--Coach Lawrence Frank has adopted a simple "whatever it takes and whoever it takes" policy as the Nets make their push in the final month plus toward the playoffs. Frank said the rotation really has nothing set in stone but that who plays may change from night to night, from opponent to opponent, from matchup to matchup.
Recent moves bear him out: Sean Williams has been re-inserted in the rotation for energy; Ryan Anderson sat two games and then was summoned Wednesday for size; Chris Douglas-Roberts had big minutes against New Orleans. "We've gotten great contributions from the bench," Frank explained. "Basically what we told our guys, it's all hands on deck. You know who's definitely going to play and based on matchups and the play of the game there are a couple guys who can be in or they can be out. And they've got to be ready. It may be your night, it may not be, but you've got to be ready."
--The Nets are trying to give their season ticket holders a break and not foreshadow any impending move. But when the team announced plans to play two pre-season games in nearby Newark, NJ, the first reaction was that it may be the start of an eventual move there. Many have suggested Newark as a logical landing point, given all the problems with the proposed move to Brooklyn.
But Nets officials insist the games -- Oct. 13 against the Celtics and Oct. 21 against the Knicks -- are merely a way to give their most loyal fans a financial break. Currently, home pre-season games at IZOD Center are added into the season packages, so season ticket holders pay for 44 games. The two games in Newark and another at St. John's in Queens are separate so the season ticket folks pay for 41 games.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "At the end of the day, it's all about W's. When you're trying to get to the playoffs, it doesn't matter that, 'Oh, we almost beat Boston.' We need W's." -- G Devin Harris, after the Nets fell just short against the Celtics.
