2007-08 New Jersey Nets
Jersey has a strong team, but the stats are quite interesting – they are ABA Title winners, yet have never ever held an NBA Title in franchise history. Ticket buyers can expect good things from the Nets, as they have one of the strongest talent cores in the division - Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter. Kidd is one to watch this coming season, he is a phenomenal point guard, and helps his teammates work at an optimal level. Carter is expected to have a career year. The Nets have total commitment to defense, and it showed last season. The bench is a concern, as is Eddie House’s health after meniscus surgery. Expect the Nets to kick up the tempo this season, especially after going with first round draft pick Marcus Williams.
Previous Seasons
The New Jersey Nets first took the court in 1967 as the New Jersey Americans. After a 36-42 record in the regular season, the Americans were scheduled to play an elimination game against the Kentucky Colonels to see who would actually go the post-season. In a bizarre set of circumstances, the Americans were eliminated by forfeit when a circus left the venue too damaged for the game to be played, making the Americans probably the only team to ever be eliminated by elephants and clowns.
The Americans became the New York Nets in 1968. A few mediocre years ensued, along with the franchise wandering around the New York area. The Nets did manage to pick up Rick Barry along the way, and after some contract disputes, Barry got the nets moving in the right direction, and the Nets immediately improved when Julius Erving came onboard in 1972. Erving, Barry, and the Nets jelled quickly and by the 1973-74 season were among the ABA’s elite teams. Making the playoffs with a 55-29 record, the Nets sent the Virginia Squires packing after 5 games to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. It only took 4 games to win the Eastern Conference Championship over the Kentucky Colonels and the Nets nabbed their ABA Championship with a series win over the Utah Stars.
Joining the NBA was a problem. The NBA fee of $8 million dollars put a serious crimp in the Nets financially. The only way out was to sell Julius Erving to the 76’ers, a move which immediately plummeted the Nets to the bottom of the league. The New Jersey Nets, as the team was now called, stumbled to the playoffs in 1979, but failed to make any real headway through the 80’s and 90’s, making the playoffs several times but never going very far.
