jmk

Well, I would appreciate it if you didn't put words into my mouth that I didn't say. That is just a very childish thing to do. Second, I'll repeat what I said before. The Sonics boards doesn't run the front office for Seattle and honestly, I couldn't give two ****s what they think on the topic. Last offseason the Sonics fans were telling us that Jason Kidd was going to sign with them. Since they run the team, they must have been right. Right?

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Rollydog

My bad, I didn't read your post right. But anyway its my opinion that your trade is bogus, hell, even my Ray Allen trade is. I'll leave it at at that.

LesterLazlo

First, let me say that the Rollydog-jmk exchange was very NJ.com-ish.

It warmed my heart.

I'll address some of my NBA off-season dreams.

1)Larry Brown strokes out, on-court of course

2)Kobe's convicted

3)Shaq explodes

4)Pistons resign 'Shweed for a lot of money and lose Okur

My Nets offseason dreams

1)Nets sign Adonal Foyle to a 3 year $10 mil deal (though I feel SOME team will offer him the MLE for 3 or more years. I think Dallas). Oh, and Mark Blount is not coming here.

2)Zoran puts in some hard work to improve his game. It's been printed that his work ethic leaves something to be desired (I should talk).

3)Nets acquire a shooter, and a backup PG that can contribute, with part of the MLE, the LLE and the draft.

4)And, what the heck, Nets keep Salabrine and Armstrong

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When you got to shoot, shoot, don't talk.

NYCbballFan

Ideally?

1. Kidd returns healthy, fully restored, maybe even 01-02 version.

1A. Acquire a back-up PG, preferably a scoring/shooting point, with passable ball management ability who can match up as a quick, little guard. Mike James?

2. Martin returns healthy with a fat contract, but not a max-fat contract, leaving the Nets with the Big 3 intact AND decent contract maneuverability.

3. Krstic is better than rookie-Divac or Chris Kaman, my optimistic (short of ideal) projections for Krstic's rookie season. Maybe even better than rookie-Gasol. Say, a 2nd year Nowitzki.

4. Planinic works super-hard in the off-season and makes a Jiri Welsch jump in his game. Better, he becomes a true combo guard who can back up both guard positions, maybe even SF.

5. RJ becomes the go-to scorer of the Olympic team and returns to the Nets a fully arrived star, ready to dominate.

6. Scalabrine takes the next step as a utility forward. Adding to his hustle, smarts, defense and 'little things' game, he becomes a passable rebounder (a stretch, even as an 'ideal' possibility) and finally molds his flashes of offensive skills into a reliable scoring game.

7. Zo comes back reinvigorated in the tradition of Sean Elliott, obsessed with his final chance at glory and basketball immortality. The fleeting moments of the Best of 03-04 Zo pale in comparison to his nightly 20-25 MPG, maybe even longer, display in 04-05. Zo and K-Mart become one of the most aggressive, intimidating big-man tandems in the NBA.

8. Jason Collins becomes a 10-15 MPG back-up as one of the better back-up Cs in the NBA.

10. An inside-out scoring option, a PF or combo forward who allows Martin to play some SF and/or RJ to play some SG. Not necessarily a starter, as in the SAR rumor. A replacement for Rogers. Toni Kukoc, perhaps. If Veal puts his scoring game together, he could become that player. If Krstic shows up as an instant success, he could be that player.

10. Lose Harris. Lose Rogers. Lose Armstrong and/or Slay. Replace Kittles or demote him. Replace Williams or demote him.

11. I haven't thought much about the draft. Romain Sato, Luke Jackson and Kirk Snyder seem to be the popular names. Jameer Nelson and Chris Duhon as PG options have also come up. I'd prefer more of a veteran back-up PG. In the draft, I'd prefer a SF/SG type to add dynamicism off the bench at the wing.

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Carina Perelli, who has been organizing U.N. assistance for Sunday's election in Iraq, said on Wednesday that U.S. soldiers "have been extremely, I would say, over enthusiastic in trying to help out with this election."

Greg Ostertag!

I'm not even a Jersey fan, but I think you guys can build a powerhouse. Here is my plan:

1) Ray Allen for a sign-and-traded Kenyon Martin plus first-rounder (or future-first)

Well, obviously you need a shooter, and here you get the best. Someone also mentioned the need to demote Kerry Kittles. Methinks Kittles would be behind Allen on the depth chart. The perimeter troika of Kidd, Allen and Jefferson is one not to be screwed with, and those are three guys that could justifiably be All-Stars next year.

...and don't kid yourselves, you're not getting Allen for Kittles, Williams and whoever. Ridiculously poor rumour. You can choose to believe it if you want, you'll just end up disappointed.

Yes, this leaves a hole at PF, but this will be addressed as such:

2) Sign Stromile Swift to the MLE, or slightly higher value, if feasible

I know I may get chastised for this, but with Jason Kidd getting him the rock, and with the spacing that Allen and Jefferson will provide... there is no reason that Stromile cannot be as productive as KMart, particularly when you consider you may have him for half, or a third, of what Martin will be getting paid elsewhere.

Sure, he may not have a jumpshot, but KMart sure doesn't - and Stro will know his place, as opposed to KMart jacking up ridiculous shot after ridiculous shot. He also has arguably equal to, or better, athleticism and shot-blocking ability as his predecessor. You may laugh or ridicule now, but I see this as quite an adequate replacement for Martin.

3) Get Nenad Krstic the hell over to the States

There are obviously high wraps on this kid, and he'll probably getting the starting job as soon as he dons a Nets' uni. With Swift and Krstic coming in, you allow the new frontcourt guys to build up a repor.... Something I would consider would be conning Vlade Divac into retirement, and to come over to New Jersey to mentor this kid. If you can get him passing fluently, that will be perfect for the Princeton, surely.

Your 04-05 New Jersey Nets

C: Nenad Krstic (Jason Collins/Aaron Williams)
PF: Stromile Swift (Rodney Rogers/Aaron Williams)
SF: Richard Jefferson (Kerry Kittles/Rodney Rogers)
SG: Ray Allen (Kerry Kittles/Lucious Harris)
PG: Jason Kidd (Zoran Planninic)

That's a pretty talented and deep team right there. I know you guys will be pretty indifferent to moving KMart, but I firmly believe the Nets have the opportunity to challenge Indiana and Detroit once again next year, without needlessly meandering into NBA purgatory.

Something to keep in mind: You have significantly upgraded the SG position with an All-Star, and it is entirely plausible that Stro isn't much a downgrade at all from KMart. I haven't taken into account who is a free agent when it comes to the bench... although I don't think Rodney is a bad bench player at all, as long as you moderate his minutes fairly stringently. Also don't know the status of Harris, he can be pretty replacable.

Also note that I haven't included your draft pick in the rotation, as it possibly may be part of the Allen/Martin deal. Ideally, if you keep it, it would be Luke Jackson, but I highly doubt he'd be available. Otherwise, maybe Kirk Snyder or Tony Allen to take Lucious Harris' position in the above roster. However, as the acquisition of Ray Allen kinda negates the need to draft a shooter, maybe you could look at Robert Swift to develop as a defensive presence down low.

Rollydog

The only problem is that if the Nets don't get Swift, they're screwed.... too much of a risk.

Greg Ostertag!

Indeed, but GMs have a way of doing this. Pre-arrange the Allen/Martin deal such that it goes down simultaneously Swift is signed. That's a minor detail, a would be sorted out very easily.

Infact, I'm pretty sure Swift would leap at the opportunity to start for a contender... which is the primary reason he is leaving Memphis, and a contender w/ Jason Kidd is rather attractive indeed.

jmk

That addresses one of our needs of a shooter, but it diesn't address our #1 need; our porous bench. Sure, Kittles is moved to the bench, but that it is still a pretty bad bench.

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MightyReds2020

Greg Ostertag, I like your plan but there's a catch: I would only do this if Ray Allen is agreed to sign a less-than-max extension. Otherwise, it is just a one-year solution, although it just could be enough to bring us a, dare I say, championship ring.

I think KMart for Ray Allen straight-up is pretty good, although the Nets need to throw in a player, like Rogers, to make it work money-wise. I don't think Allen will have more impact than KMart but if we could get Swift as KMart's replacement, there won't be much drop-off. I personally think this is better than getting Brent Barry, who is the most sought-after FA SG this summer.

Zach

Get Stro and Slava for MLE


OT: Clear your PM box NYCBballFan

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NYCbballFan

Interesting thought, GO and MR2020. Trade for Allen by signing K-Mart to a less-than-max contract and using Rogers as contract filler to make up the rest. That way, the Sonics who may like Martin but may not consider him worth a max commitment, are enticed by the reduced salary. Rogers provides short-term depth and insurance at PF, and then comes off the books after 04-05, just when a recovered Collison should be ready to take a larger role.

Switching out K-Mart for Allen breaks up the Big 3 and certainly changes the Nets formula, but there's sense to it. With good teams improving at using the new defensive rules, multiple scoring options, preferably triple-threat type, have become a must-have for contenders. For that reason, in our pre-season palavers, I commented that the Nets should focus on placing 2 or more shooters on the floor at all times this season. Not easy to do when most of the team's better shooters, like Rogers, Armstrong and Harris, are inferior players. Adding Allen, as one of the league's elite perimeter scorers, to RJ's improving triple-threat skills may just be enough to give the Nets enough room to work in the new defensive NBA. With the upgrade at SG, adding a Swift to Veal, Krstic and some Williams (who I don't think has good enough lateral movement to play a full-time PF) could be enough to compensate for Martin. If Zo comes back energized as a rebounder/scorer post-presence, the Nets can do something.

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Carina Perelli, who has been organizing U.N. assistance for Sunday's election in Iraq, said on Wednesday that U.S. soldiers "have been extremely, I would say, over enthusiastic in trying to help out with this election."

Rollydog

Trade 1... Nets trade Kittles, Rogers, Planinic, Scalabrine for Ratliff and Patterson

Nets sign and trade Martin for Ray Allen.

Nets sign and trade away Harris and Williams (1st rounder as well) for Stromile Swift.

Nets sign Brent Barry to MLE for 4 years.

Nets draft a PG.

Sign Eddie Griffin to minimum.

Lineup:

Kidd/Barry
Allen/Barry
Jefferson/Patterson
Swift/Collins
Ratliff/Collins

Wildcards... Krstic and Griffin.

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Could be a pretty decent team. Think its realistic?

jmk

That's way too many deals for a team that is a contender. It's basically keep Kidd and Jefferson and throw out everyone else. Too many deals for my liking.

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Rollydog