[17-29] Redemption :: Mid Dec. + Jan. :: Going sporadic

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ASSOCIATION SETTINGS

Season Length
82 Games
Play NBA D-League Games
Off (will do a special report if I send some players down)
Team Chemistry
Off
Player Roles
On
Progressive Fatigue
On
Trade Deadline
On
Trade Override
Off
Allow CPU Trades
Off (real life ones)
Preseason Games
On
Injuries
On
Fantasy Draft
No
Edit Prospects
On
Playoffs
7-7-7-7

IN-GAME SETTINGS

Skill Level
Superstar
Quarter Length
12 Minutes
Sim Quarter Length
12 Minutes

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2009, August 10 :: Nets Announce 2009-10 Schedule (Full Story...)
2009, September 10 :: Nets fire Lawrence Frank (Full Story...)
2009, September 12t :: New Jersey Nets sign Thierry Tirieux as coach (Full Story...)
2009, October 1 :: New Jersey Nets: 2009/10 Season Preview (Full Story...)
2009, December 3 :: Nets acquire Jerome James (Full Story...)
2009, December 7 :: Why New Jersey wants to trade Yi (Full Story...)
2009, December 8 :: What really goes on in a Nets game? (Full Story...)

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• October 28 @_ Minnesota Timberwolves :: Jefferson, Love rise above Nets (Recap) (0-1)
• October 30 vs. Orlando Magic :: Orlando's teamwork proves too much for New Jersey (Recap) (0-2)
• October 31 @_ Washington Wizards :: Nets can't overcome Wizards' Big Three (Recap) (0-3)

• November 02 @_ Charlotte Bobcats :: Nets cool off Bobcats, grab first win (Recap) (1-3)
• November 04 vs. Denver Nuggets :: Anthony, Billups spark Nuggets win over Nets (Recap) (1-4)
• November 06 @_ Philadelphia 76ers :: Sixers erupt in 4th period to bury Nets (Recap) (1-5)
• November 07 vs. Boston Celtics :: Celtics rout Nets, take Atlantic Division lead (Recap) (1-6)
• November 11 vs. Philadelphia 76ers :: Simmons' buzzer-beater lifts Nets over Philly (Recap) (2-6)
• November 13 @_ Orlando Magic :: Nets back on losing ways after loss to Magic (Recap) (2-7)
• November 14 @_ Miami Heat :: Wade, Alston lead Heat’s taming of New Jersey (Recap) (2-8)
• November 17 vs. Indiana Pacers :: Harris, CDR lead Nets 4th quarter rally (Recap) (3-8)
• November 18 @_ Milwaukee Bucks :: Even with Jennings out, Bucks beat Nets (Recap) (3-9)
• November 21 vs. New York Knicks :: Harris's 23 lift Nets to win over Knicks (Recap) (4-9)
• November 24 @_ Denver Nuggets :: Harris, Douglas-Roberts post solid win over Denver (Recap) (5-9)
• November 25 @_ Portland Trail Blazers :: Blazers scramble to beat Harris, Nets (Recap) (5-10)
• November 27 @_ Sacramento Kings :: Harris' 43 leads Nets to rout of Sacramento (Recap) (6-10)
• November 29 @_ Los Angeles Lakers :: Lakers spread the ball around in win over Nets (Recap) (6-11)

• December 02 vs. Dallas Mavericks :: Howard, Mavericks beat Nets in thriller (Recap) (6-12)
• December 04 vs. Charlotte Bobcats :: Nets prevail Cats' 2nd half rally thanks to Harris, Lopez (Recap) (7-12)
• December 06 @_ New York Knicks :: Harrington, Knicks fly in second half, defeat New Jersey (Recap) (7-13)
• December 08 @_ Chicago Bulls :: Nets duo picks apart Bulls at United Center (Recap) (8-13)

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Reserved

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Reserved

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Regular season to tip off at Minnesota
NETS ANNOUNCE 2009-10 SCHEDULE

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., August 10, 2009 -- The New Jersey Nets will tip off the 2009-10 regular season against by visiting the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center on Wednesday, Oct. 28 before going back home to host the Orlando Magic on Friday, Oct. 30, with Vince Carter making his initial return to the IZOD Center following his trade to the Magic this past summer. The Nets will be featured on national television 29 times during the 2009-10 season (one against each team of the league). The World Champion Los Angeles Lakers make their lone Jersey appearance on Saturday, December 19, kicking off a seven-game Nets homestand which includes a Saturday afternoon tilt against LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal and the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 2 at 1:00 PM. The Cavs return to the Meadowlands on Wednesday, March 3.

The Nets will get their first look at their cross-river rivals when they host the New York Knicks in a matinee tilt on Saturday, November 21 -- the two teams will meet again on Wednesday, December 30. The Boston Celtics will make their first of two appearances in the Garden State on Saturday, November 7, and then return to the IZOD Center on Wednesday, January 13. Jason Kidd will lead the Dallas Mavericks into Jersey for their lone matchup of the season on Wednesday, December 2, while Richard Jefferson and the San Antonio Spurs will play the Nets on Monday, March 29.

Full season and half season ticket plans are currently on sale, including a limited number of $299 full season tickets, by calling 1-800-7NJNETS or by logging onto njnets.com.

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Replacement to be named in the next days
NETS FIRE LAWRENCE FRANK

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., September 10, 2009 -- The New Jersey Nets fired coach Lawrence Frank today. Though Frank's departure has been widely expected on the past weeks, several Nets players claimed they were stunned when their coach showed up at their morning team meeting not wearing his Nets gear. “It's tough,” swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts said. “He's so passionate about what he does. It was a rough situation for him, and he did a great job for this franchise. He came in every night and gave a 110% percent.” The Nets won't choose a permanent replacement for Frank until tomorrow; will name it a couple of days later. The Nets open their season on October 28 at Minnesota, against the Timberwolves.

The Nets announced Frank's firing through a statement earlier today, saying that after six seasons at the helm, and more than a decade of overall service with the franchise, Frank has been "relieved" of his duties effectively immediately. With speculation about Frank's already shaky status spreading Sunday morning, team president Rod Thorn had no choice but to fire Frank prior to the start of the season before things get even uglier. Frank almost lost his job after the Nets failed to make the playoffs for a second straight year last season. He then came into this year on the final year of his contract and was done in by the fact that several key players suffered significant injuries, including starters Devin Harris, Courtney Lee and Yi Jianlian. Douglas-Roberts also missed a week due to swine flu, leaving the Nets to play several games with only eight players in uniform.


Though some assumed that the Nets' poor health would buy Frank some time, Thorn had made it clear that that was not necessarily the case, citing the fact that several of the teams the Nets lost to were also playing without key players. “I want to thank Lawrence for his more than a decade of service to the Nets, first as an assistant coach and then as the head coach for the past six years,” Thorn said in today's press conference. “He always approached every day with a passion for his craft that was infectious, and his dedication to the game as well as his work ethic are to be both admired and appreciated. I wish he and his family only the best of good fortune in the future.”

Frank's 225 victories are the most in franchise history, and he also was the longest-tenured coach in the Eastern Conference. “He wasn't dealt a royal flush,” said guard Chris Quinn, who joined New Jersey in the last trade with the Miami Heat. “At least 8 of us had injuries recently and it was hard for him.” Frank, from Teaneck, N.J., replaced Byron Scott in January 2004 and began his career with a 13-game winning streak, the best coaching start in league history.

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Nets sign former Panathinaikos, DKV Joventut and ASVEL Lyon coach
NEW JERSEY NETS SIGN THIERRY TIRIEUX AS COACH

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., September 12th, 2009 -- Nets owner Rod Thorn announced today that French coach Thierry Tirieux has been appointed as the new head coach of the New Jersey Nets. A league source said the contract was for two with a team option for a third year. New Jersey zeroed in on Tirieux this morning.


Tirieux is considered to be one of the most qualified basketball minds in Europe, having been a coach for three Euroleague teams (Greece's Panathinaikos from 2003/04 to 2004/05, Spain's DKV Joventut - Ricky Rubio's former team - from 2004/05 to 2006/07, and France's ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, from 2006/07 to 2008/09 - last season winning the LNB Pro A trophy as co-coach with Vincent Collet), all making at least the quarter-finals of the Euroleague on the seasons he was coaching, and getting public acclaim from top NBA coaches such as Charlotte Bobcats' Larry Brown, San Antonio Spurs' Gregg Popovich and Los Angeles Lakers' Phil Jackson.

“We are very excited to add Thierry to the organization”, said Thorn. “He brings a different head coaching experience to the league as he has a huge European coaching career.”

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Nets predicted one of the East's bottom five
NEW JERSEY NETS: 2009/10 SEASON PREVIEW

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., October 1st, 2009 -- After staving it off and putting it off for years, the New Jersey Nets are finally rebuilding. With Vince Carter gone, this is finally a complete and total rebuilding project. They even took in a Rookie of the Year-level season from center Brook Lopez, Devin Harris turned into an All-Star and Carter was turned into a mess of expiring deals (trade bait) and solid backcourt man Courtney Lee. So why all the sour faces? Maybe it had to do with the Lee-for-VC deal, one that saw Lee moping a bit as he went from a championship contender in Orlando to a rebuilding project without a proper home in New Jersey. Maybe it has to do with Bruce Ratner's failed attempt to get the team to play somewhere else, maybe it has to do with rebuilding, in general; nobody likes it, and after years of actually being at or near the NBA's elite, it kind of stinks for the Nets to head back to the place they know so well. My question is, will the Nets improve enough to attract a quality free agent?

There is so much news swirling around them, but, basically, the team needs to make a splash in the summer of 2010 or, who knows. They resemble the fate of their metro neighbors, the Knicks. But New York has steady management in place and isn't in any danger of having to relocate. But how are the Nets going to make anyone want to come there unless they can show dramatic improvement on and off the court? Also, they have Thierry Tirieux as coach right now.


A player-by-player analysis. The Nets need to use this season to clearly see what their assets are truly worth. Clearly, Bobby Simmons -- trying a new position on for size, and he’s willing to give it a whirl during a contract year --, Chris Quinn -- acquired from Miami. Flip a coin: by January he could be Harris' backup or gone in another trade --, Tony Battie -- a 13-year veteran with a wealth of knowledge and a chronically sore knee, has a better understanding of team defense than anyone else in the frontcourt -- and Trenton Hassell -- the perfect 12th man and a stalwart, defensive-minded beast with few frills who is ready at a moment’s notice, especially if you need an emergency starter -- will not be back next season. What can Terrence Williams achieve in the league? He has given the team a considerable boost in toughness and intensity, and he boasts of a versatility that comes around rarely. Basically, the rookie is a point guard disguised in a SG suit. Only notable flaw: shot selection. Is Lee the starting shooting guard for the team's future? He’s a gamer. His entire offensive repertoire is very advanced, aside from his ability for getting his own shot; he will be an eager perimeter defender, and a strong wing-runner in transition. He's already 24, so there isn't huge upside offensively (he can catch and shoot, and finish, little else), but he is a fine defender.

Is Yi Jianlian, or Chris Douglas-Roberts, worthy of a roster spot? The Chinese had a disappointing second season, but he has returned with a stronger body, a more aggressive mind-set, and refined skills. Whether that makes him qualified to be a starter is a predominant issue this season, and everyone in the league knows, he's not of Tirieux's liking and could be gone as we speak. Douglas-Roberts leads the small forwards package. He may one day be considered the steal of the 2008 Draft, if his 18-point scoring average in the preseason was no fluke. He has a knack for scoring against any kind of defender, he does it with a slippery style all his own, and he is as competitive as anyone on the roster. Are Josh Boone and Kris Humphries just busts, or major busts? Boone's time here may have passed, because the team has come to value tenacity and ferocity more than any other attributes during this transition, and they have concluded he’ll never possess enough of either. His contract is up this year, so he might stay until June. Humphries, acquired in the trade that sent Eduardo Najera back to Dallas, played two years in Utah -- 3.5 points per game -- and three in Toronto -- 4.4 points -- and has started only eight games in his career. Look for him to be gone soon as his contract's not expiring.

Is there room enough to keep valuable veterans like Keyon Dooling and Jarvis Hayes around? Dooling's starting months behind his teammates as he continues to rehab from hip surgery, and there is no rush to return since others on the team can play the point. Hayes remains one of the league’s great bargains ($2.06 million), and some teams would have gratefully extended his deal by now. He was an offensive spark, a sage head, and a surprisingly dogged defender last year.

For the final part of the preview, on the team stars. Harris earned his stature as one of the better point guards in the NBA for his fearless attacks of the basket and a vastly improved jump shot, and now he takes his place as the team’s leader. The only thing keeping him from joining the elite is an indifferent attitude at the defensive end. With his tenacious forays to the tin, improving jumper and on-the-job leadership training, is the All-Star of the present and a great option for the future. We just hope he’s careful with the tread he puts on his tires this year. He can play -- when he stays healthy, but there's little reason to think he won't stay healthy. Lopez is a center, and I can't stress enough how fantastic that is for Nets fans. You won't have to hear, "if they can only pair him with a solid big man down low..." with him; he is that big man, and those are few and far between. Sure, New Jersey's forward corps just might be the worst in the NBA, but you can find forwards. Especially with all that cap space (likely over $30 million, once a few players' options are passed on) coming in next summer.

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[|)e8*]

Damn 2 dynasties how will you manage?And yes Yi is worthy

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Damn 2 dynasties how will you manage?And yes Yi is worthy

Boston's gone. And Yi will be gone soon as well.

[Lamrock]

You've already tried (and failed) to do a Nets dynasty in the past year.

[Fresh8]

You've already tried (and failed) to do a Nets dynasty in the past year.

I don't even know why you bother to reply to his threads.

[kibaxx7]

You've already tried (and failed) to do a Nets dynasty in the past year.

I don't even know why you bother to reply to his threads.

I had that stupid idea of the Daily Dime in my last Nets try. I'm not doing any of that now. The most probable thing is that I will be getting even less replies than your Baby Bulls, Lamrock, but I really want to get a team to the playoffs (next season) I'm making short recaps for the simmed games. Hoping you both get on this bandwagon when I get to the playoffs stage.

[J@3]

You're starting another one?

[Rip32]

Thierry. you have got to be the Brett Favre of association stories-- you just can't make a decision

Good luck with this one, hopefully your Nets aren't as garbage as the real ones.

[Lamrock]

Even though it will only last two weeks, he will still probably exceed the real Nets' win total.

[dare]

Just one season man please

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Wolves overcome slow start, defeat New Jersey
JEFFERSON, LOVE RISE ABOVE NETS
Preview | Recap | Best Performances: New Jersey -- Minnesota | Full Play-by-Play | Watch Highlights

MINNEAPOLIS, October 28, 2009 -- After three weeks’ worth of dress rehearsals, the curtain finally rose on the Nets’ regular season. The stage was set: Target Center. But while New Jersey showed some sporadical flashes which offered signs of promise and potential, the Nets were ultimately undone by a not quite ready performance. Falling victim to a cold shooting and Minnesota’s size advantage, the Nets dropped its season opener 99-82. The Timberwolves inflicted the vast majority of their damage during the middle two quarters, outscoring New Jersey 45-28 during that stretch. The primary culprits: a lack of ball movement on offense and too many missed assignments defensively. “I just thought we tried to do a lot of things one-on-one in the second quarter that gave them some easy baskets. That really was unnecessary,” Nets’ head coach Thierry Tirieux after the game. “We also made a lot of mistakes defensively on who we were guarding and what to do. We gave up three or four threes where we really didn’t have to be off the guy, especially when he’s in the corner; that’s surely, one thing we don’t want to do. We just made too many mental mistakes.” Al Jefferson scored a game-best 28 points, nine boards and six blocks, 11-of-19 from the floor, while Kevin Love added 15 and 14 rebounds, but shot 4-of-12.

Still, for all the things that went wrong for the Nets -- the 37% shooting from the field, being on the wrong end of a 37-19 outscored bench margin, and just, too many uncharacteristic mental errors, the team still managed to scrap and claw their way back into the game because they eventually did several things right as well on the last period. To start, New Jersey’s defensive activity on the second half forced the Timberwolves into 8 of 10 turnovers on that period. The Nets also helped mitigate some of their size disadvantage by attacking the rim every chance they could, and when the Nets pushed the pace it was often effective, as shown by the club’s 16 fast break points.

All of those things allowed the Nets to methodically chip away at Minnesota’s lead throughout the fourth quarter. With 3:11 remaining in the game, the rather unique quintet consisting of Keyon Dooling (6 points, 5 assists), Courtney Lee (5 points), Bobby Simmons (8 points, 4 rebounds), Yi Jianlian (8 points, 3 rebounds) and Tony Battie (4 points) managed to trim what once was a 15-point deficit all the way down to 5. And though the squad’s comeback effort eventually fell short, the lessons learned in defeat should prove quite valuable going forward.

“We have to take away that when we were in attack mode, offensively and defensively flying around, that has to be our team,” said Brook Lopez. “In the second and third quarter, we were trying to be a half-court team but we have to be a quicker and early attacking team. We’re going to have to learn to impose our style on opposing squads. We have to learn to do that in the context of the game when the other team just wants to walk it up and throw it into their big guys.” That should be no problem as the Nets will try to turn right around on Friday to face the Orlando Magic. New Jersey will then have an opportunity to put its lessons learned to good use.

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[kibaxx7]

You're starting another one?

This is my last one. I know everyone hates me.

you have got to be the Brett Favre of association stories-- you just can't make a decision

Good luck with this one, hopefully your Nets aren't as garbage as the real ones.

I'm the Sarah Palin of association stories, always quitting halfway. Not even halfway, 15 of 82 games.

Even though it will only last two weeks, he will still probably exceed the real Nets' win total.

Hope I can. This team really doesn't go anywhere, at least until July.

Just one season man please

Hoping that happens. I'm not writing those formal NBA.com recaps, it's more of a informal blog style.

As hova said, I want you guys to discuss anything you see at the boxscores or the layout, so, my first question is, should I shoot more with Lee? I only shot 1-of-6, a 3-pointer...

[J@3]

No one hates you, it's just hard to follow your stories when you quit them so often.

[Fresh8]

If you don't try and play and/or recap all 82 games, I guarantee you will be able to finish a season and get lots of followers.

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(1-1)
(0-2)

Orlando's teamwork proves too much for New Jersey
Preview | Recap | Best Performances: Orlando -- New Jersey | Full Play-by-Play | Watch Highlights

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., October 30, 2009 -- It looks like it may still be an issue. The Nets were down two, 131-129, with 15.1 seconds left after two missed free throws from Dwight Howard. New Jersey was faced with a similar situation roughly ten seconds earlier when they went to Keyon Dooling on the inbound pass. Dooling went at Devin Harris after failing to find Kris Humphries streaking to the basket. Harris looked to have an opportunity, but ultimately was blocked on a fade away in the lane by Vince Carter, resulting in a rebound for Howard who was then fouled. So do the Nets go back to Harris? Nope. He got a double screen from Yi Jianlian and Humphries, looked back over his shoulder and fired a pass to Yi, who cut to the right of the top of the key. He immediately pump faked and fired a contested three over Rashard Lewis. The Chinese air balled the shot and the Nets, at the same time, air balled a rare opportunity to defeat last year's NBA finalists. Mickael Pietrus would add a jumper and a free throw to secure the triumph.

It’s difficult for me to even talk about the Nets offensive performance in this one, but I’ll do my best. On the plus side, Harris and Chris Douglas-Roberts combined to shoot 24-36 for 63 points, a whooping efficient effort from the duo. Harris also led the assists department with 11. He lacked a partner that can explode after setting the pick and roll; Lopez can do this to an extent, but he was kind of clumsy and often had Howard weighing him down. The Nets bench? Acceptable. The players from the bench contributed 35 points, but Courtney Lee played 24 minutes and had just two points, 1-3 shooting. The Nets percentages: 54.2% (45-83) shooting overall, 33% from behind the arc (4-12) and 85.3% from the free throw line (35-41). About Orlando, three players scored over 18 points (18 by Lewis, 22 by Carter and 29 by Howard), while the bench trio of Ryan Anderson, J.J. Redick and Pietrus had a combined 29 points.

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(3-0)

Nets can't overcome Wizards' Big Three
Preview | Recap | Best Performances: New Jersey -- Washington | Full Play-by-Play | Watch Highlights

WASHINGTON, October 31, 2009 -- There are times it is easy to get too wrapped up with a team's play, especially a young one. This wasn't such a case: the Nets played their worst defense of the season so far. This wasn't serious defense. The Wizards shot 50 percent led by its Big Three, all scoring over 20 points. Antawn Jamison came out and had a huge first half scoring 15 of his 20 points, and finished the night with 11 rebounds; his defensive presence totally shut down Yi Jianlian, who only had 3 points. Caron Butler, who had a a game-best 28 points and also had nine boards, showed his quick hands and tough mental attitude in harassing Chris Douglas-Roberts all night. He simply made it difficult for CDR to get open looks and that wore him down; by the end of the game, he didn't even look to get the ball; he shot 4-of-12 from the floor. Brendan Haywood had another strong game getting some key blocks and dunks; he got a little caught up with his own success for a while of the second half, but overall made a nice contribution to the team. Gilbert Arenas added 22 points, as the Wizards' own Big 3 combined for 70 points.

Terrence Williams had a decent game with 14 points (6-of-9) in 14 minutes. He finally started to show he understands what coach Thierry Tirieux has been telling him about being more aggressive and looking to drive. Late in the third quarter he simply exploded from the point into the lane and only a flagrant foul from Nick Young prevented him from getting an easy layup; he is fast enough to do this far more often, and he often was guilty of walking the ball up instead of forcing the issue with his speed. He even had a beautiful pass for a slam for CDR on a fast break (his only assist of the night). That is something we all would like to see more of from the rookie, who has been hesitant to make those highlight reel passes in the past two games.

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