Never once did it feel like Peej Carlisimo was the guy the Nets wanted to lead this team to an NBA championship. So after he failed to get his team out of the first round of the playoffs, and, a day later, became the Nets’ ex-interim coach, the big question for next year is “Who will take the Nets to the promised land.”
Right now, all we know is that the next Nets coach will have to be less offensively stubborn than Peej. He’ll have to understand that floor spacing is the key to the Nets’ success. And he’ll have to instill that system from day one.
As usual, its all about the front court.
What a disappointing year it was for Kris Humphries. Here’s a guy who was coming off two years where he averaged a double double per game, but this season he was nowhere to be found. Humphries fell out of favor with Avery Johnson, who started the season as coach, and never regained it once Peej took over. The Nets inserted career role-player Reggie Evans into the starting lineup, and while Evans can rebound with the best of them, he was an offensive liability. With no real weapon at the four spot, the Nets’ best hope for next season is that Humphries can rediscover his offensive game.
That better be the case, because there are no answers to be found on the free-agent market or via a trade.
Besides, the Nets are well over the salary cap next season with big money tied up in long term contracts. The team doesn’t exactly have the kind of assets that would return a significant upgrade over Humphries.
General Manager Billy King did a good job last year bringing in Andray Blatche and C.J. Watson, but it won’t be easy to strike bench-contributor gold like that two years in a row. It will be interesting to see what Watson and Blatche, both free agents, decide to do this offseason. Watson can surely make more money elsewhere, and it’s hard to see why he wouldn’t jump at the opportunity. Blatche is slightly more intriguing, as he’s still being paid by the Washington Wizards, so although he would most likely be able to make bank elsewhere, he may feel some indebtedness to the team that gave him a second chance, and the place where he rediscovered his career.
How will the Nets fare next season? It’s never too early for meaningless predictions.
Despite limited mobility in terms of cap space and trade assets, it is hard to not see the Nets as a better squad in 2013–2014. The same coach from the beginning to end of the season will give the team stability. A rested, healthy Deron Williams and Joe Johnson will develop better chemistry. Gerald Wallace will find regain some semblance of his offensive game. Lopez will build on his first All-Star campaign. Humphries and Reggie Evans? Well, they’ll definitely be eating the boards as they always have.
All we need is a coach that understands their game.
Tom Lafe is a 6-foot-5 sports-world insider with a middling high school basketball career who believes the Nets will be driven by the success of the team’s big men.
