Devin Harris, after playing only two games this season, will return in the 'knick' of time.
The all-star point guard is set to come off the bench in tomorrow's 1 p.m. contest with the New York Knicks. The 0-12 Nets host a Knicks team that is 2-9 and coming off a 110-103 win at Indiana.
It may sound like hyperbole, but this game is a must-win for New Jersey. While games in November don't seem critical, the prospect of returning from a long west-coast trip at 0-17 is crippling to the Nets' organization.
Injuries have played a large role in the Nets less-than stellar start, but excuses offer little consolation to a team staring down a historically bad start. Most pundits recognize that the Nets have missed four of their five starters for the better part of this losing streak, but as Lawrence Frank and his players have said, there are no more moral victories. While playing hard during adversity is admirable, it has not translated into wins.
As The Record's Al Iannazzone points out, an 0-17 start could creep into the minds of pending free agents that look at New Jersey as a possible destination. Even with new ownership and the most available cap room, would players like Joe Johnson, Dirk Nowitzki, or Amare Stoudemire consider playing for a team that set an NBA record for futility? Hard to say. If so, the price tag would likely be higher than other suitors.
Starting 1-16 as opposed to 0-17 probably will not make much of a difference in the long run, but the current players need to see their hard work translate into something meaningful.
Chris Douglas-Roberts, arguably the Nets' best player in Harris' absence, has taken losing especially hard. In the most recent post-game interview, Keyon Dooling sat in the empty locker next to Douglas-Roberts to make sure he did not say anything inflammatory.
The team is taking losing hard, and one win can go a long way in easing the mood.
Although Harris is returning, Frank is trying to downplay the point guard's immediate impact.
"He’s missed so much time because of injury – not just when you add up the days (but practices)," Frank told The New York Post's Fred Kerber. "We have to have very, very modest expectations."
While the "Great Eight" have maintained that fatigue has not played a part in the losing streak, Harris said that was a large factor.
"It’s been tough. I’m proud of the way guys have been playing. Having eight guys, they run out of gas in the fourth quarter," Harris said.
The game against the Knicks has been circled on the calendar as a possible win for the Nets, but the Knicks are coming off their best performance of the season. The Knicks outscored the Pacers, 34-17, in the fourth quarter to grab their second win. Al Harrington scored 26 points, while Larry Hughes notched a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Although the Knicks will not enter The Izod Center with Allen Iverson, their projected starting lineup is as follows:
PG Chris Duhon
SG Toney Douglas
SF Wilson Chandler
PF Danilo Gallinari
C David Lee
Nets shooting guard Courtney Lee will not play tomorrow as he is still nursing a strained groin. He is expected back on the west-coast trip.
Marv Albert melee
In other Nets' news, part-time YES announcer Marv Albert was involved in a dust-up while shooting an episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live."
Albert and members of rapper 50 Cent's entourage engaged in a scuffle while the NBA announcer made his way to his dressing room.
According to the initial report in the Los Angeles Times, punches were thrown and obscenties were exchanged.
"Did you see that?" Albert said upon reaching his dressing room. "I thought they were kidding, but then I realized they weren't."
Apparently 50 Cent and his friends are not current on their basketball announcers as they did not know who Albert was.
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