By: Dustin Chapman

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• Pre-Draft: Traded Richard Jefferson to Milwaukee for Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons.

• Selected Brook Lopez 10th overall.

• Selected Ryan Anderson 21st overall.

• Selected Chris Douglas-Roberts 40th overall.

New Jersey was one of the real winners on 2008 draft day, as they came away with a pair of big steals and set themselves up nicely from a financial point of view via trade.

The first steal New Jersey picked up was Stanford center Brook Lopez, who after being touted as a likely top five pick for the bulk of the draft process, fell all the way down to 10. At that point, it was a virtual no-brainer for the Nets (and Charlotte, but we won’t go there). Lopez fell right into their lap. He gives the Nets the post presence that they’ve been seeking for years, and his upside is up there with any other big in this draft class.

The other big steal New Jersey came away with was swingman Chris Douglas- Roberts of Memphis, who was expected to be a late-first round pick but winded up slipping to 40. For a team that just got rid of Richard Jefferson and has no set starter alongside Vince Carter on the wing, Douglas-Roberts has a real shot to get some playing time right away. Down the line, who knows? He may even develop into a formidable starter if he plays his cards right. Regardless, his slashing ability and perimeter defense will benefit New Jersey right from the get-go.

My only legitimate concern regarding New Jerseys moves and additions is this: are they too soft? Yi Jianlian certainly has upside, but does he possess the toughness to be good? Ryan Anderson can play the game, but is he another 6’10’’ player who refuses to use his size to his advantage, and settle for jump shots? Thank god for Brook Lopez, who plays with great intensity, because New Jersey looks as though they are softening up on the whole.

Nevertheless, a great draft day for them. No doubt about it.

Grade: A-

Just before Monday’s Early Entry Withdrawal Deadline, reports suggested that Italian forward Danilo Gallinari had the intent of pulling his name out of the draft if he did not receive a guarantee in the top 10. The deadline has passed, Gallinari kept his name in the draft pool, and rumor has it that the New Jersey Nets are the team that offered the insurance.

We’ve been trying to piece together the Danilo Gallinari conundrum today, after we saw those conflicting reports — from Chad and number of others - about whether the Italian kid has a guarantee.

Here’s one (very) prominent agent’s take on it: Of course he does.

The deadline for pulling out of the draft has passed, Gallinari is sticking around, and that may serve as ample confirmation that the agent is right.

“I think Jersey has given him a guarantee,” the agent said. “Though it’s more like, ‘If you’re still around at 10, we’ll take you.’ Just to keep him in it, a promise that they’re not going to pass on him.”

With trade rumors swirling around swingmen Vince Carter and/or Richard Jefferson, the pieces of this puzzle could very well gel together.

The truth will be told in just nine days.

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Posted By: Dustin Chapman

Dave D’Allesandro of The Newark-Star Ledger reports that Nets President Rod Thorn has been relatively active regarding trade talks around the NBA, and although he expects to use the #10 overall pick in this year’s draft, is not opposed to dealing it (or the #21 overall pick) if the right deal comes about.

And though they are interested in a few players at No. 10 — notably, Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook of UCLA, Anthony Randolph of LSU, plus guards Jerryd Bayless of Arizona and Eric Gordon of Indiana if they happen to slip — Thorn doesn’t dismiss the notion of moving the pick.

According to team officials and NBA general managers — all of whom require anonymity because they cannot reveal Thorn’s intentions — the most promising discussions the Nets have had are with teams that were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Among them: They have made some cursory inquiries with Phoenix (about Boris Diaw and Leandro Barboso), more substantive discussions with Toronto (about Andrea Bargnani), and there has been some dialogue with Denver about Carmelo Anthony.

Though one Nets official claims that “other conversations have a much better chance of fruition,” the Anthony scenario is the most interesting — and hazardous. The 6-8 forward is one of the league’s elite scorers, on the threshold of his prime, and no one knows him better than the guy who drafted him, Nets GM Kiki Vandeweghe.

But the downside to any deal for Anthony — which would have to include Richard Jefferson and the Nets’ pick, if it falls in the top 3 — is considerable. Character tops the list: Anthony’s five-year career has been marked by incidents that make him a risk, including — but not limited to — his June 5 court date on a DUI charge.

If Marcus Camby is part of the deal, more questions arise. Most GMs believe he has joined the litany of 30-somethings who seem incapable of logging long postseason minutes. Moreover, the venerable big man has $21 million coming to him in the next few years — though his salary comes off the cap in time to play the potentially historic 2010 free-agent market.

Any deal for Anthony cannot occur before June 30, when the base-year compensation restriction on his contract expires.

Nets forward Richard Jefferson, who’s name has swirled multiple trade rumors, would rather stay in New Jersey than go elsewhere.

Aware that his name had already come up in trade rumors “a million times” throughout his seven-year career, Jefferson was certain when the regular season ended on April 16 that it would come up again. So, Jefferson stated that night what his preference was, saying, “I do want to stay.”

More than a month later, Jefferson’s feelings haven’t changed.

“I don’t think so,” said his agent, Todd Eley. “I think that he really loves playing there, loves being a Net and would like to stay with the Nets. I think that’s his preference.”

Over the past two years, Nets fans have had every right to feel apathetically about this team and its direction. This summer, however, it looks as though the tables are finally beginning to turn. Stay tuned, Nets fans, this offseason is going to be a roller coaster.

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Posted By: Dustin Chapman

Well apprently he ranks $5 according to a story at Sportsline:

6. Jason Kidd, New Jersey: He keeps defying logic and getting better with age. Clearly, he didn’t get the memo that guards who undergo microfracture surgery are supposed to be put out to pasture.

Ranked above him were the usual suspects.  Duncan, Kobe, Lebron, Wade and Nash.

Can’t really make a case that he should be higher?  Or can you?

http://www.sportsline.com/nba/story/10383811

Marcus Williams, who broke the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot last week, is scheduled to have surgery tomorrow and likely will be out 6-8 weeks.

This is obviously not what the Nets needed, as he was expected to make a nice impact this year…not that he still can’t.  Get well soon Marcus!

 The Mavericks retain the top spot but the Suns are right there waiting to leapfrog them to the top.  The Lakers win four straight despite playing through significant injuries.  The Spurs slump unexpectedly while the Rockets hold their own with Yao Ming.  Where the rankings get tricky is at the top of the Eastern Conference where the separation between the Pistons, Wizards, Bulls and Magic is hard to quantify.  The Cavs and Magic overcome difficult stretches to have perfect weeks.  The scorching hot Bulls lose two of three but then wax the Pistons.  Give it a week or two and the pecking order in the East will become more evident.

Throughout the preseason, he sensed something was wrong, that the de-emphasis on defense was going to come back to bite them, and that a profound change in style would be reckless, no matter how much offensive talent the team had assembled.

Everything Cliff Robinson said was spot-on. And though the Nets weren’t a good defensive team when he departed with a meniscus tear on Nov. 18 — they were 5-4 at the time — they have evolved into a terrible one (8-14) in the six weeks hence.

The 40-year-old is too modest to suggest that this is a cause-effect equation. But he vividly recalls crying wolf as early as mid-October.

“I tried to say something,” he said with a shrug last night, before taking the court with his teammates during an open practice at Ramapo College. “But hey, if we’re going to hang our hats on defense, we have to be consistent, do it on a nightly basis. For us to do anything of significance, that’s going to be the end we’re going to have to (improve) on.

“We’ve been able to put up some points, but we haven’t been able to stop anybody on a consistent basis.”

Now, instead of just nagging everyone about it, Robinson is in a position to do something about it.

He took part in last night’s scrimmage, and the Nets will give him back his uniform in time for Chicago’s visit Friday night, nearly seven weeks after injuring his left knee in that Saturday night debacle against Portland. The team has missed him, and he knows it, but he leaves it to others to point it out.

“We’re starting to develop consistency at the defensive end, and he’s one of our best defenders,” Richard Jefferson said. “So it’s good timing. Just to have his veteran leadership is going to be big for us. We have a lot of road games in the next month and a half, so to have another post guy won’t hurt, either.”

“No doubt, we definitely missed him,” said Lawrence Frank, whose team is ranked 16th in scoring defense. “He only played seven games (after his two-game league suspension). The bigs have done a good job, but losing Curly (Nenad Krstic) like we did, we certainly welcome Cliffy back.”

So what went wrong with the defense during his absence? Robinson only cites a lack of commitment — on the part of the players, not the coaches. Asked whether Frank is adamant about defense as he has been in years past, his response was immediate:

“Oh, yeah — he’s even more high-strung than he’s been in the past,” Robinson said. “It still hasn’t worked out to be effective. I can’t put my finger on it. I don’t know if it’s new guys out there, I don’t know if it’s old guys. We just haven’t come together.”

Notes: The trade talks with Charlotte involving Melvin Ely and Jeff McInnis are all but dead: While the Bobs would do the deal for a second-round pick, the Nets’ overarching concern is to avoid the luxury tax, and this deal wouldn’t do it for them. They are $1.7 million over the threshold. But according to ESPN, the Nets and Charlotte were discussing a deal involving McInnis and swingman Bernard Robinson, which would get them below the $65.4 million tax threshold…. Jason Collins (sore back) sat out last night….

The practice was said to be a sellout, but the stands were only two-thirds full…. The most crowd-pleasing moment (aside from some long jumpers from Mikki Moore and Eddie House) actually occurred before the scrimmage, when Frank announced, “The officiating will be better here than in an NBA game.” Basically, there wasn’t any, other than out-of-bounds calls….

With two more off-days, the Nets’ social calendar is full: Three rookies (Marcus Williams, Josh Boone, Hassan Adams) will read to fifth-graders at Martin Luther King Elementary School in Edison today at 2, while Boki Nachbar and Mile Ilic will visit 50 children in the pediatric unit at St. Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick…. Friday marks the start of the 10-day contract period, but with Robinson returning, the Nets don’t have a need to bring in anyone.

http://www.nj.com/nets/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1167802553121830.xml&coll=1

There was a certitude in everything he did this time — he felt it, and everyone saw it. There was no hesitation, no fear, no mind games. Richard Jefferson made up his mind to do something, and he did it.

And when you added it all up — 43 minutes, 23 points, six rebounds, five assists — you can only reach one conclusion: This could be a happy new year for him after all.

“I hope so,” the Nets forward said Saturday night, as he pondered whether his right ankle has reached a positive turning point after the Nets beat the Timberwolves, 100-92. “Because the last two games, I haven’t done anything out of the ordinary.”

Re-check the numbers, he was told. He had 22 points at Miami, 23 against Minnesota — both victories. He hadn’t had back-to-back 20-point games all season.

“No, I played the way people are used to seeing me play, the way I’ve played the last four or five seasons,” he corrected. “For this year, those are looking like great games. But in the past, those are numbers you’d expect from me. Also, we won the last two games, and we got numbers you expect from your small forward.”

But there are small forwards, and there are great small forwards. Jefferson ranks among the top half-dozen at his position in the league, but persistent ankle problems — first the left, then the right — have grounded him to the point in which he thought of giving up on the season as recently as two weeks ago, one teammate said.

Then the Wolves arrived in town, and he turned into RJ again — maybe not the same, walking-on-air sorcery, but certainly more certain of every move he tried to execute.

“That’s the thing — exploding up on your jumper, driving the lane and being able to finish, free throws…you’re always going to get beat up, but when you have a major thing you’re trying to deal with, it’s confidence,” Jefferson said. “It’s like, ‘Okay, driving the lane, do I have the explosion to get up?’ So you hesitate. The last few games — I want to say the last five or six games — for the most part, I’m getting better.”

This should be music to Lawrence Frank’s ears.

But he isn’t going to jump to any conclusions, because injuries — especially ankle injuries — tend to come and go. . . .and come back again.

http://www.nj.com/nets/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1167629753136860.xml&coll=1