"Uh, 256?" Lawrence Frank guessed.

Oooh ... close. The actual number is 225.

"Well, maybe there will be 25 more tomorrow," the Nets coach replied.

Touch?. But it raises a point about the longest tenured coach in professional sports: Sloan has survived an era in which impetuous GMs and impulsive owners have little appreciation for continuity, and he's still puttering along with a 1,104-727 record entering last night's meeting with the Nets.

Put it this way: Every team since Dec. 9, 1988, has changed coaches at least twice. The Knicks have changed 12 times. And Sloan stays in the game basically by running the same system year after year after year.

"I know what you're saying: Big picture, you're going to see a lot of the same stuff," Frank said. "But it's the 'how.' It's the attention to detail - how hard they cut, how well they screen, how well they share the ball, their shot selection, their discipline. Every so often you'll see tweaks. I think he adjusts to his personnel. Deron Williams is treated a lot different than the (Raul) Lopez kid was.

"But that's the marvel of him. That's why every coach in the NBA says, 'Man, there's no one I respect more.' You may respect other coaches, but there are few you respect more than Jerry Sloan. Because it's the precision in which they do things, regardless of the talent level, every single day. That's what makes him so good."

It was four years ago yesterday (Dec. 17, 2004) that the Nets bamboozled the Raptors into handing over Vince Carter for a bunch of stuff they just had lying around.

Actually, in the exchange, the Raptors received Aaron Williams, Eric Williams, the draft pick that became Joey Graham, another draft pick that they turned into cap space and an eight-game rental from Antonio Davis, and - best of all - a congratulatory phone call from agent Jeff Wechsler, informing them that Alonzo Mourning wasn't going to take one step over the border, so please send your best buyout offer, as long as it's 100 percent of its full value.

Hours after the trade was made, following the Nets' loss to the Grizzlies at the FedExForum, their point guard - the guy whom Rod Thorn was trying to keep content - uttered these famous words:

"I've always asked to put a competitive team out there, and that's what they're trying to do," Jason Kidd said after the Nets fell to 7-15. "I can only do my job. If I concentrate on doing my job, then they'll do theirs, and hopefully we'll be one big happy family."

Kidd will have other happy memories to revisit today, when the Dallas Mavericks practice in Manhattan in preparation for Friday's reunion at Izod Center.

Jarvis Hayes sat out his fourth straight game last night. He had played some 3-on-3 Tuesday and got through it well enough, but after doing more running on the side, his left hamstring started sending him the wrong signals again.

The Nets and the Jarvis Hayes Foundation will host Toys for Tots Night when the team plays Miami Saturday night at Izod Center. Fans who bring new, unwrapped toys and drop them in the designated bins will be entered into a raffle to win Nets autographed merchandise.

Dave D'Alessandro may be reached at ddalessandro@starledger.com