NBA Season Preview: Nets

Mark Rawden, and his associates over at Examiner.com (http://www.examiner.com), are running their own NBA Season Preview for each team in the NBA prior to the beginning of the regular season. Here's a look at the the 2009-10 New Jersey Nets, and a Q&A with Examiner Mark Ginocchio: (http://www.examiner.com/x-10630-Boston-Celtics-Examiner~y2009m10d1-NBA-Season-Preview-QA-with-Mark-Ginocchio-from-Nets-Are-Scorching) What are your thoughts about the Nets as the season approaches? How do you feel about their playoff/title chances?Mark Ginocchio, Nets Are Scorching: The Nets are clearly in a rebuilding phase, although I believe they’re going about it smartly. In Devin Harris and Brook Lopez, they have two young cornerstones at two of the toughest positions to fill: PG and C. In guys like Yi Jianlian and Courtney Lee, they have two more young guys that appear to have potential to get better, though they seem to be less sure-things than Harris and Brook. And I’m very intrigued to see what a player like Terrence Williams, who seems to do a lot of different things well, can bring to the table. Topping it all off, the Nets have a ton of money coming off the books at the end of the season, which will give them probably more flexibility than most teams to improve via free agency and trade next summer. Does all of this equal playoffs for the Nets in 2009-10? Probably not, but similar to last season, I think they’re going to be better than some prognosticators are saying.Do you feel that holes in the roster still need to be addressed, and if so, can they be addressed?MG: It’s tough to call where the Nets have “holes.” What the team really needs to determine this season is if guys like Yi and Courtney Lee and Terrence Williams can develop into NBA starters. If they don’t, then yes, there will be holes at SG, PF and SF that need to be addressed and hopefully that’s where that cap space they’ll have comes in. As for this season, the Nets appear committed to developing these players so I think the roster is what it is.How do you feel they compare with the Celtics, and the rest of the Eastern Conference?MG: Well, they don’t compare with the Celtics, period. The Celtics, Cavs and Magic are still the class of the East until proven otherwise. It’s hard to say how the Nets compare to the other bottom feeders in the East. At the bare minimum, I’d like to say they’re better than the Knicks. But other non-playoff teams in the East last year like the Raptors and the Wizards have either gotten better or healthier, or both, so I feel like the Nets could place anywhere from the second worst record in the conference to an 8th seed in the playoffs.If the Celtics and Nets meet in the playoffs, how would you think the Nets should attack Boston in a 7-game series?To read the rest of Mark's Q&A, click here. (http://www.examiner.com/x-10630-Boston-Celtics-Examiner~y2009m10d1-NBA-Season-Preview-QA-with-Mark-Ginocchio-from-Nets-Are-Scorching)