(I am sorry if that picture disturbs any Nets fans or induces any PTSD-like flashbacks of pathetic basketball)

I wish I could have my memory of the nets last 5 seasons erased, men and black style. I wish Will Smith would shove that device in my face and just zap me. Today we fired coach Lionel Hollins and reassigned general manager Billy King. In previous blogs, I have discussed the short comings of Jerry Reese and the GMEN, but Billy King’s campaign as GM has been a true failure. This journey started with a move out of Jersey (the homeland). Nets fans saw their team ripped from the swamp and placed in the edgiest neighborhood this side of the Mississippi. Mixing North NJ with the trendiest people on the planet, match made in heaven……. We were purchased by a Russian billionaire who pledged a blank check to bring a championship to the Net fan base preaching the “5 Year Plan”. We acquired a franchise player in Deron Williams and moved into an incredible venue. The move seemed to be really shaping up and all engines were GO. It is sad thinking back to those times. The potential was juiced and the hype train were traveling at light speed. How did we possibly crash and burn this badly? Where did this all get derailed? How did this team manage to be more of an embarrassment than the 10-72 2010 team? All good questions which I will attempt to answer by spotlighting key moves that lead to the downfall:

Acquisition of Gereld Wallace from the Blazers: This move was made in the heat of the moment back in 2012 trying to surround D-Will with talent. The Nets sent Okur, Shawne Williams and a 2012 draft pick which would become Damian Lamonte Ollie Lillard. Feel like we could have used Lillard the past few years but that is just one mans opinion. Wallace went on to have an injury filled stint highlighted by a 52-minute scoreless period.

Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett Join the Nets: The definition of a Lighthouse Trade (could see it from a mile away). Lets take Boston’s aging talent off their hands in exchange for 3 first rounders. The official trade was Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Jason Terry and D.J. White from the Boston Celtics in exchange for Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, MarShon Brooks, Kris Joseph, Keith Bogans and three first round draft picks (2014, 2016 and 2018), as well as the right to swap first round picks in 2017. I hated the trade immediately as MarShon Brooks is a friar dawg. The theory behind the trade is understandable: bring in veteran talent to surround Johnson, Brook, and D-Will but it is simply too much to give up in retrospect. Boston made out like bandits and now are in prime position to reap the benefits of the current nets’ season.

Jason Kidd as Head Coach: this one stings. Nets legend backstabbing us and leaving for Milwaukee. We went out on a limb and hired him in light of ongoing legal problems and disregarding he was just one year removed from playing. There were allegations of him trying to stock the Bucks with our talent while coaching the nets knowing he was going to desert us. I’ve had my friend Sam draw up better late game plays than Kidd. Game on the line, you could count on Kidd to draw up a play to get a heavily contested, low percentage shot. Also, the no tie thing is cool when your with us but now that you deserted us, I feel like you need to grow up and respect the integrity of head coach apparel. I’m not bitter.

Joe Johnson Contract: I never held Joe’s contract against him but it is easy to see how many take shots at the NBA’s quietest max contract player. The contract we took on from the Hawks made Johnson the highest paid player in the league. You get the money and then the high expectations follow. If you want an honest assessment of Joe’s work for the nets it is that : Johnson is a serviceable scorer. That is it. He is no game changer. He has shown the clutch gene but he never took over games constantly enough to justify being paid more than LeBron. People don’t buy tickets to see Joe Johnson. He doesn’t draw the crowds. The fact that the man hasn’t attempted a dunk in 3 years really rubs in the fact that he is not a flashy player. I am not kidding about that stat, He hasn’t dunked the basketball in 3 years. I just watched a 35 year old Richard Jefferson reverse slam on someone. Am I going crazy? King also had the chance to dump Johnson and his absurd contract for Lance Stephenson. That was a miss for sure.

D-Will being a complete Fraud: I do not believe I have ever disliked a player on one of my teams more than D-Will. He was hailed as a savior of the franchise and continuously let everyone down blaming teammates, coaches, and injuries. He is a coach killing SOB who will be remembered as an un-clutch cry baby. Every game D-Will was good for a injury timeout where he had nets fans asking, “where did he get hurt on that play?” D-Will would then “soldier” up the court grimacing, as he grabbed whatever limb he was faking an injury on. His career stats plummeted during his nets tenure where he basically forgot how to shoot from anywhere on the court. His lack of leadership and energy were contagious as he destroyed the team from the inside out. Paul Pierce, a former champion, called D-Will out once he was out the door. Paraphrasing Pierce, The nets never had a chance at winning with that gutless worm (D-Will) at the helm. Kobe followed the D-Will bashing train with chirps on his 0-13 playoff game against the heat basically calling him a coward. All of the terrible moves the past 5 years did not really matter as we were never going to succeed with our franchise player being a total fraud. A glimmer of hope was achieved last season when D-Will exploded in a playoff game against the Hawks in the first round that I was in attendance. I was with the group of jackasses chanting M.V.P. (sarcastically) from the rafters in the Barclays as D-Will capped off his 35 Points, 7-11 3PT night. Was this the turning point for him? Was he finally going to return to his Utah form? ….super sike. He just reverted back to his true form and let us wash up ashore unsuccessful again. Basically, we had the guy (Ross from F.R.I.E.N.D.S.) who was in charge of easy company in Band of Brothers, before Winters, calling the shots for the nets.

I see a team that is now in a free fall. The dreaded “Rebuild”. I hate the word rebuild. There is only building in professional sports. We are coach-less and talent-less besides for Brook and Thad (best move in the past decade) and have no real direction. Just a ship without any bearings. I think we need a fresh start, something only achieved with a solid coaching change. The nets should look at some more unfamiliar names for the head coach vacancy to wash away the dreadful last half decade. My vote is Jim Spanarkel (The Big Train) to fill the void. He is said to be on a short list of candidates and I would be pleased to see the Nets give him a shot to build a team around one of the premier scoring big men (Lopez).