Untitled Page

New Jersey Nets News

Report: Deron Williams prefers Nets, but Mavs, Lakers are in play
May 25
Dallas Morning News
 
"The Mavericks have put all their eggs in the Deron Williams free-agent basket, writes Tim Cowlishaw. Owner Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson made that clear when the club chose not to bring back four players - Tyson Chandler, J.J. Barea, Deshawn Stevenson and Caron Butler - from the Mavs' championship-winning roster. Dallas wanted to clear cap space for the 2012 free-agent season, which begins July 1. The Mavs have made no secret of their desire to lure point guard Deron Williams, who played high school basketball in the area at The Colony, back to Big D. Now, the Mavs have to do it. They are considered to be one of the leading candidates to land Williams."
Deron Williams still undecided on his future with Nets
May 25
Dallas Morning News
 
"With Orlando center Dwight Howard having given up his free-agent desires for 2012, Nets point guard Deron Williams is the diamond of the class, if he wasn't already. Certainly, he's the apple of the Mavericks' eyes. Fred Kober, writing for nypost.com, writes that nothing should be read into Williams' movements this summer. Kober writes: Deron Williams has a request: Don't read into movements, actions or vacations. Williams' future remains very undetermined. His hanging around the Nets and practicing at their facility doesn't mean he's staying long term. He sold his California home and is in the process of selling his house in Utah. He has nowhere else to go."
Trying to make sense out of Deron Williams-Dwight Howard speculation
May 25
Dallas Morning News
 
"Deron Williams ... the only thing we know for sure is the Mavericks want the All-Star point guard to pair with Dirk Nowitzki, and that Mark Cuban will do all in his power to aquire the former high school star at The Colony when he becomes a free agent on July 1. Everything else is rumors, conjecture, speculation ... all things that make talking about sports great. So let's do it. There are a lot of questions and no answers swirling around Williams. How does Dwight Howard's situation with the Orlando Magic affect the Mavericks' chances of landing Deron Williams? Dallas would love to have both of them, but as columnist Tim Cowlishaw points out, that's unlikely. Reports surfaced Thursday that"
Why Lakers could land Mavs targets Dwight Howard, Deron Williams
May 24
Dallas Morning News
 columnist Ed Holland
"Steve Van Gundy and Otis Smith are out in Orlando, but that doesn't mean Dwight Howard is staying put, which leaves the door wide open for Dallas. However, Sports Illustrated's Sam Amick believes a Howard trade for Los Angeles Lakers big man Andrew Bynum needs to happen and is the 'most logical trade' in the NBA rumor mill. Earlier this year, there were rumblings about the scenario coming into fruition, but talks broke down and nothing ever transpired. Amick claims that neither Howard nor Kobe Bryan was ready to share the limelight if paired together."
Hilton Armstrong looks good to Nets
May 24
New York Post
 
"In 2006, Hilton Armstrong was the 12th overall pick in the NBA Draft, selected by the Hornets out of UConn. The Sonics (Thunder) and Wizards were two other teams Armstrong knew were interested in him at the time. And there was another team, drafting far later, that had him on its radar: the Nets. "I didn't know that," the 6-foot-11 Armstrong said yesterday after the completion of the Nets' three-day mini-camp for free agents. "I hope that's a harbinger for some good things. It would be real nice to play here. I'd be real happy." Why not? The former lottery pick spent last year in France. Not that France was bad — "It was great," Armstrong said. But it wasn't the NBA. And now the Nets are"
Deron still undecided on Nets
May 23
New York Post
 
"Deron Williams has a request: Don't read into movements, actions or vacations. Williams' future remains very undetermined. His hanging around the Nets and practicing at their facility doesn't mean he's staying long term. He sold his California home and is in the process of selling his house in Utah. He has nowhere else to go. When he goes to Dallas this week, don't interpret that as a desire to go into the employ of the Mavericks. He has family there, he grew up there, his son's birthday party is being staged there. His vacation to Russia was just that — a vacation to Russia. It does not mean he is Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov's BFF."
Nets' Lopez returns to practice court
May 20
New York Post
 
"At his end-of-season press conference, Nets general manager Billy King said Brook Lopez was scheduled to meet with doctors this week, and would resume workouts if everything went well. So, sure enough, when the first day of the Nets' NBA Draft combine was completed yesterday at the team's practice facility, Lopez was out on the court shooting jumpers. "Brook's making good progress," King said. "He was in here [Friday]. ... It's great anytime you have guys in the gym, but it's also good to see Brook shooting on the court. "He was shooting a lot of 3-pointers," King said before adding with a smile, "I told him, 'Get in your range' and he took a step back.""
Why the Nets have the upperhand in the battle for Deron Williams
May 17
New York Daily News
 
"So here's the ugly list, as best we could gather. These teams could have enough cap space to sign Deron Williams to a max deal, and each is sufficiently flawed: Trailblazers, Hornets, Suns, Celtics, Bobcats, Rockets, Raptors, Cavaliers, Pacers, Kings, Mavericks, Nets. Yes, the Pacers are good. But they play in Indiana, famous for windmills and farms. Their space is contingent on not re-signing Roy Hibbert. The Celtics already have a point guard, and their space is contingent on Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen bolting. Houston and its healthy cap space is quasi intriguing. Same with Portland. But let's simplify for the sake of your attention, because ultimately we believe it will come down"
Nets guard Williams now on Prokhorov's home turf
May 17
New York Post
 
"Paris is supposed to be wonderful this time of year. The Caribbean, too. But Moscow? "No sunshine but still beautiful," Nets point guard Deron Williams posted on Twitter this week. Williams and wife Amy posted pictures of themselves at Red Square as the offseason's most intriguing vacation continued in Russia, home of billionaire Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov. Though there has been no evidence of Williams and Prokhorov holding serious talks about a contract, the two had a casual discussion in Turkey where two other entries in the storyline, Nets GM Billy King and Williams' former Jazz teammate Andrei Kirilenko also emerged."
Nets holding pre-draft workout for NBA hopefuls
May 16
New York Post
 
"The Nets again are holding a mass pre-draft workout this weekend with 44 NBA hopefuls scheduled to attend. The Nets, who are holding the workout in conjunction with the Rockets, staged a similar combine last year. All 30 NBA teams are expected to have representatives on hand to watch skill tests and 5-on-5 competition for the mostly second rounders. Nope, no one from Kentucky."
Nets prep for combine
May 16
New York Post
 
"The Nets will look at a possible roster piece for the future and a prospective teammate buddy for Johan Petro all rolled into one at the two-day draft combine this weekend at their East Rutherford practice facility. Evan Fournier, a 19-year-old, 6-foot-7 combo guard from France, like Petro, is considered one of the standout prospects at the combine, which the Nets are running in conjunction with the Houston Rockets. Fournier, whom the Nets have scouted in the past, is projected as a late first-round selection in some mock drafts."
Nets brass, Deron on Turkey trip
May 12
New York Post
 
"The Nets may not re-sign Deron Williams this summer, but it won't be for a lack of trying. The star point guard, who repeatedly has said he will opt out of the final year of his contract to test free agency this summer, spent yesterday in Istanbul, Turkey with Nets general manager Billy King and, as first reported by The Post, owner Mikhail Prokhorov. It only can be seen as a good sign for the Nets that Williams would choose to spend time with King and Prokhorov during the offseason. With Williams officially under contract until June 30 — the deadline for when he has to decide to exercise the early termination option in his deal — the Nets have a two-month head start on the competition to"
Nets-Magic trade rumors over Howard to resume soon
May 10
New York Post
 
"The Nets spent the first half of the season dealing with rumors and conjecture on a daily basis surrounding Dwight Howard's status, and whether or not he'd soon be joining the team. Now that the Magic have been eliminated from the playoffs thanks to Tuesday's 105-87 loss to the Pacers, it's only a matter of time before that talk will begin again. Magic CEO Alex Martins began the chatter himself Tuesday, speaking to a reporter from a television station in Orlando. In a series of tweets, News 13 reporter David Bauman gave some insight into the Magic's thinking now that their season has come to an end."
David Stern: NBA to consider short season
May 9
ESPN.com
 
"On Tuesday, David Stern told CBS's Jim Rome that the NBA owners would discuss whether to follow a shorter schedule -- like this successful lockout-shortened one -- going forward. However Stern doesn't anticipate changes soon, because, more or less, change is hard and potentially expensive. "The reason you don't make it a shorter year is because of the infrastructure that's been built," said Stern. "You have all of the buildings that have been selling an 82-game schedule. You have these local TV deals. You have these network TV deals. So, we'd have to negotiate with our players to take 20 percent less every year on the salaries that they're getting. That is a problem.""
Nets season in review: Introduction
May 8
New York Post
 
"The 2011-12 season for the New Jersey Nets – their final year in the Garden State – can be summed up with a single word: injuries. A team that entered its lockout-shortened training camp with hopes of making it to the playoffs and convincing Deron Williams that his future lies in Brooklyn instead suffered through one unfortunate and freak injury after another before finishing the season with a 22-44 record. Beginning with Brook Lopez suffering a stress fracture in the fifth metatarsal in his right foot in the team's second preseason game against the Knicks at the Garden, the Nets lost an incredible 250 games to injuries and illness over the course of the season (a staggering average of 3.8"
Nets monitoring Kirilenko, but no verbal agreement: source
May 3
New York Post
 
"At his end of season press conference Tuesday, Nets general manager Billy King said he would be at next week's Euroleague Final Four in Istanbul, Turkey. The purpose of King's visit is to meet with small forward Bojan Bogdanovic, the team's second-round draft pick in 2011, who plays for Fenerbache in the Turkish league. But it will also provide King an opportunity to watch Andrei Kirilenko in person with the forward's team, CSKA Moscow, playing in the Final Four. A report by Aroundthheworldbasketball.com Wednesday said that the Nets are nearing a verbal agreement on a three-year deal with the 6-foot-10 small forward, who had spent ten years playing for Utah before heading back to Russia"
Hectic days ahead for Nets' GM
May 2
New York Post
 
"With the excitement of Monday's official unveiling of the Brooklyn Nets behind him, Billy King has a busy summer in front of him. The Nets general manager enters the offseason with just four players — guards MarShon Brooks and Anthony Morrow, forward Jordan Williams and center Johan Petro — signed for next season, and the possibility of superstar point guard Deron Williams leaving in free agency hanging over him. Nevertheless, King says he is undaunted by the challenges that remain in order to put together the team's roster ahead of its inaugural season in Brooklyn starting this fall."
A team grows in Brooklyn
May 1
New York Post
 
"After years of careful planning, the Brooklyn Nets were finally unveiled yesterday for the world to see, just a few yards from the Barclays Center construction site. With a black and white color scheme and a pair of primary logos — both using a "B" and both including the word "Brooklyn" — it's clear the franchise is making a break from its past as it attempts to lay the foundation for what it hopes will be a bright future. "We've been waiting a long time for this," Nets CEO Brett Yormark said. "We knew we had one chance, and one chance only, to make this work, and we are thrilled with the results.""
Deron not ruling out Nets return
April 28
New York Post
 
"With their last season in New Jersey officially behind them, the Nets are finally Brooklyn-bound. Now they just need to make sure Deron Williams is, as well. The superstar point guard met with the media yesterday, as the Nets cleaned out their lockers following Thursday's season-ending loss in Toronto. Though Williams made it clear he still plans on opting-out of the final year of his deal and testing free agency, that doesn't mean he already has one foot out the door. "I'm still looking at all of the possibilities here," said Williams, who said he wants to have his new contract signed by the Olympics. "I went to the [Barclays Center] a couple days ago and saw how it was, and it's going to"
Raptors beat tanking Nets, 98-67
April 27
Toronto Sun
 
"The New Jersey Nets came up with eight players they were willing to play Thursday night. The hometown Raptors found nine. The NBA has to find a way to ensure the incentive is to win games, not lose them as it appeared in the season finale. And this is not a Toronto/New Jersey thing either. This is every team in the lottery looking to secure a better chance in the draft lottery. It has been happening for weeks with some teams. And you can't blame the teams for doing what could be in their own best interests. Granted the difference between a win or a loss at this point in the season is mere percentage points in the draft lottery, but teams aren't willing to give up on even the tiniest"
Ex-Net Jayson Williams says prison saved him
April 26
New York Post
 
"Ex-New Jersey Nets star Jayson Williams blames booze for all his woes -- and says prison saved him. "Alcohol is the cause of all my problems,'' he told Fox 5's Lisa Evers in his first exclusive interview since his release from Rikers Island days ago. "If I had to think of what I would do different in my whole career, it's that I never would have picked up a beer, bottle of vodka. That definitely changed my life. That is an Achilles heel for me.'' Prison, he said, "polished me up like stone..and sent me back out. Because I'm going to tell you something, Lisa - if it wasn't for prison, I was in a bad way.'' Williams served eight months at Rikers for driving drunk in Manhattan in January,"
Nets suit up for final bow
April 26
New York Post
 
"Monday was the warmup. Tonight in Toronto is the main event. The last main event for New Jersey. This will be the final game for the New Jersey Nets, whose first NBA game representing the Garden State came at Detroit (a loss) on Oct. 18, 1977. Their first game in New Jersey came against New Orleans (a loss), at Rutgers in Piscataway before a throng of 4,960. The coach back then was Kevin Loughery, who guided the team to two ABA titles and its first NBA season (as the New York Nets). Any recollections of those first New Jersey games, Coach? "Nah, I don't remember the games," Loughery, 72, said with a laugh Wednesday. "What I do remember is coming over [from the ABA]," he said. "It was"
Nets logo leaked
April 26
New York Post
 
"Is this to be the new logo of the soon-to-be Brooklyn Nets? A photo of the shielded logo, taped to a wall, was posted on Twitter yesterday by a man claiming to be an IT worker at the under-construction Barclays Center. It was then circulated by the blog Deadspin. Multiple sources outside the Nets organization confirmed it is the team's new logo. It's an update of the team's existing New Jersey logo — but with Brooklyn flavor. Like the current logo, the team name is above a basketball — but this time a large "B" resembling the one worn on the hats of the old Brooklyn Dodgers is in the center of the ball."
Nets unveil Brooklyn website
April 25
New York Post
 
"With their time in New Jersey behind the Nets and only Thursday's season finale in Toronto left on the schedule, the team has already begun their transition to their new home in Brooklyn. Shortly after the Nets dropped their final game in New Jersey Monday night, a 105-87 loss to the 76ers at Newark's Prudential Center, the team's website put up a new welcome page with a black background, with a blank logo and the Twitter hashtag #hellobrooklyn in white lettering, paying homage both to their new home and to one of Jay-Z's signature hits. The team also already put up billboards with the same image on them as it prepares to officially become the Brooklyn Nets on April 30."
Gov. Chris Christie not losing sleep over Nets' departure to Brooklyn
April 24
Newark Star-Ledger
 
"Gov. Chris Christie doesn't have any fond farewells in store for the Nets, who play their final game in New Jersey tonight before the franchise moves to Brooklyn. "I'm not going to the Nets game tonight," he said during a press conference at Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, "and my message to the Nets is, 'Goodbye.'" Another NBA team looking to relocate may be attracted to the Prudential Center by the New York-New Jersey fan base, he said."
Kenny: Petrovic's death turned back Nets franchise
April 24
New York Post
 
"In the early '90s, the Nets looked like a team on the rise, with a young core of Kenny Anderson, Drazen Petrovic and Derrick Coleman. Led by future Hall of Fame coach Chuck Daly, the Nets were 43-39 and pushed the 54-win Cavaliers to a decisive fifth game in the first round of the 1993 Eastern Conference playoffs. But everything changed on June 7, 1993, the day Petrovic died in a car crash in Europe. "When we had Drazen die," Anderson said last night, "that turned the organization back a few years . . . more than that." It was just one in a series of unfortunate events to befall the franchise during its 35 years in New Jersey. At halftime of last night's 105-87 loss to the 76ers — the"
Brooklyn may be home Nets always sought
April 24
New York Post
 columnist Mark Cannizzaro
"The house was full last night. The Prudential Center looked, felt and sounded like a vibrant NBA arena housing a team that mattered. Unfortunately, it was all a mirage, which is why the Nets are fleeing New Jersey after 35 years. The sellout crowd filled the building more out of curiosity, to attend the last-ever Nets game in New Jersey perhaps so they could one day say they were there (for whatever that might be worth). The truth is New Jersey and the Nets were never perfect together the way the state's former governor Tom Kean once crowed about his constituents in that '80s ad campaign. The Nets have not exactly been to Jersey what Bruce Springsteen has been. Springsteen has always been"
Past celebrated in Nets' Newark final
April 24
New York Post
 
"The past was in evidence last night, on the floor, on the scoreboard, in the stands. The future, specifically Brooklyn, was on everyone's mind. And the present also couldn't be overlooked in the Nets' good-bye to the state of New Jersey before next season's move to Brooklyn. The present endured much of what the season has been: lots of injured players on the bench, a determined but losing effort on the floor as the Sixers clinched a playoff berth through the Nets' 105-87 defeat. "I'm a little bothered about leaving Jersey. We didn't really finish like we wanted to down the stretch, but, you know, Brooklyn ready," said New Jersey-born Nets rookie MarShon Brooks. With video tributes (members"
Wallace: "They'll have to shut me down"
April 23
Bergen Record
 
"Gerald Wallace fell awkwardly to the floor after getting tangled up under the Nets basket. He walked gingerly to the bench and slammed a towel in frustration. Then he talked to a trainer, and walked directly out onto the court to play the rest of the Nets' 106-95 loss at Milwaukee. With so little at stake in the Nets season, even his teammates are questioning why. "That was scary," DeShawn Stevenson said. "His knee got taken out. I think he should shut it down. He wants to play. D-Will [Nets guard Deron Williams] told him to shut it down, too." Wallace, unsurprisingly, has not been receptive to their suggestions. "No," came Wallace's terse response when asked if he'd consider taking the"
Few tears as Nets bounce Jersey
April 23
New York Post
 
"It'll be Brooklyn or bust for the New Jersey Nets after tonight. With the bright lights of the Barclays Center waiting next season, the Nets play their final Garden State home game tonight at Newark's Prudential Center against the Philadelphia 76ers — ending 35 years of mostly underwhelming basketball west of the Hudson River. "I've been a huge Nets fan since the 80s and the days of Darryl Dawkins, so if they succeed in Brooklyn it's going to be a bitter pill for me to swallow because they couldn't do it here," said Richie Escobinas, a longtime season ticket holder from Clifton, NJ. Escobinas – who attends games at Newark's Prudential Center with his wife, Aileen, and two young children –"
Nets belt out NJ swan song
April 23
New York Post
 
"The memories, good and bad, come in waves. Former Nets president/ general manager Rod Thorn experienced his playoff highs and lows and his worst regular-season loss during his time in New Jersey. Mike O'Koren, who grew up in Jersey City, then played and coached for the Nets, remembers the first Nets preseason game at the Meadowlands when the lights went out, maybe a sign of things to come. Micheal Ray Richardson, the talented but troubled star, remembers a playoff boast that backfired and an owner who stood by him. Jason Kidd, the future Hall of Famer who transformed the franchise, recalls the great times but can't forget the Munchkin-sized crowd in his first game. Welcome, in part, to 35"
Highlights and lowlights of Nets' time across the river
April 22
New York Post
 
"FOR most of their 35 NBA seasons in New Jersey, the Nets were the butt of every joke about pathetic. Look up "wretched" in the dictionary, see the Nets logo. "Mama, don't let your babies grow up to be Nets …" Real knee-slapper stuff. Then came a single trade, for Jason Kidd. In meteoric fashion, the Nets became two-time NBA finalists and, despite local apologists, dominated area basketball. The future was brighter than a noonday sun. Then the team was sold. "Championship aspirations" were replaced by "penny-pinching measures." Who needs scouts, anyway? The plunge was as frightfully quick as the rise was head-spinning rapid. It bottomed out in 2009-10 in a historically inept 12-70 season."
N.J. Nuts went this-a-way & Piscataway
April 22
New York Post
 
"As the Nets depart Jersey for a second time — they were born the New Jersey (Teaneck) Americans of the ABA in 1967 before spending the next nine years in New York — I grow increasingly concerned that the team's first three NBA years (1977-80) have been forgotten, vanished from the memory bank like Winford Boynes, the Nets' first pick in 1978. Those were the Piscataway, Rutgers Athletic Center years, the years between Julius Erving and the first season at the Meadowlands. Those Nets teams were loaded with assorted characters of assorted character. These were teams, after all, that saw leading scorer "Super John" Williamson suspended for being overweight, and sent to a nutritionist named — I"
Nets in wait-and-see mode over Howard, other roster moves
April 21
New York Post
 
"So the Nets will wait on Dwight Howard. Yeah, like they never have had to do anything like that before. They waited for the move to Brooklyn, which seemingly first was planned after the repeal of Prohibition. They waited on the Nuggets and Carmelo Anthony last season. And after killing time while the Magic and Howard sought a resolution this season, they now will wait to see what occurs after Howard's back surgery yesterday, which would end what remained of his regular season and playoffs. The Nets, who came close last month to acquiring Howard, will sit back and let the saga unfold. If the risk seems worthwhile, they will pursue him again. But any pursuit of the three-time Defensive"
Carmelo Anthony trumps NJ Nets playing without Deron Williams
April 19
New York Daily News
 columnist Filip Bondy
"When they meet on Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn, it might be different. The Nets will have a shiny new arena, maybe some new players, maybe some new fans who won't be desperately enthralled watching Carmelo Anthony go off for 21 points in the first 10 minutes. In Newark, though, not far from the train station, the Nets were overwhelmed Wednesday night not only by Anthony, but by a reverse commuter crowd that reveled in the Knicks' 104-95 victory. If the Nets required an audible reminder why they are leaving Essex County, they heard one in the opening quarter, when about 80% of the fans sided with the Manhattan bullies by chanting "MVP" at Anthony — who was definitely MVP of this particular"
Knicks prevail in final Jersey trip
April 19
New York Post
 
"The Knicks will miss this place. Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks ransacked and pillaged the sold-out Prudential Center last night with virtually all of the 18,711 fans reveling in the Knicks' wire-to-wire 104-95 romp over the Nets in their last visit to Jersey. It better be different in Brooklyn next season. Anthony, who nearly became a Net last season, scorched Newark early, racking up 21 points in the first quarter and finished with 33 amid "MVP" and "Me-lo'' chants across the Hudson River. In making the Nets look like Jersey Turnpike roadkill, The Knicks (33-29) moved 3 1/2 games ahead of the ninth-place Bucks and they can clinch a playoff berth with one more victory."
Move to Brooklyn will help Knicks-Nets rivalry
April 19
New York Post
 columnist Mike Vaccaro
"Ok, show of hands: How many of you woke up depressed this morning because the reality hit you hard, sometime around 4 in the morning, that there will never be another Knicks-Nets game in New Jersey ever again? Anyone? Bueller? All caps? Italics? THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER KNICKS-NETS GAME IN NEW JERSEY. EVER. AGAIN. Are those crickets? They must be depressed crickets because THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER KNICKS-NETS GAME IN NEW JERSEY! EVER AGAIN! One last time last night, the Knicks made the commute through the Holland Tunnel and were greeted by what has to have been, over the years, the greatest road-court advantage in the sport. There were 18,711 people inside Prudential Center, which"
Nets' Wallace returns in style
April 19
New York Post
 
"The Nets' Gerald Wallace certainly made an impression with his return Wednesday night after missing four games with a hamstring injury. And that was even before he went out and scored 21 points, played his usual maniacal game and dived all over the place during the 104-95 loss to the Knicks, the final installment of the New Jersey portion of the Nets-Knicks rivalry. Wallace badgered coach Avery Johnson mercilessly. "I've been around for a long time, and what he's demonstrated in terms of wanting to play is unprecedented. He's ridden me harder than a lot of players I've ever been around to play basketball, even at this stage of the season," Johnson said. "It means a lot. He's a guy that"
Knicks-Nets rivalry shifts from inter-state to intra-city
April 19
New York Post
 
"The New Jersey portion of the Knicks-Nets rivalry ended Wednesday night in Newark with the home team going without two major players, Deron Williams and Brook Lopez, without half its bench and, seemingly, without any of its fans. The rivalry — or what has passed for a rivalry — will continue next season when the Nets move to Brooklyn. But the Knicks' 104-95 victory ended the "cross Hudson River" feud that has been a part of the landscape for 35 seasons. The next river involved will be the East River. And you have to figure Knicks fans will cross that barrier as well to boo the Nets and cheer the Knicks."
Green says he'd give Nets hometown discount
April 19
New York Post
 
"He has said it before but Wednesday Gerald Green said it again. Just a little more emphatically. Green wants to be with the Nets next season and would even offer a hometown discount. "Here, definitely with the Nets," Green said when asked for his preference. "I have a strong feeling I'm going to be with the Nets. I don't feel like I'm going to be anywhere else. I know I'm not getting any feedback now from anybody. I can't. Can't talk to anybody. So I have a strong feeling about here. They want me here I want to be here. It's not like I have to weigh my options. I really don't have any options." At least not yet. Green was signed through the end of this season after his second 10-day"
Nets focus on little goals
April 18
New York Post
 
"As the Nets wind down their final season in New Jersey, there's little left to play for. With the absence of a playoff push to give the season's final few games importance, including Wednesday night's matchup in Newark against the Knicks, Nets coach Avery Johnson has to find other goals to give each game meaning. "We're trying to have small victories," Johnson said after his team took its official team photo. "Right now, we're up 2-1 [in the season series] against Philadelphia. That was a team that swept up last year. That's a small victory. "We didn't beat the Knicks last year, [and] we beat them in the Garden. So then, if you can take it to the next level and win the [season] series,"
LeBron James' fourth-quarter flurry leads Miami Heat over New Jersey Nets
April 17
Miami Herald
 
"LeBron James gave the Heat a performance to remember. And then paused to give a 7-year-old boy a gift he won't soon forget. James walked off the court Monday night at the Prudential Center shoeless moments after scoring the Heat's final 17 points in a 101-98 comeback win against the host Nets. He then took off his shoes, autographed them and handed them Daniel Julez Smith, the nephew of singer Beyoncé Knowles, who sat courtside with husband/rapper/Nets minority owner Jay-Z at the game."
LeBron torches Nets
April 17
New York Post
 
"With Deron Williams sidelined with a sore right calf for last night's game against the Heat, Nets coach Avery Johnson said his team had a big mountain to climb in order to defeat Miami. For about 44 minutes, it looked as if the Nets would climb to the summit of that mountain. But then LeBron James decided to knock their feet out from under them. James scored Miami's final 17 points, including outscoring the Nets 11-2 over the final 2:19, to lift the Heat to a 101-98 victory in front of a raucous sellout crowd of 18,711 at Newark's Prudential Center primarily made up of Heat fans."
LeBron enjoys cheers of N.J. fans
April 17
New York Post
 
"As amazing as LeBron James was down the stretch last night, when he scored the Heat's final 17 points in their 101-98 win over the Nets, the reaction from the sellout crowd at Newark's Prudential Center may have been even more incredible. The Heat were treated like the home team down the stretch, with the fans showering them with "Let's Go Heat!" chants as James carried them to victory over a Nets team playing without Deron Williams. "It was amazing, honestly," James said after he finished with 37 points on 11-for-19 shooting. "I give a lot of thanks to all of the Heat fans that we have, and all the Nets fans that rooted for us, as well."
LeBron James scores final 17 for Heat in 101-98 win over Nets
April 17
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
 
"The trip already was successful once they emerged Sunday afternoon from Madison Square with a victory over the New York Knicks. About the only thing to be gained Monday night for the Miami Heat was locking up the No. 2 overall playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. But with the Indiana Pacers routing the Minnesota Timberwolves earlier in the night, that formality was going to have to wait, anyway. So what did Monday's 101-98 victory over the New Jersey Nets at the Prudential Center mean? That if LeBron James is going to play, he is going to play to win."
Rookie giving up soccer is Nets' gain
April 16
New York Post
 
"The Nets would like to take this opportunity to thank Jordan Williams' mother. After all, she got him out of a soccer goal and onto a basketball court. "I was 12," Williams recalled, noting he was a big kid who virtually covered the goal. "I was nasty, man. I was bigger than the goal. I was huge. At that age, you play in the smaller goals, you don't play in the big goal, and I was pretty big for my size. ... I hurt my knee. A cleat went through my knee. I had to get stitches, so my mom made me stop playing." So the Nets say, "Thanks, Mom," because the 6-foot-10, second-round draft pick out of Maryland is blossoming, active and showing terrific hands around the rim."
Nets guard Williams rips Wizards
April 16
New York Post
 
"Deron Williams said he wasn't trying to put anybody down. And then he promptly put somebody down. A Washington writer who stayed over from the Knicks game asked the Nets All-Star about the struggles of young point guards. He asked specifically about the Wizards' John Wall. "He's handled it well. He's a had a tough cast down there, I don't want to put anybody down but he's not playing with the smartest guys in the world. That's tough, man, that's tough," Williams said. So at least he didn't put them down. "They're not smart, I don't know," Williams said. "I've been watching. JaVale McGee (now with Denver) was on the Not So Top 10, like, 50 times this year," Williams said. "But I think he's"
Nets notes
April 15
New York Post
 
"Deron Williams said he wasn't trying to put anybody down. And then he promptly put somebody down. A Washington writer who stayed over from the Knicks game asked Williams about the struggles of young point guards. He asked specifically about the Wizards' John Wall. "He's handled it well. He's a had a tough cast down there, I don't want to put anybody down but he's not playing with the smartest guys in the world. That's tough, man, that's tough," Williams said. So at least he didn't put them down. "They're not smart, I don't know," Williams said. "I've been watching. JaVale McGee (now with Denver) was on the Not So Top 10, like, 50 times this year," Williams said. "But I think he's handled"
Net future falls short vs. Celtics
April 15
New York Post
 
"Stuff pride. Forget being a spoiler. The Nets have something meaningful to play for as they trudge toward the end of their fifth straight losing season. Call it the future. Call it Development 101. Call it what you want, but the growth and maturing of rookies MarShon Brooks and Jordan Williams plus the continued NBA education of free-agent-to-be Gerald Green is a real, viable goal in the final games. "That's what you're looking for when the season is going like this.We're out of the playoffs so the games really don't matter," said Deron Williams, who had 12 points and 14 assists. "But it does to those guys, especially when they're getting time and learning how to play and getting the"