October 13, 2009

Courtney Can Score ... He Promises

As the season's official start draws nearer, Nets guard Courtney Lee can sense the chance approaching.

It is his opportunity to be more than a system player, becoming instead the kind of player the system revolves around. A 20-point scorer and Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year as a senior at Western Kentucky, he had to adjust upon entering the NBA and joining an Orlando team with established offensive threats Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Dwight Howard.

Most NBA fans know Lee as option No. 4 on a Finals squad, and a defender willing to take on Kobe Bryant, but he's ready to redefine their expectations.

"That’s one thing people who didn’t follow me in college don’t know is (that) I was always a scorer," Lee said. "Being drafted to an excellent team, you have to fall into your role. And my role was to e a defensive stopper and a guy that knocked down open shots. I had to buy into that so I would be able to get out there and play with those guys. Now that I’m able to return to my natural feel for the game, I think it’s going to be a lot easier for me and a lot more fun."

The Nets will attempt to run in transition, playing free and easy and to the strengths of their starting backcourt. Lee will open games alongside All-Star point guard Devin Harris, who knows a thing or two about transitioning from role player to playing the lead after arriving in New Jersey from Dallas.

Before joining the Nets, Harris never played more than 30 minutes per game and carried a career average of 9.4 PPG. But he was playing alongside established stars Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard, Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse. Only asked to run the offense efficiently while focusing full, feverish intensity on his defense, Harris helmed the Mavericks' 2006 NBA Finals run and 67-win regular season in 2006-07.

Having blossomed in New Jersey, where Harris averaged 21.3 points and 6.9 assists per game, he understands exactly what Lee is going through, having also exited college as a scorer. After watching Lee last season, and playing with him throughout training camp, he's expecting Lee to rise to the challenge.

"I think people learned a lot just from watching him in the Finals last year," Harris said. "(They saw) what kind of player he can be, his potential."

CD-R Starts Again ... at SF
Chris Douglas-Roberts earned the starting nod for a fourth straight game, but this time at small forward, following three at shooting guard. Courtney Lee made his first start at the 2, and the 6-foot-7, 200-pound Douglas-Roberts slotted next to him and point guard Devin Harris, along with regulars Yi Jianlian and Brook Lopez.

Douglas-Roberts tempered any thought about the position switch making much of a difference, saying that he'd been working at the 3 for the majority of his time since training camp. Though the second-year player knows he wouldn't be the tallest or strongest small forward in the league, he's ready to take on anyone who lines up across from him.

"You do your work early," Douglas-Roberts said. "I’m not the shortest guy -- I’m looking eye to eye with Paul Pierce. Guys that are the exception like Kevin Durant are 6-10, but I checked Thaddeus Young in Philly, and he’s 6-9. it’s really not too much man. It’s all about heart. You do your work early, and you take the challenge. That’s just on you."