The Nets finished last season with a 34-48 record, and then went ahead and traded their second-leading scorer, Vince Carter, to Orlando. Yet they head into the 2009-10 season with more optimism than a team in their position should rightfully have.
Hey, that's the wonder of cap space. Virtually all of what New Jersey had done over the past two or three seasons has been leading to the summer of free agency in 2010.
FanHouse's Matt Steinmetz attended the big NBA draft work-out in Oakland, Calif., on Monday and Tuesday. Louisville guard prospect Terrence Williams (@therealtwill on Twitter) could be a lottery pick, offering up impeccable defense, great rebounding and offensive fearlessness. He talked to the media following Tuesday's run. This is the transcript.
* At the Chicago combine, players submit to interviews by team personnel. Lots of interviews. On Thursday, Chase Budinger was asked if he has any "friends with benefits" and Ty Lawson learned about an uncle he didn't know he had. The Sacramento Bee's Sam Amick has those stories and more.
* Amick also passes along the new sentiment that Oklahoma City wants USC prospect DeMar DeRozan at No. 3, leaving Ricky Rubio to the Kings at No. 4.
* According to DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony, James Hardencanceled interviews with teams outside the top five picks. He will reportedly not work out for the Wolves, who pick No. 6, because Harden's crew believes he will land in OKC at No. 3 or Washington at No. 5. In other news, someone in Harden's crew is a lunatic in thinking it's impossible for the kid to fall to Minnesota or further.
Now that the 2009 NBA Draft order is set, it's time for the second FanHouse Mock Draft of the season.
The Clippers have won the first pick, with Memphis and Oklahoma City rounding out the top three spots. Several teams, including Minnesota, Sacramento and Chicago, have multiple picks in the first round.
After the jump, find the full first round mocked out. Then, feel free to mock it. That's how this works.
All mock drafts are not created equal. And why would you want them to be? That'd be awful boring, just reading lists of names over and over. At FanHouse, we emphasize the commentary -- so in our mocks we'll (try to) explain why we think certain players fit in their theoretical slots. We will also project our own biases (positive and negative), of course.
At this early stage -- and let's be honest, at every stage -- this is 5% homework, 5% supreme divination, 90% guesswork. (A great endorsement, no?) After the jump, a full first-round mock draft for your amusement bemusement.
During the NCAA Tournament, we NBA heads watch (almost) every game, judging the pro prospects of particular players. Inspired by our daily Doing Lines feature, Drooling Lines offers a daily summary of what the box scores tell us.
This song has been sung frequently, but in case you missed prior renditions ...
The NCAA Tournament is so close we can smell it, so FanHouse's college basketball experts took some time away from their busy schedules to talk about who will come out of each region First up, the Midwest Region.
You don't have to like Rick Pitino and his white disco suit, which is something David Hasselhoff might wear to a rave. You don't have to like the way Louisville -- "LOU-EEE-VILLE'' in any sensible phonetic context -- becomes "LUVVLLL'' in the natives' too-folksy attempt to shorten three syllables to one. But I do happen to like the way the Louisville Cardinals play basketball this March, from their depth and guard play to the unselfishness and frenetic pressure defense that have been Pitino signatures since his hair was jet-black and gooed up.
You don't have to like Rick Pitino and his white disco suit, which is something David Hasselhoff might wear to a rave. You don't have to like the way Louisville -- "LOU-EEE-VILLE'' in any sensible phonetic context -- becomes "LUVVLLL'' in the natives' too-folksy attempt to shorten three syllables to one. But I do happen to like the way the Louisville Cardinals play basketball this March, from their depth and guard play to the unselfishness and frenetic pressure defense that have been Pitino signatures since his hair was jet-black and gooed up.
I also like the way they plan ahead. While America was abuzz over Syracuse's "Six In The City'' overtime extravaganza in New York, followed by one more OT for good cardiovascular measure later that night, Terrence Williams and Andre McGee spent part of Saturday afternoon in a Midtown convenience store. The idea was to buy lots of Gatorade, but then they saw the Martinelli's Sparkling Cider -- the bottles are shaped like apples -- and a brainstorm came to them. This is how they'd celebrate in Madison Square Garden if they beat Syracuse that evening and won the Big East tournament championship: They would spray four bottles of apple juice around the locker room.
A to Z.
FanHouse previews all 30 NBA teams in advance of the 2009-10 season.
FanHouse's Matt Steinmetz attended the big NBA draft work-out in Oakland, Calif., on Monday and Tuesday. Louisville guard prospect Terrence Williams (@therealtwill on Twitter) could be a lottery pick, offering up impeccable defense, great rebounding and offensive fearlessness. He talked to the media following Tuesday's run. This is the transcript.
* At the Chicago combine, players submit to interviews by team personnel. Lots of interviews. On Thursday, Chase Budinger was asked if he has any "friends with benefits" and Ty Lawson learned about an uncle he didn't know he had. The Sacramento Bee's Sam Amick has those stories and more.
Now that the 2009 NBA Draft order is set, it's time for the second FanHouse Mock Draft of the season.
FanHouse covers the 2009 NBA Draft.
During the NCAA Tournament, we NBA heads watch (almost) every game, judging the pro prospects of particular players. Inspired by our daily Doing Lines feature, Drooling Lines offers a daily summary of what the box scores tell us.
You don't have to like Rick Pitino and his white disco suit, which is something David Hasselhoff might wear to a rave. You don't have to like the way Louisville -- "LOU-EEE-VILLE'' in any sensible phonetic context -- becomes "LUVVLLL'' in the natives' too-folksy attempt to shorten three syllables to one. But I do happen to like the way the Louisville Cardinals play basketball this March, from their depth and guard play to the unselfishness and frenetic pressure defense that have been Pitino signatures since his hair was jet-black and gooed up.
