Jason Kidd / Why settle for less - when we can get the best!

AMEN.

 

Kenyon: Life as a
Nugget looks golden



BY OHM YOUNGMISUK
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER


Spurned by Nets, Kenyon Martin makes it clear idea of joining Nuggets suits him.

Kenyon Martin's decision to join the Nuggets and leave Jason Kidd and the Nets was an extremely difficult one. But he says it was made easier by Bruce Ratner.
"My home was Jersey and that was my first choice," Martin said as he was introduced to the Denver media yesterday. "But as things went along, I looked at certain things: the way the team was going, the things that were going on in New Jersey, new ownership - there's uncertainty there. So I'm just trying to make the best move for me and my family. Atlanta is probably a couple of years away. In Denver, they're winning now. So I wanted to be a part of a winning organization. We feel we made the right decision."

The Nets may be wondering if they made the correct decision for years to come. The Nets shipped the forward to Denver in a sign-and-trade Thursday for three future first-round picks rather than face the possibility of having to match a front-loaded contract offer from the Nuggets.

The move has been met with anger and frustration by fans and players like Jason Kidd. Those close to Kidd say he is upset with the trade and the direction the team is heading under Ratner, who awaits league approval this month on his ownership.

Kidd could ask for a trade soon, although it's more likely he would be dealt around the All-Star break - if at all - since he is recovering from knee surgery.

Ratner, who has not been available for comment in weeks, has taken heavy criticism for the Martin move. Ratner said earlier this month he was committed to winning and keeping Martin. Yet, the Nets say they never made Martin a contract offer. CEO Rod Thorn said he was under the impression toward the end that Martin wanted to leave.

Yesterday, Martin spoke of the Nuggets' bright future.

"It was a great run in Jersey but it was time for a change," Martin said of two NBA Finals appearances and three Atlantic Division titles in the last three years. "I'm just excited I can be a part of this. ... They had an excellent team last year. And I feel what I bring to the table can only help."

Joining forces with Carmelo Anthony, Marcus Camby and Andre Miller, Martin - who signed a seven-year, $95 million deal - has the small-market Nuggets thinking big things about the future.

"It doesn't matter (about) the market," Martin said. "It'll be a big market, trust me. I feel I bring enough energy and excitement and all that ... people will follow."

Now, the Nets have to wonder how many more fans and players will follow Martin out of the Meadowlands.

 

Now w/ eric snow and van excel off the table... who fits??? Kidd needs to run this show.

 

This is another Richard Justice article, so breathe deeply and let it out....

JASON KIDD IS THE LAST- BUT BEST OPTION!

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2694978

Getting Tracy McGrady may turn out to be only the second-best thing the Rockets have done this summer.

Not doing anything crazy could turn out to be even smarter.

Never mind that they don't have a starting point guard. Never mind that the list of available candidates shrinks by the week.

Derek Fisher is off the market, and so are Troy Hudson, Brent Barry and Rafer Alston.

Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson considered all of them, but he won't say which ones he really wanted.

He surely could have had Fisher. He had a good shot at Hudson or Alston. Barry, who signed with San Antonio, may have been less interested in Houston.

In the end, Dawson did the right thing. He passed.

He still intends to acquire a point guard. He knows you're waiting, and he appreciates your patience. He wants you to know things are going to work out.

Point guard options remain

Maybe Dawson will trade for Seattle's Antonio Daniels. Maybe he'll sign free agent Charlie Ward. Or maybe he'll give the job to the only point guard on his roster — Tyronn Lue — and wait for a better alternative.

What Dawson has refused to do is rush into the marketplace and write a check he'll later regret. The Rockets haven't always been so wise with their free-agent dollars.

Maybe Dawson's inaction reflects a belief that the franchise is a season away from being good enough to make a deep run into the playoffs. Maybe he simply thinks the price for those available guys was too high.

He liked Fisher. He liked the fact that he'd played on winning teams in Los Angeles. He liked his defensive skills. He liked his energy and personality and outside shot.

Problem was, the Golden State Warriors liked Fisher more. They liked him enough to offer a six-year contract worth $37 million.

Fisher will be 35 when that contract expires. He may even be back in the playoffs by then.

Waiting out the market

Hudson might have more talent than Fisher, but he's coming off a season in which he missed 53 games. Nevertheless, the Minnesota Timberwolves re-signed him to a five-year contract worth $31 million.

Likewise, the Toronto Raptors gave Alston an extremely generous contract: $28 million over five years.

So there.

Dawson also wants to acquire a backup center and more bench help. He believes that by waiting until the market calms down, he'll find someone as good as Jim Jackson still available. Jackson was on the market last September and ended up being invaluable to the Rockets, both in the locker room and on the floor.

No matter what happens with the point guard, it's important not to lose sight of the big picture. Even if Dawson doesn't make another move, he already has made the one that laid a terrific foundation for the future.

He surely must daydream about finally seeing McGrady and Yao Ming on the court together this fall.

"Not really," Dawson said. "It's hard to get excited until you're able to do everything you'd like to do. I'm happy with the McGrady trade. This is going to be a fun place for basketball the next few years. But I have to temper everything until the other stuff is done. You just hope everything fits into place."

Dawson laughs when he hears people compare McGrady and Yao to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. Maybe they'll someday be that successful. Until then, three championships and four trips to the NBA Finals as teammates separate them.

Dawson, 66, jokes that by the time he finally leaves the Rockets he wants the franchise positioned for more championships. The McGrady trade may have done that.

Dawson was at his East Texas best in finishing that deal. Before negotiations became serious, he flew to Orlando and spent a few days getting to know Magic general manager John Weisbrod.

By the time Dawson returned to Houston, there was little question McGrady would become a Rocket. All Weisbrod had to do was name the players he wanted in return.

What comes next for the Rockets won't be as difficult.

Ward is 33 and available. He and Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy have a long relationship and mutual respect for one another, so in terms of being an extension of the head coach and getting the ball into the right hands, he would be more than adequate.

Daniels, 29, played only 21 minutes a game for the SuperSonics last season, but he shot 47 percent from the field and 36 percent from 3-point land. His assist-to-turnover ratio was outstanding.

His availability is unclear, so Dawson will continue to work the phones and explore his options.

If the uncertainty is eating him up, he's not showing it.

"It would be tense if we didn't have Lue," Dawson said. "We want to do some other things, but we already have someone we like.

"The market changed for point guards early, and we didn't want to make a deal we weren't comfortable with. But we're not out of options yet."


__________________

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=cnnsi-cuttingdownthen&prov=cnnsi&type=lgns

Cutting down the Nets

Marty Burns, SI.com






Move over Lakers, Cavs, Clippers and Mavs. There's a new leader in the battle for the NBA's Worst Summer of '04. The Nets now claim that dubious distinction in a runaway.

In an effort to slash payroll, New Jersey has parted ways with All-Star Kenyon Martin and key core players Kerry Kittles and Rodney Rogers. To make matters worse, Jason Kidd reportedly is peeved about the losses and ready to request a trade. And Alonzo Mourning might return, even though the team doesn't want him. Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?

"Unless we get very fortunate," Nets CEO Rod Thorn admitted last month after trading Martin to the Nuggets for three future draft picks, "we are not going to be a championship contender."

The Lakers lost Shaq. The Cavs lost Carlos Boozer. The Mavs lost Steve Nash. But no team has taken a bigger hit this offseason than New Jersey.

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In two months, the Nets have gone from a team with NBA title hopes to an almost certain date in Secaucus for next April's Draft Lottery. For New Jersey fans, this is like Roy Boe selling Dr. J all over again.

The team's revamping is all part of a cost-saving push by new Nets owner Bruce Ratner. By trading Martin and Kittles (the latter to the Clippers) for basically draft picks, New Jersey slashed its payroll from $60 million to $49 million. As a result the Nets won't have to pay the luxury tax next season (if there is one). Of course, the Nets also now probably won't make the playoffs, either.

They certainly won't if they deal Kidd, the seven-time All-Star who was said to be upset when he met with Nets officials last Friday. Though Kidd hasn't yet demanded a trade, he reportedly told management that he wants to play for a contending team. One possibility would be the Mavs, who could offer Antoine Walker (and his expiring contract).

For now, the Nets are just trying to put a positive spin on matters. They are expected to sign veteran free agents Eric Williams and Ron Mercer this week. Last week they signed 7-foot Yugoslavian prospect Nenad Krstic, their first-round pick (No. 24) in 2002. They also plan to begin talks with Richard Jefferson on a contract extension.

But those moves aren't going to have the Pistons, Heat and Pacers quaking in their Nikes. New Jersey earned its two Finals berths on a combination of stifling defense, tenacious rebounding and the NBA's most high-octane running game. Now that formula has been diluted by Swamp water. Williams is a decent defender, but he's no greyhound like Kittles or Martin. Mercer doesn't defend. Krstic is going to need time to learn the NBA game. Meanwhile, who's going to grab all those rebounds that Martin used to snare? Brian Scalabrine? Aaron Williams?

While Nets fans are blaming Ratner for being a penny-pincher, Thorn argues there were legitimate basketball reasons for the moves. By shedding Martin's $92 million contract, the Nets are virtually assured of being able to match any offer Jefferson might get next summer as a restricted free agent (if he doesn't agree to an extension before then). Thorn also says there was a feeling in management that the current Nets group had peaked, and that salary-cap restraints would have prevented the club from adding the necessary surrounding pieces to the Big Three.

But now the Nets have to find a way to rebuild fast or Kidd's not going to want to hang around. New Jersey could try to move him, but it might not get equal value. Kidd is 31 years old and coming off knee surgery. He's owed $90 million over the next five years. How much trade value will he have?

Meanwhile, there are reports that Mourning, who retired last November because of a recurrence of his kidney disease, is contemplating a comeback. This is not necessarily good news for the Nets. New Jersey would prefer the 34-year-old center stay retired so it can take his $5.5 million salary off the books after the season.

The way things are going for the Nets this summer, 'Zo will return just as Kidd is heading out the door.