--For a second consecutive game, coach Lawrence Frank, who in the past has shown a penchant for a shorter rotation, went a legitimate 10 men deep. In fact, he employed an 11th player, Eduardo Najera, who only returned to practice Friday. Three of his rotation regulars are rookies.
But Frank is quick to point out nothing is etched in stone. "Right now, we're going to find a way at 10 and go from there. I don't think you count anything out. You just kind of let the guys' play determine that," Frank said. "In terms of trying to establish roles and identity, right now we're going to go from here. You've got to give it a legitimate chance whether it will work or fail. Can 10 become 11? Yeah. Ten can also be nine. You've got to give it a legitimate chance. This is going to be a long process."
With seven overall players who have two years or less of experience, the Nets have one of their youngest teams ever. Still, they rank as only the eighth-youngest team in the NBA this season with an average age of 25 years, 294 days.
The youngest team is Golden State, the Nets' Saturday night opponent for their home opener, at 24 years, 70 days. The other teams with younger rosters are Portland, Memphis, Charlotte, Oklahoma City, Chicago and Atlanta.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "We're showing fight. The thing we can't do is we can't come and just decide to play. We're not good enough for that. We have to play at a high level." -- G Vince Carter, after the Nets were overwhelmed in an uninspired third quarter but rallied in the fourth quarter of Saturday's loss.
