2008-2009 Finish: 48-34

What went well

Though GM Tedd was a pretty hands-off GM, the Nets front office has been virtually vacant since he took off. In fact, besides a few half-hearted replacements, the team has under league control for awhile now. Obviously, this development did not sit well with some players. How can a team compete when little is happening in the front office?

So, Matt Barnes, DeSagana Diop and James Jones decided to find employment elsewhere. Luckily, more important players like Emeka Okafor and Maurice Evans decided to re-sign. But with one of the highest payrolls in the league, the Nets could not afford to bring in much talent to replace those who left. Free agent acquisitions included Tyronn Lue, Sean Marks, Paul Davis and Hamed Haddadi. Like I said, nothing to write home about. But even without a GM, this team made the playoffs for the 6th time in a row. Not bad!


What went bad

The Nets ended up in the 6th seed, but given the close race this year, that was 1 game out of 2nd place. They stunned the cocky upstart Bucks in the first round, proving that veteran is better with a 4-3 upset. Unfortunately, the balanced Sixers took down the Nets 4-2 in the semi-finals. Time to find a GM already? However, it is important to note that Amare Stoudemire played in only the first half of the season.

Stars

- Dwyane Wade - G

After a few miserable seasons where he was hampered by injuries, Wade returned to be one of the league's most dominant forces. He brought his scoring average up 6 points to 22.6 ppg and had the best shooting percentage of his career with 58%. He is a dangerous guy on the court.


- Jason Kidd, G–

Does this guy ever age? Jason Kidd is still one of the premier point guards in the league. Despite an awful shooting percentage this season (33%), Kidd still managed to drop in 15 points per game and dish out 5.6 assists. He is up for a new contract and age is definitely a factor, but Kidd is still quite reliable.


Looking to the future

The number one priority for this team is getting a GM. After that, he will need to address the Nets' budgetary concerns. Hopefully new owner Mikhail Prokhorov can help hire someone good and bail this team out of trouble.

In the draft, the Nets selected Gonzaga forward Austin Daye. The sophomore has a good skill set, but his slight frame and injury history makes his durability a question mark. Another year in college would have done him well, so don't expect him to contribute to the Nets right away. It is highly unlikely that second rounder Taylor Griffin will even make the squad.

The Nets stand at a crossroads. With Kidd and Grant Hill already semi-committed to returning, the team will need to trim in other places to keep the starting nucleus of Okafor, Amare, Hill, Wade and Kidd together. Though Kidd is willing to take a major paycut, this team will still be over the luxury cap. One option is waiving Vladimir Radmanovic. After his last decent season, teams looking for a decent 6th man could pounce on him and save the Nets some cap. The team will need to do some serious thinking to keep this gang together so they can continue making the playoffs for years to come.