NBA Power Rankings: 2014-15 Eastern Conference Forecast
By Shane Young
9. Brooklyn Nets — 40-42
Rename this as a ranking of teams with the most positive future, and Brooklyn is piled at the bottom, buried alive in the dirt like their aging power forward.
The Nets’ only flexibility in seemingly the next decade is through blockbuster trades, as that’s exactly how they managed to get into this predicament in the first place.
Paying $90.57 million in luxury taxes last season, Brooklyn set the NBA record for the highest payroll and biggest tax payback in history. In total, the Nets payed $197 million when you account for salaries and luxury taxes. The world is lucky Russian owner Mikhail Prokhorov doesn’t care one bit about exceeding the tax, knowing he can pay everything off and not be hurt due to his large income and worth.
Larry Bird wishes his owner, Herb Simon, would be this generous … or even willing to go over the tax line at all.
On the court, the departure of Paul Pierce breaks up the Pierce-Garnett duo for the first time since they united in 2007, via trade. Around the same time, Brooklyn was one of the facilitators in bringing LeBron back home to Cleveland, as they worked out a deal to help the Cavaliers free cap space.
The deal, on paper, helped relieve some pressure off veteran guards Deron Williams and Joe Johnson. Jarrett Jack, who wasn’t happy in any form in Cleveland, joins the backcourt of Brooklyn. His deadly mid-range game helped Golden State into the second round of the 2013 playoffs. During his 12 postseason games for Mark Jackson and the Warriors two years ago, Jack averaged 17.2 points per game while shooting a blistering 50.8 percent from the field.
Telling Williams, who’s coming fresh off two ankle surgeries, that he’ll have that type of shooting support behind him has to lessen the pain. Shaun Livingston decided to head to Golden State to make a run through the West with Stephen Curry, so something was needed immediately.
Kevin Garnett is indeed finished, and even believing he’ll be a full-time starter next to Brook Lopez has to be a fairytale. The only way it’s possible is if he used the criticism to fuel him through an hellacious offseason training, or if Lionel Hollins knows he’ll have to keep his minutes around the 19-20 mark on average. 20.5 is what he played last season in 54 games, and you would figure that wouldn’t be too hard even at age 37. But, now 38 when the season begins, there’s not enough left of Garnett to even be optimistic.
The 40 wins rides or dies with Brook Lopez, and that should be a no-brainer. When on the court, there’s only two centers that contribute more on offense. Only Al Jefferson and DeMarcus Cousins scored more, but you could argue Lopez has the best chance to stretch a defense out of those three centers. His 16-18 footer isn’t a pretty sight since he doesn’t leave the ground on the release, but it’s effective and he’s worked to make it that way.
Hollins has a little bit of praying to do, hoping Joe Johnson actually earns an All-Star bid and returns to a consistent level of production. You always have to hope Williams can play on his rotten ankles, because it’s pure comedy how fast we forget about his electric days before the team moved cities.