Welcome Back Brook! After missing one game short of half the season, Brook Lopez returns to action vs. the Bucks Sunday. He will get a nice reception from Nets fans, but also apparently from the Bucks. Andrew Bogut is injured again and his replacement, Drew Gooden, is likely out as well. That leaves rookie Jon Leuer in the low post.
The Bucks are kind of a mess. Stephen Jackson has publicly said he has no future in Milwaukee, hinting his relationship with Scott Skiles is irreparable. Jackson said Friday that he'd like to play with Dwight Howard and Howard has said he'd like to play with Jackson. Expect questions about him and the Nets ... answers, too. Brandon Jennings is questioning his long-term commitment to the franchise and has acknowledged he hasn't played hard since he didn't make the All-Star team. They've also lost four straight and seven of the last 10.
As for the Nets, they're getting better on the court and in the medical reports. They beat the Bulls after losing two closely contested games and Lopez's return will give them 12 healthy players for the first time since January 29. One problem is minutes. Kris Humphries played 45 minutes in Chicago while Deron Williams and Marshon Brooks both played 42. That's a lot for the first game of a back-to-back-to-back, two of which will be played on the road (although the Garden is closer than the Rock to D-Will's apartment.)
- New Jersey Nets Game Notes - New Jersey Nets
- Milwaukee Bucks Game Notes - Milwaukee Bucks
- Getting Inside - New Jersey Nets - Sports Xchange
- Getting Inside - Milwaukee Bucks - Sports Xchange
- Bucks-Nets Preview - Matt Beardmore - Stats LLC
- Nets notes: Brook Lopez starts today - Andy Vasquez - The Record
- Nets’ Humphries finding his scoring mojo - Fred Kerber - New York Post
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Lopez to return Sunday - Fred Kerber - New York Post
- Nets' Lopez to make season debut vs. Bucks - Charles F. Gardner - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
- Preview: Bucks at Nets - Charles F. Gardner - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel