The Calendar of Dread has now replaced the NBA Schedule as the defining timeline for Nets fans. With David Stern promising cancellations at two-week intervals and little hope for a quick solution, opening night of the Nets' last season in New Jersey keeps slipping further and further into the distance.
So, we try to stay on top of news from the three Nets under contract overseas as well as their draft choices, including Bojan Bogdanovic's Turkish exploits. We're also tracking the Springfield Armor. (And no, that "XL" in the headline doesn't mean "extra large". It's the roman numeral for 40, marking the 40th week we've done this.)
October 16 - Opening weekend of the Israeli and Turkish leagues. Jordan Farmar's Maccabi Tel Aviv plays Gilboa/Galil Elion in Tel Aviv. Deron Williams' Besikas plays Banda Red in Istanbul.
October 20 - Euroleague opens this weekend. Farmar plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv vs. Armani Milano of Italy; Bogdanovic plays for Fenerbache vs. Caja Laboral of Spain. Sasha Vujacic plays for Efes Anadolu vs. Partizan.
October 22 - Opening night for B.C. Armia of Georgia in the Georgian Superleague. Sundiata Gaines plays in organized game for the first time since his hip fracture in mid-March
October 22-23 - Local tryouts for Springfield Armor, at Springfield College.
October 31 - Deadline for returning D-League players to inform their team whether they want to come back. Armor/Nets waiting on 14 players, most prominently Scottie Reynolds.
November 3 - D-League Draft (which is done by conference call). Armor have no first round pick, having traded it last year for Scottie Reynolds. They pick at #17, the first pick in the second round.
November 5 - Bogdanovic's Fenerbahce meets D-Will's Besiktas in Turkish League game.
November 8 - Besiktas (Williams) and B.C. Armia of Georgia (Gaines) open their EuroChallenge seasons, Besiktas against Leiden of the Netherlands and Armia against Gottingen of Germany.
November 15 - First missed paycheck for most NBA players. Most players are paid bi-weekly and their contracts run basically on the same schedule as the season. Some players get paid in a lump sum, others on an annual basis, meaning their last paycheck with July 1.
November 15 - Nets point guards go up against each other in EuroChallenge match. Williams' Besiktas hosts Gaines' B.C. Armia in Istanbul.
November 16 - Earliest possible Opening Night for the Nets vs Thunder in Oklahoma City. Nets would play eight of their first 11 games on the road.
November 21 - Earliest possible home opener at Prudential Center vs. the Warriors.
November 25 - Springfield Armor Opening Night. Armor vs. Maine Red Claws in Springfield.
December 19 - Last day of Fall Semester for undergraduate courses at Providence College. MarShon Brooks completes his degree requirements.
December 30 - Efes Anadolu plays Besiktas in the Turkish League. Vujacic vs. D-Will...if the lockout is still on.
January 7 - If no agreement by this date, expect the entire 2011-12 season will be canceled.
*Whenever the Nets open their season, they have to decide by the night before whether to extend Stephen Graham's contract, at the veteran's minimum.