I spent the season quietly observing my counterpart’s analysis of the Nets’ struggling back court, but with the playoffs looming, this big man can be quiet no more. Here is what all the little people must do to help Brooklyn win when it counts.
Fans have waited all season for Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Gerald Wallace to look like their former selves. And while Williams has finally started playing like the star he is paid to be, Brooklynites can only hope the few remaining games are just enough for Johnson to get fully healthy and Wallace to get out of his own head.
The Nets snagged a postseason berth, but this team is not exactly where it wants to be. Sure, Brooklyn is poised to get home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but what happens once we get there? The Bulls, the likely first-round opponent, came into our Barclays Center backyard without five rotation players and found a way to leave with a W, raising the team’s record to 3–1 against the Nets this season.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Wallace, whose lackluster offensive game has left Nets fans quoting “The Wire” character D’Angelo Barksdale all season (“Where’s Wallace at?!”) told the New York Post this week that his confidence is “totally gone.” Totally gone? Not exactly music to the borough’s ears. On this team, he will never be the go-to scorer he was in the past, but he adds a dimension the Nets sure could use come playoff time.
Also necessary is a healthy Johnson. The star shooting guard has been playing at less than 100 percent most of the season, so with some very winnable games left in the regular season Johnson should ride the pine to get as healthy as possible before the playoffs.
With Wallace and Johnson ailing, the last few weeks have yielded seldom-seen offensive output from MarShon Brooks — providing valuable bench scoring for a team that always struggles to put points on the board. Coach P.J. “Peej” Carlesimo must find a way to keep giving Brooks minutes even when Johnson is healthy.
If all goes well as the Nets to close out the season, Brooklyn just might have enough in the tank to make a serious run through the playoffs. At least, that’s the front court’s wish.
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.
