Let's get right down to it, shall we? The Nets have been a major and I mean MAJOR disappointment this season and I can't think of any other way to say it. Before the season started, Charles Barkley saw the Nets as the winners of the East. Openly said this on national teleovision and quite frankly, I was in full agreement with him. Looking at the draft they had last June and seeing the potential depth they had on their usually thin bench...why shouldn't I think a return trip to the Finals was out of the question? They were infinitely better than everyone in the Titanic Division and other than Miami, who were a year older and Detroit
which would clearly be lacking without Big Ben...who was left? The Cavs?
[Laughtrack.]

Then the season starts and they sputter out of the gates. No need to panic, they do this every year before pulling away only problem was...it got worse. Krstic was lost for the year and not too long after that, RJ went down too. He's expected back fairly soon, sooner than expected and even with those two gone, there's still Kidd and VC. VC's no rank amateur, he won the Slam Dunk Contest when it was something other than the Bench Warmers Classic and he's shown he can take over when he chooses to do so. But figure the odds that even with these two still very healthy...the Nets are only one half game ahead of the Pricks for third in the division, four games behind the international team up north that Sam Mitchell's a month away from coaching back to the playoffs since the days of Vince and T-Mac. Meanwhile, here's what the Nets have done in their last two games... - Against the C's, they blew a double digit lead with under four minutes left. Lost in overtime.
- Against the 86ers, they got off to a 17 point lead in the first quarter. By the end of the first half, they lost the lead and were on their way to losing the game.

Can someone tell me what the hell is going on here? I mean, since it's all
but a given that the Mavs will bitchslap them tonight for their third loss in a row, it's not looking great for the Nets as they prepare to hit the road for the next seven days making stops [and losses] in Dallas, H-Town
and San Antonio...before closing out in Memphis and NO/OKC. They get back to host Shaq and the Heat and well, you can understand my cause for concern as a fan. I mean, did Opie Frank forget how to coach in a year and a half? Has the team tuned him out entirely? Are they this bad?
I don't believe injuries should be used as an excuse for a team's struggles
because a guy on crutches can't miss a shot, not box out or stop another team's best guy from lighting you up like a Christmas tree. RJ and Krstic
haven't been the reason the Nets have lost two straight to the two worst teams in the Eastern Conference and are on the verge of missing the playoffs for the first time since the year before they obtained J-Kidd from Phoenix. Regardless, even at half strength they're better than the Raptors, Knicks and hell...even Cleveland and their One Man Crew in James. But right now, Frank's not utilizing this team to their fullest and it's becoming painfully obvious by the on-court results. So now, it's not just the remainder of the season you're playing for...it's the team's short term future. Vince has the option to walk away after this season and if things don't turn around, I fully expect him to do so. Ratner's set on having a contender head for Brooklyn and if there's no Vince, I'd love to see how he intends on making that happen. Right now, as much as I'm hating to say this, if Frank can't get this turned around NOW, he's gotta go. Byron Scott's got the Hornets on the verge of making the playoffs with even less talent than the Nets right now and in a much tougher conference. Think Kidd's wishing Byron was still here instead of down south? I'm not about having this team return to their inept days, but I'm seeing this start to become a very distinct reality the more and more I'm reading about their fallacies.