The New Jersey Nets

Goodbye to Jersey. (NY Post)

The New Jersey Nets play their last game in New Jersey tonight. They move to Brooklyn next season after 35 years in New Jersey. Much of the talk surrounding this game lately has revolved around the fact that the Nets have mostly accomplished nothing all those years. They were in Long Island for some time, Rutgers for a little, and then Continental Airlines Arena and Newark. The good times have been few and far in between. That’s what the chatter focuses on. I’d rather not focus on that. I’d rather not think about how bad the Nets have been historically, or how putrid they’ve been as of late. No, I’m not being narrow-minded and only thinking of those glorious seasons under Jason Kidd. I’m just trying to stay positive. I’ve lost some interest in the Nets over the years because they’ve been downright bad, but I’ll always be a fan of them, whether they’re in New Jersey or Brooklyn or have Jason Kidd or Deron Williams or freakin’ Gerald Green. I am not from New Jersey. Heck, I should like the Wizards based on geography. But I don’t. I like the New Jersey Nets. And while they may not be the “NJ” Nets anymore, I’ll still call them that. Brooklyn, get ready for this bunch.

Ringing in a title

The man has his ring. These days, he may not be the fastest, the biggest, or the youngest. But he still changes the game just the same as he did 10 years ago. And although his ring comes with the Mavs and not the Nets, I’m still happy for him. To have the kind of career that Jason Kidd has had, well, a title better come with that. It’s only fair, even if life isn’t always. So congrats to J-Kidd. The man with the no-look, behind the back passes, epic alley-oops, and fastbreak vision. The title has come. And that’s the best thing in sports.

Kidd’s play

With the Dallas Mavericks one win away from the NBA Finals, I think now is just the right time to write my praises about Jason Kidd. Sure, he may have lost a step at 38, but what he’s doing for the Mavs is more than what most people realize. Dirk Nowitzki may be the heart and soul of the team, but Kidd is the bloodstream. He makes them run. And if they do make the NBA Finals, I hope they face the Heat for a 2006 Finals rematch. Because I’m pretty confident that with Kidd at the helm this time, the Mavs won’t let any series get away. All everybody does is hate on Kidd. Jealousy? Who knows. One thing I do know is that Kidd is one of the greatest players in NBA history. SLAM magazine called him No. 29. I think he’s right up there with the best. All these young guys. They’re just squirts. They don’t have what Kidd possesses. Yet, at least. So I’m sitting here rooting for Kidd and the Mavs. I hope he can finally get that elusive ring. It may not be with the Nets, but it’d still be something.

Welcome to Jersey

Deron Williams is a Net. Am I glad? Yes. Is he? Hard to tell. But putting all that aside, getting Deron Williams for Devin Harris and a bunch of spare parts is exactly what the Nets needed. There’s still more work to do in terms of making Williams happy, locking him up, and oh, winning. But this trade is a step in the right direction. Williams doesn’t have Carmelo Anthony’s celebrity status, but he is just as good, and the kind of NBA player that I have always valued—a passer. The Nets haven’t had a true, bona fide point guard since the man, Jason Kidd left. And in my opinion a good point guard leads to more wins. So here’s to the potential for more assists, and with that, more wins.

Two blasts from the pasts in present time

VC

This week’s Sports Illustrated featured two articles on two different athletes that are attempting to come back from disappointments of sorts. I also happen to have “connections” with both. The first I read was on Vince Carter. Carter was on the Nets for almost five seasons. I always said I liked him as a player, but never really gave him due credit or appreciated him. I always put him behind Jason Kidd and even Richard Jefferson. Now, without him, the Nets had a horrible year. VC always had the ability to knock down any shot. Not just dunks, but ones like the fadeaway from the corner against the Heat in the 2005 playoffs that sent the game to overtime when the Nets were on the brink of elimination. He is a great player, and now has the chance to go deep into the playoffs with the Magic. The same playoffs that I used to have my eyes glued to. The ones that I didn’t even know started yesterday. I guess it’s true that you pay more attention to the sport when your team is actually doing well. Anyway, I still miss the sounds of VC 3333333.

Adu

The second athlete was Freddy Adu. See, he basically has no shot at making the U.S. World Cup team, and has been jumping around Europe since leaving MLS in 2007. Back in 2005, I ran into Freddy Adu at a restaurant about five minutes from my house. He must have been around 15 at the time and was playing for D.C. United. The autograph I received from him is one of the few sports memorabilia I’ve lost. Probably because it was on a napkin. Anyway, though, Adu was this amazing player who was playing pro soccer at age 14. Now, 20, he is definitely not the child star he once was. But he still has the potentially and I hope he goes with it and succeeds.

Trade me or leave me

I’m a fan of trades. It’s good to see a shake-up. I like seeing players look different in their new uniforms. Excitement builds at the beginning (most of the time anyway). Yes, not all trades are god, and you could argue that many do not work out, but in general, they’re not so bad. I’m sure many would disagree with that too, but it’s not like I have any athletes reading this post. It’s currently prime time in NBA trade season. A few have already been made (the Wiz have been dismantling), and more may be coming very soon. Most of the time, I don’t mind if my team makes a trade. I loved when Vince Carter was traded to the Nets, but at the same time I hated when the Nets traded away Kenyon Martin. But the one trade that I hate the most is the Jason Kidd trade. No, not the one that brought him to the Nets. I L.O.V.E. that one. I’m talking about the one a couple of years ago that sent him to the Mavs. It didn’t go through the first time, and I jumped for the joy. But the second time, it went through. That was a crushing blow to me. The Nets? They didn’t care. They were getting a young Devin Harris and saving money. But what about the fans? Screw rebuilding. It rarely works out. We still miss J-Kidd and what he did for us. I would trade the whole team for him. Keep Lopez and 3 duds and get Kidd! Woot woot. That ain’t happening in a million years. So maybe I don’t like trades after all.

A history lesson that won’t bore you (hopefully)

When people ask me what my best sport is in terms of overall knowledge, I usually think for a second and then say basketball, meaning the NBA. I sometimes second guess if I know just as much about baseball or even football, but then I think and realize that I reign supreme in basketball. When I was first introduced to the league in December of 2001, I was a rookie in a list of rooks that included the Nets’ own Richard Jefferson, along with Pau Gasol, Jason Richardson, Shane Battier, Joe Johnson, Zach Randolph, Gerald Wallace, Tony Parker, Gilbert Arenas, Tyson Chandler, Brendan Haywood, Samuel Dalembert, and Mehmet Okur. And to top it off, the class was led by Kwame Brown! At least MJ drafted him so that no one else would make that mistake.

Like I was saying, when I first came into the league, things were a lot different than today. There was no LeBron, D-Wade or Yao. Kobe was slowly building his legacy, KG was a playoff failure, Jason Kidd was not yet a legend. T-Mac was relatively healthy and Vince Carter was close to reaching top air. Stephon Marbury and Steve Francis were respected. The only Stoudamire people knew was Damon. Gary Payton, Chris Webber, Karl Malone and John Stockton were reveling in their primes, while guys like Dirk, Steve Nash, Paul Pierce and Allen Iverson had just about hit their stride. Shaq was dominating and right behind him was…Vlade Divac. Reggie Miller was in the midst of burying threes and Tim Duncan had one NBA title with David Robinson. The Kings were good and the Cavs weren’t. The Nets were close to winning the Eastern Conference Championship and Andrew Bynum, who has a Lakers championship ring, was 14. 2009 number one draft pick Blake Griffin was 12. The number five pick from last year, Ricky Rubio was 11. (Heck, that’s only one year older than me.)

Now we’re in the midst of the 2010 season. The Nets suck. LeBron and Kobe are lighting up the league. Yao, although inured, has proven to be an all-star. Dwayne Wade is a superstar with a ring. KG has a ring too. Jason Kidd is one of the greatest point guards ever. T-Mac is perennially injured. Vince Carter is closing in on a possible decline. Starbury is in China, Francis is who knows where, and Damon StoudAmire has been replaced by Amare StoudEmire. Payton, Webber, Malone and Stockton are retired. Along with MJ. Dirk, Nash, and Pierce are stars, while Iverson is nearing the end of a great career. Shaq is nearing the end of a hall of fame career, while Vlade Divac is long retired. Reggie Miller’s career is over along with David Robinson’s. Tim Duncan has four rings. The Kings are bad and the Cavs good. Andrew Bynum is 22. Blake Griffin is 20, and Ricky Rubio is 19. And I’m 18, not 9.

But, despite all of these changes, the world isn’t all that different. Stars are still stars, rivalries still rivalries and players are still looking for the win. And maybe their high-tech cell phone, too. (Okay, so not everything is the same).

Best sports weekend is here! (not the Olympics, I’m talking about the NBA All-Star weekend!)

Does this post sound familiar? It should, because I wrote it around this exact same time last year. And not one thing has changed about it. Okay, maybe the part about staying up late for the dunk contest doesn’t seem so late anymore.

This year’s game will take place in the Big D, Dallas, in the new Cowboys stadium. Over 90,000 people will be there, including Jason Kidd who will be replacing the injured Kobe Bryant. I love All-Star weekend. It’s a chance for the players to kick back and give the fans some real entertainment. I like all of the pre-game activities better than the game itself. The weekend will have some competition with the Olympics, but I’d rather watch a guy dunk over another guy than watch someone crash and ski.

Last year’s post:

“The NBA All-Star game is this weekend. Yes! This weekend is one of my favorites when it comes to sports. For some reason I am always busy during the all-star festivities, but I always find a way to watch them, whether it be at a restaurant or a hotel. On Friday, the celebrity game will happen. The game usually includes athletes from other sports, tv stars, musicians, and more. Nelly always seems to be in it, and it is always entertaining. Then, Saturday night is the big palooza. First is the Shooting stars contest, then the skills contest, then the three point shootout. And then…BAM! The Dunk contest. Poor little kids can’t watch the dunk contest because it’s on at 11 or so up until midnight. Then Sunday is the all-star game, which I feel like I tape every year, because like I said, I always seem to be busy. The first half of this game has some hot moves. Anyhow, I love all-star weekend. It’s chill, fun, and awesome to watch and enjoy.”

2002: Nothing but Net[s]

Best Trade Ever.

In 2002, the New Jersey Nets made it to the NBA Finals with Jason Kidd leading the way. This was the first full year that I followed sports, and it certainly helped that the Nets were winning. But hey, I didn’t know any better. I didn’t know that a team could be 2-26, or that a fastbreak wasn’t all that successful when Jason Kidd wasn’t on a team.

Before 2002, I didn’t read the sports page in the newspaper. I didn’t like the Nets (I didn’t know who they were). And I didn’t even know who Jason Kidd was. I had no idea hat he was in his first year with the Nets and that the Nets had been absolutely putrid the previous year with Stephon Marbury. All I saw was Kidd leading the Nets on a magical ride before they were swept in June’s NBA Finals by the Lakers, who had reached the peak of the Shaq/Kobe dynasty. The Nets posted 50 wins during the 2001-2002 season, with Kidd alley-ooping to Kenyon Martin, Richard Jefferson coming onto the scene as a rookie, and Kerry Kittles doing whatever it was that Kerry Kittles did. This was the year that Jason Kidd became my favorite player. I didn’t pick him. He just was. And I don’t have favorites. I do not have any favorites except in sports. That is what is so great about sports. You can have a favorite team and player. It is just that easy.

In 2002, I was mainly following the NBA. I realized that my local Maryland Terrapins won the NCAA Championship, and I heard about the Angels winning the World Series, and the Pats winning the Super Bowl in January, but I didn’t follow those sports. The NBA had my attention, and that was what I knew. And with the Nets’ success, that wasn’t a bad thing.

2001: Not a Space Oddysey

This was a good year for Jason Kidd. He was traded to the Nets and would go on to lead the team to the NBA Finals. This was the year that I started to acknowledge sports, although it wasn’t until December. But I do remember a little pre-December.

I remember the Patriots winning the Super Bowl over the Rams and U2 performing. (Okay, so this was 2002, but it was with the 2001 season and I’d rather not mention who lost the Super Bowl in 2001 coughGiantscough). When I found out that the Patriots had won on a last second field goal, I though that they had simply been running around with the ball and some guy decided to punt it through the net. Little did I know.

2001 was also unique. September 11 happened, and the Yankees nearly managed to win the World Series for New York. Not to make a joke of the situation, but Yankee fans: your team was eight years late!

Again, Tiger was dominating. The golf course that is, not the gossip headlines.

Other than the above and a few accomplishments and championships here and there, 2001, which is actually considered the first year of the new century (not 2000) was pretty basic. It was nothing like the space oddysey movie.

Other non sports tidbits which I find interesting:

AOL and Time Warner merged (they separated just recently).

I hit double digits in age.

The whole Enron fiasco was happening.

And besides the major catastrophe of September 11th, I don’t remember much else besides what I learned in school. And neither me or you want to look back on that!

All I can say is, it has been about eight years since I saw my first NBA game (yes, I still have the ticket). Without that, you wouldn’t be reading this post!