Still winless after 12 games in easily the worst start in their NBA franchise history, the Nets hope to get Devin Harris back on Saturday when they face the Knicks in an afternoon affair, the last game before their annual trek out West for Thanksgiving week.

Harris played two games and then shut it down because of a strained right groin. He has been working with the team and if all goes well at a Friday practice, hopes to play Saturday.

"My legs aren't where I would want them to be. Fatigue, I can fight through," Harris said, claiming the groin "feels fine. No pain. There's some tightness and soreness. That's normal because I haven't been able to do anything the last two weeks. Things I can overcome just getting out on the floor."

The Nets, of course, truly will welcome any sort of help. They have been woefully shorthanded with up to seven players out. And with 15 guaranteed contracts, there is no outside help coming to a franchise that is wallowing in financial losses.

"The great eight," coach Lawrence Frank deadpanned about his squad that for the most part has played hard. "We've got s prideful group of guys that take a great deal of pride in leaving it all out there and trying to give us the best chance to win. It is what it is. We have eight guys. We have a bunch of injuries. We have guys on the mend. At the same time, I have a deep level of respect for the guys who are busting their chops."

And they'll have to do it against the Knicks who, despite a 2-9 record, always provide matchup fits for the Nets. The Knicks beat the Nets three times in preseason in games both sides appeared determined to try to win.

BUCKS 99, NETS 85: Again, eight bodies. Again, a defeat, making the streak 12 straight. The Nets for a second straight night were overwhelmed at the start of the third quarter as Milwaukee scored the first 15 points after halftime to erase the Nets' 48-41 halftime lead. And with the Nets' lack of firepower, any deficit is critical.

For a second straight night, the Nets had two players notch 20-10 type double doubles, to no avail. This time, Chris Douglas-Roberts had 31 points and 10 rebounds while rookie Terrence Williams had 20 points and 10 rebounds.