Nets Now: Don’t Hit the Panic Button Yet

Added by Darius Amos on December 24, 2011.

So much for good tidings, at least for the New Jersey Nets. The offseason and post lockout dreams of landing a super star player in Dwight Howard have painfully unfolded into preseason nightmares and a very gloomy future forecast for a widely-considered doomed organization. The regular season has yet to tip off, and already the 2011-12 campaign is teetering on the edge of disaster for the Nets.

It wasn’t a pretty week for the Nets, which lost its preseason opener last weekend to the Knicks. After the loss, the rumor mill heated up on Monday when reports circulated that a deal involving the Nets and Orlando’s All-Star center was close to done. That, of course, did not happen. What did take place on Tuesday was an inevitable signing: Mr. Double-Double and the former Mr. Kim Kardashian, Kris Humphries, inked a 1-year deal with the Nets.

Humphries and his mates then took to the court Wednesday night for their second and final preseason game, this time against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. It was a raucous evening, one in which the Garden was filled to capacity for the first NBA game since this summer’s renovations. I won’t go into too much detail about the new Garden, but the changes for the fans, particularly level 6, are like night and day when compared with the former MSG.

The game itself was energetic, especially whenever Humphries took to the floor. Coming off the bench, Humphries was greeted with thunderous “boos,” which continued each time he touched the ball. Fans in my section, 404 in Tower A, even sprinkled in chants of “Reggie Bush” between the “boos.” In the game’s waning minutes, fans wanted more booing time and let coach Avery Johnson know that “We want Humphries.” I’m not sure if the chants and heckling will continue throughout the season and in other cities, but the Humph will probably expect it every time he hits the MSG court.

As for the game, the Knicks earned a sloppy win over the Nets. Deron Williams continues to play solid ball, likely aided by the games he played in Turkey during the lockout. He was clearly in better shape and quicker than the Knicks defenders, including Toney Douglas, Iman Shumpert and Mike Bibby (though that trio doesn’t exactly resemble Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars and Vinnie Johnson). Still, D-Will is non-stop action and consistently performs as the Nets’ best player. He dropped 21 points and had seven assists.

Forward Damion James is playing like he wants to extend his preseason starting role into the regular season. In his second year in the league, James had 13 points and nine boards. Johan Petro also had a strong game, grabbing 10 rebounds to go along with nine points. Petro and former Knicks Shelden Williams each had double-digit rebounds, and Shelden and Brook Lopez each had four offensive rebounds.

Rookie Marshon Brooks had a poor shooting night (4 of 14), but it appears Coach Johnson wants to put his trust in him. Besides the bad shooting and being posterized by Tyson Chandler, Brooks had an overall decent night on the floor.

The worst news coming out of that game gained much attention on Thursday, when everyone learned Lopez broke the fifth metatarsal in his left foot. Surgery to repair it was successfully completed on Friday, but the injury will sideline Lopez for six to eight weeks.

To fill that void, GM Billy King did a little holiday shopping and came up with a good deal. King sent a second-round draft pick to Utah in exchange for 6-11 Mehmet Okur. Though Okur won’t be the most popular Mehmet residing in New Jersey (think Oz), he’s definitely a good fit for the Lopez-less Nets. An even bigger plus is his experience and comfort playing alongside D-Will. And even better, Okur’s current contract expires at the end of the season.

On the same day they traded for Okur, the Nets also signed former Dallas Maverick DeShawn Stevenson and waived Stephen Graham. Stevenson is an upgrade from Graham, bringing a tough defensive presence to the roster, but he has lost a step or two from his younger days.

But certainly, the biggest news this week is the injury to Lopez. Not only do the Nets lose their best inside scorer and a potential All-Star, the team also suffers a setback in that Lopez was the main bait in a potential trade for Howard. The Magic certainly won’t pull the trigger on a trade now that Lopez is hurt, and who knows how Lopez will recover when he returns. Still, there’s no reason to believe that Lopez won’t return to normal (his twin brother, Robin, had the exact same injury two years ago and fully recovered), but there’s always an unknown element, especially since this is a team plagued by bad luck.

Looking forward, the Nets will start the season without Lopez on Monday at Washington. Then it’s the home opener the following night, Dec. 27, at The Rock against Atlanta. Former New York Yankees All-Star Bernie Williams is slated to perform the National Anthem before the game in Newark and will return at halftime for a little jam session.