New Jersey Nets Tickets

New Jersey Nets 2008/2009 Season Preview The New Jersey Nets missed the playoffs last year after deciding to change directions and trade point guard Jason Kidd to the Dallas Mavericks for point guard Devin Harris and others.

However, the team still has guard Vince Carter hanging around and it doesn't seem like they are ready to part with him anytime soon, making it more difficult to figure out the Nets plan.

The team selected three players in the NBA Draft, nabbing Brook Lopez, Ryan Anderson and Chris Douglas-Roberts.

Lopez should give the team the presence at center they have been trying to find for quite some time. While not a star, Lopez will be a solid offensive contributor who plays good defense and rebounds the basketball. He is a great team player and is the type of guy every team needs.

Anderson is another big man who is much more of a project than Lopez. While not nearly as polished as Lopez, he has a much higher ceiling and could be a bigger payoff down the road.

Speaking of big men, Sean Williams has been mostly a disappointment after the Nets took a chance on him in last year's draft. Everyone knew he had character issues, but his work on the defensive end was too good to ignore. It will be interesting to see if the presence of both Lopez and Anderson push him to the next level.

Douglas-Roberts is a solid scoring guard who should be a nice role player off the bench. He will play with a chip on his shoulder after not being drafted until nearly halfway through the second round despite being one of the top players on a Memphis team that made it to the National Championship game.

The Nets also traded away point guard Marcus Williams, who was drafted just a year ago and thought to be a possible answer at the position for some time to come. However, it seems that the character issues that led him to be a risky pick may have resurfaced.

They also acquired Yi Jianlian via trade, sending swingman Richard Jefferson to the Milwaukee Bucks. The rookie was selected early in last year's draft by the Bucks but made it known he didn't want to play in such a small market. He was a disappointment last year but should feel more at home playing close to New York City. A change of scenery could really benefit him and the Nets.

It's hard to tell what direction the Nets are going in, but it would be nice to see them trade away Carter if they can find any takers and go into full rebuilding mode. With the current crop of players, a playoff berth as one of the last seeds is not out of the question. However, advancing past the first round certainly is.