NEWARK, N.J.—A year ago, the Nets drafted Chris Douglas-Roberts with the 40th overall pick, surprised he'd fallen that far after nearly trading for a third first-rounder to ensure his selection. But an early-season knee injury kept him buried on the bench, an afterthought until the end of the year, when he burst out against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 18, scoring or assisting eight straight buckets during a second-quarter stretch.

Douglas-Roberts continued on to average 9.5 points in 22 minutes per game during the season's final 15, offering tantalizing glimpses of how his "old man's" offensive repetoire and wiry frame might thrive despite the doubts that plagued him at yet another level of play. Six preseason games into a new year, averaging 18.5 points on .513 shooting in 33.3 minutes per contest, "might" is no longer a worthwhile modifier. These days, it's more like "will."

With the Nets trailing by 18 points at the start of the third quarter in Tuesday's 94-92 loss to the Knicks at the Prudential Center in Newark, Douglas-Roberts made a one-man mission of coming back, ripping off eight points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block – in seven minutes. The effort cut the lead to 11, and when Terrence Williams subbed in for Rafer Alston at point guard, it put the run into overdrive: the Nets closed out the quarter by tacking a 17-5 tally to the Douglas-Roberts-led 9-2 burst.

"Man, I came in here, we were down damn near 20 and I was livid back here (in the locker room)," Douglas-Roberts said. "I was really upset. I felt like we weren’t giving any effort at all, and that was what I tried to emphasize back here. But who am I to say anything if I don’t go out there and compete myself. So I just tried to do whatever I could do to try and bring us back to the game."

Douglas-Roberts added another four points and a block before the quarter ended; the latter was an impressive on-ball swat of Danilo Gallanari as the Knicks forward was launching a three. Though the Nets' momentum petered in the fourth – they handed the lead back halfway through, and for good with 2 1/2 minutes remaining – Douglas-Roberts tallied another four points and three rebounds, bringing his full-game totals to 26 points (on 8-of-18 shooting and 10-of-10 from the line), five rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocked shots in 42 minutes.

The stat-stuffed line is one many have envisioned rookie wing Williams producing as he continues to develop. For now, observers will have to settle for something similar to the seven points, six boards, two assists and two steals Williams posted in 21 minutes Tuesday.

Perhaps more encouraging is that Williams was not only subbed in at point guard during the pivotal run, but also seemed markedly comfortable at the position. His lengthy frame immediately impacted the game, not only preventing a quick three of the type Knicks point Chris Duhon had nailed three times in the previous quarter, but also forcing a turnover that resulted in a transition assist to Yi Jianlian.

When Brook Lopez stole another entry pass on the ensuing possession, coming out of an inbounds play, Williams hit Courtney Lee for a three-pointer that pulled the Nets within six. Here he made his only miscue, throwing a pass into the arms of Larry Hughes. But Williams recovered to efficiently run the offense, allowing Douglas-Roberts and Lopez to score the next seven points before snagging a rebound and racing upcourt for a layup "and-one" that drew the Nets within a single point.

"I played (point guard) more in practice, but I actually got to play in practice," Williams said. "Outside of the one turnover I had when I tried to feed Brook and Larry Hughes stole it, I think he was sagging off. That’s just recognition on my part. We’re all going to have TOs, but I actually felt comfortable bringing the ball up the court, if there was a little guard guarding me, just turn my back to him and use my side. I definitely felt more comfortable."

Williams exited the game with 7 1/2 minutes to play and the Nets trailing 80-79, not returning as Nets coach Lawrence Frank opted instead for Bobby Simmons' ability to stretch the floor as a "proven shooter." It proved to be fruitless – Simmons missed all three of his three-point attempts in the fourth – but the rookie's impact on the game was unquestioned.

The final moments became unexpectedly exciting when Courtney Lee (19 points) twice in four seconds of game time rebounded his own intentional free-throw miss before being fouled, sending him to the line with 1.1 seconds left and a chance to tie if he hit both attempts. The first shot connected with the inside lip of the rim, swirling around counter-clockwise from the front right to be spit out sideways and bounce forlornly out-of-bounds to the left. A third intentional miss was knocked away from Net hands, though they never would have been in position were it not for the firey nature of their second-year swingman.

"I thought Chris led the surge with his competitiveness," Frank said. "I think the whole complexion of the game changed. I thought he set a great tone, not so much in the fact that he scored all those points, but just his aggressiveness, his fight. I thought it started to be contangious."

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