New Jersey Nets Draft Options

[NjNets15]

I suggest if you have any information about your own favorite team, to make one of these also.
I'm going to go over all of the possible draft options that the Nets have available to them now:

1) Stay at pick #11 and take one of many players, including(in no particular order):
A) Terrence Williams
B) Brandon Jennings
C) Johnny Flynn
D) Ty Lawson
E) Tyler Hansbrough
F) DeJuan Blair
G) James Johnson
H) Chase Budinger
I) Jeff Teague
J) DeMar DeRozan
K) Earl Clark
L) Omri Casspi

2) Trade up, with reported possibilities of trading
Devin Harris for the #2 Pick in the draft, which would most likely require the grizzlies to also give the Nets some players to even the cap of Devin Harris out. The Nets would most likely take Ricky Rubio.

3) Trade for a 2nd 1st rounder, giving up their pick and a player(s) in order to get 2 first round picks. Some possibilities for this are trading with teams that already have 2 first rounder, including the possibilities of the
#18 Pick(Wolves)
#24 Pick(Blazers, who only have one 1st rounder but have enough 2nd rounders to trade back into the 1st round)
#26 Pick(Bulls)

With these later choices, the Nets would look at players such as:
A) Tyler Hansbrough
B) Ty Lawson(longshot)
C) Terrence Williams
D) Omri Casspi
E) DeJuan Blair (Who I can see falling because of his reported knee problems)
F) Jrue Holliday
G) Gerald Henderson

4) Another reported trade that has a possibility of happening(unfortunately) is:

Nets Receive:
Sasha Pavlovic
Ben Wallace

Cavs Receive:
Vince Carter

One more possible Vince Carter deal was reported to be:

Nets Receive:
#5 Pick
Mike James
Etan Thomas
Darius Songaila

Wizards Receive:
Vince Carter

Analysis:
I would love a trade that involves sending Yi out of town, and possibly one of the other bigs such as Sean Williams or Josh Boone, but I think that the Nets have found a franchise PG and a franchise Center in Devin Harris and Brook Lopez, 2 key parts of winning games and they need to keep their core in tact, including Vince Carter who has developed into a leader. I have a trade proposal also which is not a reported trade, but it was reported that the Nets and Jazz might try to work out this sign and trade deal:

Nets Receive:
Carlos Boozer

Jazz Receive:
Yi Jianlian
Bobby Simmons

WHY WOULD THE JAZZ MAKE THIS TRADE?
Because if the Jazz do not send Carlos Boozer to the Nets in a sign in trade, he will sign with the Pistons and the Jazz will get nothing in return. In this situation they get 2 decent (Yi is not decent but work with me for now) players to put into games for this season, and Bobby Simmons will expire after the season, taking 10 million off of their cap, and placing them in a situation to land one of many good free agents in the 09-10 offseason (More than just Lebron is out there)

My suggestions:
1) Next season, do not play Yi, at all if he is still on the team, although I do not blame this on Lawrence Frank because I am almost sure that the management of the Nets forced him to play Yi for marketing purposes with Asian fans and corporations.

2) Give Chris Douglas Roberts more time! He proved himself in the situations he had last year, and he has apparently been working hard all summer.

3) Build the team more around Brook. He's a good big man, feed him the ball down low and develop him.

4) Move Keyon Dooling to the 2, hes a little more of a scorer than a passer, draft a pass first PG, Johnny Flynn is my favorite.

5) Make sure the team attempts to add some big men, we need heart and somebody that is willing to bang bodies down low.

It should be interesting to see what the Nets do to improve their team for next year

 

[RipCity32]

Wouldn't Clark be higher on your list. He is from NJ ain't he?

 

[NjNets15]

Yeah he is from NJ, and he's a Nets fan he was saying he wants to play here, so I guess thats a good fit.

 

[RipCity32]

I hope you do trade the pick, I think NJ is the only other place where he could go before Detroit.

 

[VC15]

I don't see us trading our pick, and Clark would be a good fit here seeing how his hometown is about a half-hour away from the IZOD center. But IMO he's a bit raw and could use another year at Louisville, but we'll see how that turns out.

 

[NjNets15]

Rip, apparently I've heard that the Pistons may have given B.J Mullens a guarentee.

 

[RipCity32]

Oh lord.

 

[NjNets15]

Nets officials denied a report they’ve offered Devin Harris to the Grizzlies for the #2 pick. “No way,” one source told the Post. “Absolutely nothing to that,” said another. “Just not true,” said a third. Acquiring the second pick would’ve given the Nets a choice of anyone in the draft other than Blake Griffin. The Nets didn’t deny a report the Cavs called about Vince Carter, but said a trade is unlikely.

 

[VC15]

30 Teams, 30 Days: New Jersey Draft Preview
Authored by Jason M. Williams - June 16, 2009 - 12:28 am

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RealGM Search
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2008-2009 Finish: 34-48
2009 Draft Picks: 11th

Pre-Draft 2009-10 Projected Starters:
PG Devin Harris
SG Vince Carter
SF Bobby Simmons
PF Ryan Anderson
C Brook Lopez
Key Reserves:
PG Keyon Dooling
PF Sean Williams
PF Yi Jianlian
SF Jarvis Hayes
SG Chris Douglas-Roberts
PF Josh Boone

What the Nets Do Well:

The Nets finished with the same exact record from the 2007-08 season, but look much better prepared for the future after some excellent performances from the rookies they brought in last June.

Brook Lopez proved to be one of the ultimate steals of the draft, dropping all the way to the Nets at the tenth pick, and they couldn’t have been happier. Lopez was the real deal and played in all 82 games, averaging 13.0 points and a team-leading 8.1 rebounds and 1.84 blocks. His polished game at the center position anchored the Nets up front and gives them a big man who will contend for an All Star selection every year for the next decade.

Ryan Anderson was a much less heralded pick that the Nets snatched later in the first round, but he earned his way into a starting role by the end of the year and averaged 11.4 points and 5.6 rebounds over the season’s final month.

Chris Douglas-Roberts worked his way into the rotation and scored in double figures in seven of the team’s final 15 games. His ability to score off the bench was greatly utilized when stars Devin Harris and Vince Carter were off their game.

Harris and Carter continued to be the motor in the Nets’ engine. Harris led the team with 21.3 points and 6.9 assists per game, again proving that the Mavs made a mistake by swapping the speedy young point guard for the timeless Jason Kidd. VC continued to produce across the board in 2008-09, scoring 20.8 points per game, to go along with 5.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists.

Greatest Areas of Improvement:

Upgrade on the Wing
With Carter turning 33 this January, perhaps it is time to start finding a replacement for their superstar wingman. While Douglas-Roberts is a competent player who can fill the basket from the same position, the Nets should use their lottery selection on a long term fixture that can be a third cornerstone to go with Lopez and Harris.

Pass First Point Guard
Despite the fact that arguably their best player is also their starting point guard, the Nets could experiment by drafting a pass-first point guard and moving Harris off the ball. Harris is a dynamic scorer/slasher that could benefit by playing off the ball and develop into a player similar to Richard Hamilton.

Who’s Gone Number 11 Recently?

Over the past five years, the 11th pick had a lot of hype, but hasn’t generated many results. Sure, Andris Biedrins has developed into a nice player, but that could be a direct result of Don Nelson’s system. J.J. Redick, Acie Law, and Jerryd Bayless were all guys who were thought to be top-5 worthy picks at some point in their final year at school, but all of them slipped and haven’t met expectations since entering the league.

2008
Jerryd Bayless, Indiana Pacers (traded to Portland)

2007
Acie Law, Atlanta Hawks

2006
J.J. Redick, Orlando Magic

2005
Fran Vazquez, Orlando Magic

2004
Andris Biedrins, Golden State Warriors

Who Should the Nets Target?

For more in-depth analysis and background regarding the players that the Nets should target in this year’s Draft, click on each player name to be redirected to Christopher Reina’s Prospect Report piece.

- DeMar DeRozan of USC

Who better to fill VC’s shoes than the most dynamic leaper to enter the NBA since VC himself. DeRozan can jump out of the gym and has a size and skill set similar to Carter. If DeRozan slips down to the Nets at 11, they have to be intrigued at the possibility of having Carter mentor the USC standout and elevate his game at the next level.

- Terrence Williams of Louisville

Williams is another wing player who can do it all. Last year, he averaged 12.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. He is another big time talent from a big time program who played all four years under a talent-sculpting coach in Rick Pitino. While many teams will shy away from Williams because of some off the court issues, he is an extreme athlete that can come to New Jersey and start right away.

- Gerald Henderson of Duke

Henderson is another athletic wing who can pour it on. He also fits the mold of the Nets recent string of taking players from polished big time college programs. Henderson gives them a weapon at the two-guard position who can score in traffic and kill it from mid-range. If he learns how to stroke the three-ball with any type of consistency, he will be a very valuable commodity.

Picks Over the Past Five Years

The Nets have made some great picks over the past couple of seasons in Lopez and Boone, but have had misses in Marcus Williams, Antoine Wright and Victor Khryapa, while Sean Williams remains an enigma.

2008
Brook Lopez, 10th
Ryan Anderson, 21st
Chris Douglas-Roberts, 40th

2007
Sean Williams, 17th

2006
Marcus Williams, 22nd
Josh Boone, 23rd
Hassan Adams, 54th

2005
Antoine Wright, 15th
Mile Ilic, 43rd

2004
Victor Khryapa, 22nd
Christian Drejer, 52nd

Who Do the Fans Want?

According to Andrew Perna’s New Jersey Nets Lottery Summit, an interactive forum featuring the responses of true RealGM hoops fans hoping to add their two cents to the Nets Draft discussion, the fans of New Jersey have made it known that they would like to draft a forward to play next to Brook Lopez.

The Verdicts

1. What could the team have done differently to make the playoffs?

amk482: They could have benched Yi Jianlian about three weeks before they actually did.

jeff1624: If we changed the rotation earlier. Chris Douglas-Roberts should have been getting time ahead of Bobby Simmons, and Yi should not have been playing at all.

NjNets1029: Not much, we just didn't have the team this year to compete. They could have not traded Richard Jefferson for Yi. Also, I don't know how much of a difference it would have made in the win column, but CDR should have played more.

deviljets7: If we were more consistent on the defensive end, and had not relied on Yi and Simmons for so long.

60cent: They could've at least tried to play big instead of playing small all the time. I think the front court of Brook Lopez and Josh Boone/Shawne Williams would've made the team better down the stretch. Also, Coach Frank and his staff could've made a better effort in motivating the players.

2. Where were the team’s biggest strengths?

amk482: The backcourt rotation of Vince Carter, Devin Harris, Keyon Dooling, and towards the end of the year, Douglas-Roberts.

jeff1624: We were effective shooting the ball from beyond the arc, to everyone's surprise.

NjNets1029: The backcourt and Lopez.
.
deviljets7: One of the strongest starting backcourts in the league and Lopez.

60cent: There's a lot of offense, but those strengths were not efficiently utilized due to coaching.

3. Who had a surprisingly effective season?

amk482: Lopez is going to be much better than expected, and Jarvis Hayes played much better than expected, especially defensively.

jeff1624: Brook. Half of the board -- including myself -- were against picking him at #10, and we certainly had low expectations.

NjNets1029: Lopez. He exceeded my expectations.

deviljets7: Lopez and Hayes.

60cent: Hayes. I didn't think he was going to be this good. He was like the second unit's Carter.

4. Who had a surprisingly ineffective season?

amk482: Yi. I’m not sure he is an NBA player. Boone comes in second.

jeff1624: Williams. He went from potentially a leader in blocked shots to just six extra fouls off the bench.

NjNets1029: Yi. He’s terrible.

deviljets7: The trio of Boone, Williams and Yi.

60cent: Yi, Eduardo Najera, and Williams.

5. How confident are you in the front office heading into the offseason?

amk482: Not very, but that’s because of Bruce Ratner. He could care less about W’s. Without so many monetary restrictions, I would have lots more confidence in the front office.

jeff1624: Not really sure, I don't know if we intend to sign any free agents or make any trades.

NjNets1029: I still think they're trying to build towards the move to Brooklyn. I don't think the Nets are going to make a big splash this offseason, or turn any heads next season either.

deviljets7: I still think the goal is rebuilding. I trust Thorn and Kiki, but I do fear Ratner interfering with things.

60cent: Not at all. I want Rod Thorn gone. I’ve had enough of him, just like Frank. I think it's time for a new mastermind.

6. What are the team’s biggest needs in the draft?

amk482: A rebounding power forward. Yi just isn’t going to cut it. I like Ryan Anderson a lot, but more as a bench/rotation player.

jeff1624: A shooter or slasher at the 3 spot.

NjNets1029: I’d like a forward to play alongside Lopez.

deviljets7: Both wing positions, especially since it seems unlikely that Carter will be in New Jersey for long.

60cent: The team needs a bruising power forward and a shooting wingman.

7. Who would you like the Nets to take with the 11th pick?

amk482: Blake Griffin, but realistically -- James Johnson, Earl Clark, or DeJuan Blair, in that order.

jeff1624: I'd like DeMar DeRozan to fall to us, if it's possible. I haven't really followed this year’s class too closely.

NjNets1029: Realistically, Johnson or Clark.

deviljets7: My top four (in no particular order) are Clark, Jrue Holliday, Johnson and Terrence Williams.

60cent: Stephen Curry, Johnson or Blair, in that order. Blair would've been my first choice without the two knee surgeries. I’m not worried about his height.