If the Nets are serious about a playoff run, this is a game they have to win. (Didn't we say the same thing Saturday morning?) The Cavaliers are three games ahead of the Nets and have lost three straight, including one on the road to Atlanta Sunday. Their road record is a subpar 7-12. Of course, they do have Kyrie Irving, virtually a lock for Rookie of the Year, averaging 18.5 points a game.
Irving, who was a Nets fan growing up in New Jersey, will have added incentive. His family and friends will be in the stands and this will mark his first return to the state. In two games in Ohio, Irving scored 13 and 32, winning the first but losing the second. Also starting for the Cavaliers, their other rookie, Tristan Thompson, who'll fill in for Anderson Varejao at center.
For the Nets, Gerald Wallace should be more comfortable than he was Saturday, when despite limited preparation, he still played well. it's also the first day of the other Gerald's new NBA career. Gerald Green signed on for the rest of the season Sunday. The two played together for several minutes on Saturday. That could become common since Wallace can play both shooting guard and power forward. Jordan Farmar (groin) is questionable, but will likely play.
- New Jersey Nets Game Notes - New Jersey Nets
- Cleveland Cavaliers Game Notes - Cleveland Cavaliers
- Getting Inside - New Jersey Nets - Sports Xchange
- Getting Inside - Cleveland Cavaliers - Sports Xchange
- Cavaliers-Nets Preview - Santosh Venkataraman - Stats LLC
- Green Day for Nets - Tim Bontemps - New York Post
- Gerald Green finds second NBA life in N.J. - Andy Vasquez - The Record
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Dwight Howard's use of the word loyalty draws mixed reactions from around NBA - Stefan Bondy - New York Daily News