New Jersey Nets Preview

New Jersey loves to run, and with Kidd steering the ship, that’s the best option. Every year I think Kidd is going to start declining and every year he proves me wrong. He was incredible last year; ranked number 8 over all in our scoring system. I’m not a big Vince Carter fan, but that’s primarily because of the way he left Toronto, although he has become too much of a jump shooter. Richard Jefferson is healthy this year, so what will he mean to the team and what kind of stats can he put up with Vince dominating the shots? They got Jamaal Magloire, which people are praising, so we’ll discuss that.

Projected starting lineup with last year’s stats:
Stats follow this format – Points, Rebounds, Assists, Steals, Blocks, FG percentage & Minutes

PG – Jason Kidd
13 – 8.2 – 9.2 – 1.59 – 0.29 – 41% & 37 min

SG – Vince Carter
25.2 – 6 – 4.8 – 1 – 0.37 – 45% & 38 min

SF – Richard Jefferson
16.3 – 4.4 – 2.7 – 0.62 – 0.15 -46% & 36 min

PF – Nenad Krstic
16.4 – 6.8 – 1.8 – 0.38 – 0.92 – 53% & 33 min

C – Jamaal Magloire
6.5 – 6.1 – 0.40 – 0.26 – 0.81 – 50% & 21 min

Key Bench Players

Marcus Williams
Antoine Wright
Bostjan Nachbar
Josh Boone
Sean Williams
Jason Collins

PG
I have already discussed Kidd briefly. My main concern about him right now is his age and the fact that he is suffering from back pains already. It might just be that he doesn’t need to play in the last two preseason games, or it could be serious. I would find out for sure before you draft him too high, but when healthy he is great. Marcus Williams will be backing him up, who is also banged up. Marcus will be a very nice pickup if Kidd goes down with an injury.

SG
Vince is on a downward climb in his career, but he’s still incredibly skilled and can fill up the stat sheet. I actually see his scoring total decrease this year, with a healthy RJ and Nenad back in the fold. Antoine Wright is his backup, but he won’t get any burn.

SF
I like Richard Jefferson a lot this year. He is healthy and I look for him to build on last year’s stats. I see 18 points, 6 boards and 3 assists this year. Bostjan is his backup and he’ll be a decent play if you are in a deep league and only care about points. He won’t do much more than just score.

PF
Nenad is healthy and apparently he has stretched out his range to the three this year. That will help his scoring, but he still doesn’t rebound at a high rate for a PF and he won’t get you assists or block, so I would stay away. Josh Boone is still a project, but he’s the superior rebounder, if he can ever stay on the floor. I actually like him for the Center spot long term. Sean Williams is very gifted player but I don’t think he’ll get the opportunity to showcase it this year. He is by far the best talent of the bigs on this team, but he’s a rookie, so don’t expect much of anything.

C
They got Jamaal Magloire, and I don’t understand why. I know they are in desperate need of a rebounding defensive big, which Jamaal is, BUT he’s one of the slowest Centers in the league. He can get up and down ok, but as soon as he gets the ball on the low block, he stands there and thinks for about 3-5 seconds before he does ANYTHING! That just won’t work on this team or in the system. Maybe he’ll figure out how to make quick moves and decisions, but I doubt it. That may be why Jason Collins still has the starting gig, though he’s horrible too, which is why I put Jamaal as the starter.


This team will make the playoffs, but they are not contenders. In the fantasy world, there are some options in Kidd, Carter, Jefferson and Krstic, but the list ends there, unless your in a very deep league.