The Next Lamb: The New Jersey Nets

Game 15: New Jersey (5-9) at Boston (10-4)

Wednesday, November 24

7:30 pm Eastern

TV: NBA League Pass

It wasn't until writing this post that I remembered that we lost to the Nets last season. The 12-70 Nets. The freaking Nets.

I went back and looked at the RwH archives, and it turns out I didn't watch that game -- which was the last matchup between these two teams. It turns out that the game was decided at the free throw line: New Jersey shot 41 free throws to Boston's 11, holding a 22-point edge from the stripe.

In my own little universe, then, it's particularly appropriate that we face the Nets for the first time since then at a time when I think the biggest problem with our team, currently, is that it has trouble playing defense without fouling. (Unless, of course, the other team simply chooses not to show up, as Atlanta did on Monday.)

Speaking of Atlanta, the Nets beat them in overtime in New Jersey Tuesday night, a win that would ordinarily be impressive -- except that the Hawks dug themselves an early hole by playing only slightly better in the first quarter than they did the night before against the Celtics. Still, give credit to New Jersey for closing out the game in overtime. In some regards, their record is deceiving because they've played some good teams very close -- but on the other hand, Atlanta's really the only decent team they've beaten.

There are two main players for Boston to worry about: center Brook Lopez and point guard Devin Harris. The former has had a bunch of good games against Boston in the last couple of seasons, and its hard to imagine him playing materially worse against Shaquille O'Neal than he did against Kendrick Perkins. Harris, on the other hand, has traditionally struggled against Boston, putting up some ugly shooting lines (though his ability to get to the free throw line makes his point totals against the Celtics respectable). Of course, if Rajon Rondo can't go, Nate Robinson will be tasked with checking the 6-3 Harris. If it becomes an issue, I wouldn't be surprised to see Doc not hesitate to bring in Delonte West.

Joining those two guys in the starting lineup these days are Travis Outlaw, Anthony Morrow, and Kris Humphries. Outlaw is a relatively unexceptional small forward, and Morrow -- one of the top three-point shooters, percentage-wise, ever -- hasn't yet found his rhythm and doesn't seem to be being used in a way that best maximizes his lone NBA skill.

Humphries is an interesting case. Troy Murphy is supposed to be playing power forward for the Nets, but he hurt his back in the preseason and when he came back, he was ineffective -- so ineffective that coach Avery Johnson has kept him inactive -- not benched him; kept him in street clothes -- for several games now. Humphries is an early entry journeyman, a strong rebounder with something of a hard edge. His major contribution comes on the glass, a la Reggie Evans -- who had 16 rebounds against Boston on Sunday -- but he notched his fourth double-double of the season against Atlanta, so he's a little bit more of an offensive threat. Particularly if Boston has trouble containing Lopez and Harris, Humphries is exactly the kind of player who can really hurt the Celtics. Kevin Garnett loves to roam and help, and Humphries has made a modest career of punishing -- with dunks and offensive rebounds and putbacks -- teams that ignore him.

Boston 115, Toronto 109 (OT)

(Don't know what's up with the formatting. Sorry, gang.)

[recap] [box score] [highlights]

We're still not right. The Raptors were again without Jermaine O'Neal, and didn't have Jose Calderon, either, and we struggled to beat them at home.

I didn't watch this game because it was on NBATV, so I can't say much about it. Paul Pierce led the way with 39 points, and let me turn your attention to the first few paragraphs of the wire story on the game. Kevin Garnett, for at least the second time this season, referred to Pierce as Superman in the post-game press conference. I'm not bringing the following up to drum up controversy (I don't have enough readers for that, anyway). It's just something I've had on my mind for a while.

Almost from the moment Pierce and Garnett joined forces with Ray Allen last year, the biggest concern I've had that it wasn't going to click rest with Allen. Garnett would see plenty of time in the spotlight, as his superstardom was unmatched by the other two; and anyway, he was, by reputation, the most selfless of the three. Pierce and Ray were in similar situations, actually, All-Stars playing on bad teams, but Pierce was the incumbent. Ray was the newcomer. I wondered how he'd deal with being the third banana.

All in all, it's been pretty good. I remember some rumblings this summer about Ray being unhappy -- and rumors of a trade to (I think) Charlotte for (I think) Gerald Wallace. Who knows how credible those rumors were, and if Ray was or is upset, he's kept remarkably quiet.

But I can't help but notice the clear hierarchy among the Big Three. KG famously insisted that Pierce, not he, be introduced last at the start of every home game, which is all well and good, except that Ray's name never really entered the conversation. These are trivial matters, and, after all, not everyone can be introduced last, but we should at least acknowledge that Ray went from a team where he was the unquestionable top dog to the third most recognizable or popular player on his team.

It continued after the championship, too. Pierce naturally got the most press, having played his whole career in Boston, having survived the stabbing and the Pitino Era and losing season after losing season. Garnett's raw emotion and on-camera candidness made him a prime target for footage after the Finals; the NBA player who most wanted a ring finally got his. If Ray were more like KG -- if he were inclined to scream at the top of his lungs on national TV "ANYTHING'S POSSIBBBLLLE!!!!" -- maybe he would have received more press. But he's not KG, personality-wise, not even close.

(You know, I always find the post-Game 6 clip of KG described above strange. A 66-win team led by three stars of their generation hardly seems to be the unlikely event that Garnett's chosen phrase seems to make it out to be.)

The point of all this is that I wonder how Ray feels about it all. KG has gone out of his way to make sure Pierce is comfortable (the aforementioned insistence that Pierce be introduced last; constant reassurances in the press that this is Pierce's team), but you don't hear the same things about Ray. It's a little striking, particularly this year, when you could make a case that Ray has been the best player on the team. Pierce's 39 earned the win tonight, but Ray's 36 saved our asses on Sunday, and he didn't get Garnett comparing him to a superhero.

Like I said, I'm not trying to stir up controversy. Just something I've been tracking a little bit, and chose to write about on a night I couldn't watch the game.

Quick notes on what I can glean from the recap and box score:

-22 points in overtime is a franchise record. It's also more points than we scored in either the first or fourth quarter.

-49 minutes for Pierce, 45 for Ray, 40 apiece for Garnett and Rajon Rondo on the second night of a back-t0-back with another game on Wednesday (vs. New Jersey at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, no national TV). Yuck. Tony Allen's ankle injury hurts us in that he's the primary backup for both Ray and Pierce.

-No Kendrick Perkins again tonight, and a buddy who was listening to the broadcast tonight said that Doc doesn't expect him back til at least after the weekend. Our next two games are both against the Nets, and Jersey's rookie center, Brook Lopez, just went for 31 and 13 Monday night. I've been pretty happy with how Brian Scalabrine has played in Perk's absence (on both ends; he actually had 11 points Monday), but I think Lopez is probably too big for him -- though I think Garnett will handle him fine. The Chairman, Yi Jianlian, didn't play Monday because of a hand injury that will sideline him for a few weeks, and the Nets started rookie Ryan Anderson at power forward. I haven't seen a ton of Anderson (actually, not sure I've seen him at all as a pro, and only fleetingly in college), but my impression is that he's a younger, slimmer, better Scal, perhaps the player Danny Ainge hoped Scalabrine would be when he threw all that money at him a few years ago. Might be fun to see the two of them square off.

Talk to you after the game on Wednesday.