any time soon. In fact, it is likely to get worse. It’s hard to root for the New Jersey Nets…or if you prefer, the Brooklyn Nets or the New York Nets.

It would be best for those running the team to say what the reality is: the decisions that have been made the last year and a half have made to save money. If the team got anything in return, it was a bonus. And the decision to dump Vince Carter along with other recent decisions was not made in the Nets’ corporate offices in East Rutherford or even Forest City Ratner’s offices in Brooklyn. It was most likely made in Cleveland, home of Forest City Enterprises, which assumes 54% of the team’s ever increasing losses and has seen its stock lose 75% of its value. Not good numbers.

The biggest canard of course is that this was done to help the “cap”, with front office types citing those big numbers that will be available next summer in the summer of free agency. No, it wasn’t. It was done to save money because the team is hemorrhaging it. Moreover, this looked like an operation that is up for sale even before the Sports Illustrated revelations. Companies looking to sell do all the things the Nets have done in the past several months: cut staff, shrink investments and, most of all, dump long term costs and conserve cash. This isn’t “Batten down the hatches. There’s a storm a-coming”. This is “Get me out of here”.

Put the most optimistic spin on it: the Nets could have as much as $27.3 million in cap space next summer, enough to sign two major free agents to max contracts. That’s no doubt what we’ll hear from management today and throughout the season. But is that the reality? That scenario is dependent on free agents wanting to come to New Jersey or Brooklyn. Has any major free agent willingly come to New Jersey…ever. Only two All-Stars have ever agreed to join the Nets as free agents—Alonzo Mourning after missing a year due to his kidney problem and Shareef Abdur-Rahim. How’d they work out? Whatever success the Nets have had historically has come in the draft and through trades.

Why would this be any different? The team certainly has some on-court assets in Devin Harris and Brook Lopez. We’re still hopeful about Yi Jianlian, although it is a case of hope over statistics. Courtney Lee is very promising and Chris Douglas Roberts and Terrence Williams are nice pieces, maybe more…although all three play the same position. Ryan Anderson was a nice piece too. But is this team, as currently constituted, going to win more games and be more attractive to a free agent than the team that won 34 games last year? No…period.

As for now, no one knows where this team will be playing in two years. Brooklyn has been downsized, and down-marketed. If ground has been broken by the end of the year, a brand new arena and brand new fan base in New York might be appealing to a Lebron James or a Yao Ming (there we said it). And then whoever owns the Nets might see his financial situation improved enough to spend some money. Suppose Brooklyn doesn’t happen. Then what? Why would a free agent join a franchise whose location, fanbase and ownership are, in order, uncertain, fed up and inept?

A few months ago, during one of his rare discussions with the writers who cover the team, Bruce Ratner said he was willing to spend money, even go over the luxury tax, if it meant adding that one crucial piece to the Nets’ championship hopes. Does anyone believe that? Brett Yormark has told every (naive) business reporter he comes within a mile of that this year is about building brand loyalty. Can anyone stifle a laugh, or a yawn, anymore when they read that?

It’s possible, we guess, that the team will do something over the summer to rectify matters. We doubt it. Writers have warned that the team is unlikely to engage in any significant trades or free agent signings beyond the vets’ minimum.

A few months ago, a friend expressed his admiration for NetsDaily then smiled and asked, “ why couldn’t you follow a team with better prospects?”

Exactly.

Here are the basics of what is the second biggest trade in Nets history, in terms salaries exchanged. (The Nets’ biggest trade, in terms of number of players, was a 1997 deal between the Nets and Mavs. It involved nine players, the headliners being Sam Cassell and Shawn Bradley.)

The Nets receive:

–Courtney Lee, a 6’5”, 23-year-old shooting guard from Western Kentucky with a rookie contract through 2011-12.

-Tony Battie, a 6’11”, 33-year-old center from Texas Tech with a contract through 2009-10.

–Rafer Alston , a 6’2”, 32-year-old point guard from Fresno State (and Queens, NY) with a contract through 2009-10.

–No draft considerations.

–two trade exceptions the Star-Ledger valued at $3.75 million and $1.2 million. They can be used in trades for one year from date of the trade, meaning from now to close to next year’s draft.

–approximately $4.311 million in cap space, the difference between the contracts sent to Orlando–$17.44 million–and the value of those taken in–$13.3 million. The Nets payroll will be approximately $57.34 million, right at the salary cap. The cap has yet to be set, but in February, the NBA told its teams it expected the cap to be $57.3 million for next season, with the luxury tax at $69.4 million. Dave D’Alessandro of the Star-Ledger estimates that next summer, the Nets will be $27.30 million below the cap, with the savings from Carter’s contract and the loss of other expiring contracts. The Nets now have seven expiring contracts: Bobby Simmons at $11.24 million; Tony Battie at $6.61 million; Rafer Alston at $5.25 million, Trenton Hassell at $4.38 million; Josh Boone at $2.26 million, Jarvis Hayes at $2.06 million and Sean Williams at $1.63 million. Boone will have a qualifying offer for 2010-11 and Sean Williams can have be extended in October. Neither are likely to be extended. In addition, The Nets hold a team option on Chris Douglas-Roberts after this season while Keyon Dooling has a $500,000 one year guarantee in 2010-11 and Eduardo Najera has a $4.75 million two year guarantee through 2011-12 after this season.

The Magic receive:

–Vince Carter , a 6’6”, 32-year-old shooting guard from North Carolina with a contract through 2011-12, with $37.64 million guaranteed.

–Ryan Anderson, a 6’10”, 21-year-old power forward from Californa with a rookie contract through 2011-12.

Earlier, the trade had been broken into two transactions, to guarantee the trade exceptions.

Potential issue resolved : Orlando originally refused to give up Lee and offered J.J. Redick instead. When the Nets pressed, the Magic demanded Anderson. Done deal.

Mikhail Prokhorov has been identified as one of several investors with an interest in buying the Nets from Bruce Ratner. Here is a profile of him, drawn from public sources.

Who is Mikhail Prokhorov?

Mikhail Prokhorov was born in Moscow in 1965 and is one of the richest people in the world, with an estimated net worth of $9.5 billion. Forbes puts him at #40 on the list of the world’s richest. He is the former chairman of Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest producer of nickel and palladium, and the current chairman of Polyus Gold, Russia’s largest gold producer. His father was a member of the Soviet sports committee and his mother was a scientist. His parents sent him to a language medium school in Moscow and then to the Moscow Financial Institute. In 1989, he graduated with a first class degree from the International Economic Relations Department of Moscow State Financial Institute. He is a bachelor. He has residences in Moscow as well as the French Riviera.

What is the source of his personal wealth?

From 1989 to 1992 he was head of the International Bank for Economic Cooperation’s Management Board. In 1993, during the largely unregulated and highly controversial privatization of former state-controlled industries after the fall of Communism, Prokhorov, then 28, engineered the acquisition of Norilsk Nickel by the Onexim Bank, of which he was then chairman of the board. He is credited with turning the former Soviet nickel mines in Siberia into one of the largest and most profitable natural resource corporations in the world. After selling many of its non-mining assets, he moved to modernize a complicated, expensive business venture which required icebreakers to transport metal over the frozen Arctic region. Prokhorov invested in an innovative Finnish freighter that did not require icebreakers. He sold off his 25% interest in Norilsk just before the economic downturn. In September, 2008, Prokhorov purchased a fifty percent stake (minus one) in Renaissance Capital, a troubled Moscow-based investment banking firm. He is believed to hold $5 billion in cash.

Is he active in philanthropy?

In March 2004 he founded the Cultural Initiatives Foundation (The Mikhail Prokhorov Foundation), a charitable foundation; it is headed by Prokhorov’s elder sister Irina Prokhorova, prominent Russian publisher. According to the foundation, “the purpose of the Foundation is the encouragement of cultural awareness and activity as the most important element in enhancing all aspects of life, and the Foundation’s activities are determined by its fundamental conviction that culture stimulates the creative abilities of individuals and society as a whole, leads to a clearer understanding of social issues and can assist in their resolution, and is the most important resource in social and economic development”. Prokhorov gives financial support to CSKA Moscow’s basketball, hockey and football clubs, and is a member of the Supreme Council of the Sport Russia organization. In August 2006 he was awarded the Order of Friendship for his significant contribution to the growth of Russia’s economic potential by President Vladimir Putin.

What are his basketball connections?

Until this season, he was the financier of the Euroleague champion CSKA Moscow, one of the richest teams in the Euroleague and easily the richest team in Russia. Prokhorov is 6’9” but didn’t play basketball past elementary school. He has also supported CSKA’s other teams, including its world-class hockey club. Loves kickboxing.

Is he controversial?

Like most Russian oligarchs, Prokhorov has been tied to stories of high living, but unlike many of his contemporaries has steered clear of the law. At an annual two-week Christmas party for the Russian rich at the French Alpine resort of Courchevel in January 2007, he was arrested for allegedly arranging prostitutes for his guests. After four days he was released without charge. He has been satirized on Russian television for his lavish lifestyle and his reputation as “Russia’s most eligible bachelor. A league source predicts to Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thomsen that Prokhorov would survive the league’s vetting process as a potential owner.

Does he support the move to Brooklyn?

According to Thomsen, all the prospective deals are dependent on the team continuing its efforts to move to Brooklyn. Ratner would continue to be involved in the team’s operations, but become more focused on the real estate aspects of the move.