Looking ahead to the 2006/07 season, the New Jersey Nets are one of the biggest question marks in the NBA. While they’ve had enough talent to make the playoffs consistently for a good while, they’ve never been able to get over the hurdle and win a championship.
The good news for the Nets is that they reside in one of the weakest divisions in the NBA. None of the other teams in the Atlantic division pose a serious threat to the Nets. Other than that, however, the Nets are comprised of three star players and one or two good role players. Jason Kidd is no longer the best point guard in the league, as surgeries and age have slowed him down. However, he can still take good care of the ball while setting up his talented teammates.
The best players for the Nets are flyers Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter. Carter has long been one of the most talented players in the NBA and is a threat to explode for a large number of points in any game during the season. His health issues have not been a factor with the Nets, as he has only missed 8 games in the past two seasons. Richard Jefferson is another talented forward who doesn’t have as much NBA experience as Carter. He should be averaging around twenty points per game as usual.
In the Nets position are Nenad Kristic and Jason Collins. Kristic is a talented young center who had the Nets staff raving at the end of last season. He is expected to improve further and help cement a shaky center position for the Nets. Collins is another young post who has disappointed in his first five seasons in the league. His 5.3 career point average just isn’t getting the job done and neither is his 4.9 career rebound average. New Jersey should expect an improvement of at least fifty percent in both Collins categories.
Outside of their starting five, the Nets don’t really have a lot of depth to rely on. Clifford Robinson is a player who’s been in the league forever, but he’s too old and unreliable to rely on as a backup. Eddie House is a good spark plug off the bench, but there’s a reason he’s bounced from team to team in recent seasons.
The New Jersey Nets have enough talent to win a weak division with their starting five rotation, but without any depth, they will again fall short in a title race.