October 29, 2009

Lee Looking to Rebound as Carter Returns

Courtney Lee rode the rollercoaster for a month-and-a-half this summer, plunging into shock after being traded from a Finals team before winding around the rails and eventually coasting into acceptance. Tomorrow, he'll take another spin on the Tilt-a-Whirl as the Magic come to the IZOD Center in the Nets' home opener (Buy Tickets).

After an auspicious Nets debut in Minnesota last night (5 points, 2-11 FGs, 0-4 3Ps), it is the first opportunity for Lee to face his former team since they dealt him in June.

"Playing against a team I helped get to the Finals, it’s going to be fun in the warm-ups and before the game and after the game," Lee said. "But during the game, I’m approaching it like another game: they’re my opponents and the guys that are on my team, we’re a team going out there to compete against them."

Lee has a few teammates who are familiar with such situations, notably Devin Harris, who's had to match up several times against a Mavericks team he played point for as they went to the 2006 Finals and won 67 games in 2007.

Harris struggled in his first game against them, only posting nine points, two rebounds and two assists during a 111-91 loss at Dallas in March 2008. But he rebounded at the IZOD Center last fall, hanging 41 points and 13 assists on his stat line as the Nets won, 121-97. Harris said that he spoke with Lee about the experience after Wednesday's game had finished and focus shifted away from the loss.

"You want to have a good game," Harris acknowledged. "But at the end of the day – and this is something I learned last year at the All-Star Break talking to different guys like Allen Iverson – but the main thing is you want to win. That’s the biggest thing you can do. No matter if you score 50, 70 points, you just want to win. You could score two, four. It doesn’t matter. If you get that win that says it all."

While the Nets were awesome for three quarters before faltering down the stretch in Wednesday's opener at Minnesota, the Magic dominated the 76ers throughout a 120-106 win. All-NBA center Dwight Howard tallied 21 points (9-11 FGs), 15 rebounds and two blocks to pace Orlando in all three categories. Also contributing solid performances were former Nets Vince Carter (15 points, 3 assists) and Ryan Anderson (16 points, 5 rebounds).

Anderson, a second-year forward starting in place of a suspended Rashard Lewis, carried a strong preseason over into the opener, but it is Carter who has earned tomorrow's inevitable pomp and circumstance. After spending 4 1/2 seasons wowing Nets fans with a game that developed far beyond dunking, Carter should be warmly received. And his impact as leader last year continues to be felt.

"I think those guys will always be forever grateful, especially the rookies," said Nets coach Lawrence Frank. "When you’re a rookie and you come in the league, Vince Carter, he was a guy you’re used to watching on TV. And now he’s so down-to-earth and at their level. There’s nothing condescending about the guy. He embraced them. That will help them in terms of when they become veteran players, how they’ll treat the younger guys."

Harris said Carter was a good mentor for him as team captain, while swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts extolled Carter's professionalism and demeanor, on-court and off. For all the good feeling that engenders, the Nets need some of their wings to duplicate some level of Carter's on-successes if the team hopes to upset Orlando.

Keep an eye on the trio of Lee, Douglas-Roberts and rookie Terrence Williams. While the latter played well (15 points, 10 rebounds) against the T-Wolves, Lee and CD-R struggled after strong preseason play, when they paced the team in scoring average. Douglas-Roberts was limited to eight points in 24 minutes due to foul trouble, and knowing his competitiveness, a repeat isn't likely.

Hayes' Hammy
Bittersweet injury news today, as an MRI revealed that while Jarvis Hayes' hamstring injury isn't as serious as initially believed, the left hamstring strain will sideline him for 2-3 weeks.

"Jarvis has always been a little bit of an X-factor for us," Coach Frank said. "Look at last year and the games he missed, and this year. But in the big scheme of things, we thought it could have been much worse. So we’re thankful we’re looking at a couple of weeks, whereas it could have been a whole lot worse than that. He’s in a better place mentally than he was last night because he was thinking it was much worse. Now you have to go on."

Frank declined to address how this would affect his rotation, but odds are it means seeing more of Bobby Simmons at small forward.

Alston Also Involved
Courtney Lee won't be alone in facing the Magic for the first time tomorrow – Rafer Alston was their starting point guard after joining the team midseason via trade. Alston said he doesn't really stay in touch with anyone from Orlando, likely due to the short stay, but is still geared up for the game.

"It's going to be interesting after the run we had last year and the fun it was," Alston said. "How fun the guys were, that's something I really treasure. The friendships that were made and how good the guys were to one another."

Superman & the DC Fan
Brook Lopez averaged a 13-10-3 against the Magic last year, while Dwight Howard posted a 21-13-3 against the Nets. Lopez admitted he's looking forward to the match-up.

"It's always exciting," Lopez said. "He's one of the best centers in the league right now, and it's a good challenge to see where I'm at."

Harris Feeling Funny
Devin Harris was in a playful mood with the media, knowing that the questions about Vince would be coming fast and furious.

"I’m just looking forward to fouling him one good time," said Harris, straight-faced. "That’s what I’m looking forward to doing."

Given a chance to pull back, Harris instead went all in:

"I’m going to get him so good, he’s not going to be able to scream."

And when it came time to reveal what he'd learned from 1 1/2 seasons alongside Carter, he took another jab, just for sport.

"He’ll appreciate this," Harris swore. "The spin move that I do – my fast spin – I take from his slow spin. So he’ll really appreciate that. He always says, 'Why are you always stealing my move? Why you always stealing my move?' When you see him tomorrow, ask about my spin move. He’ll say he got it from me."