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Over seven seasons with the Nets, Kerry Kittles averaged 14.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists while shooting 37.8 percent from 3-point range. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 1996-97 and averaged a career-high 17.2 points the following season. Kittles is second in franchise history with 687 3-pointers made.
Part 1 covers Kittles' first four Nets seasons, and Part 2 picks up with the 2001-02 NBA Finals team.
BROOKLYNNETS.COM: After your four years at Villanova, the Nets selected you eighth in the draft in 1996. What was draft night like?
KERRY KITTLES: Having the draft right in the Meadowlands was very interesting because you do post-draft interviews and talking about the next team you’re going to be a part of and the new franchise. Being right in New Jersey, the coaches were there, (John) Calipari, but also the GM John Nash and Willis Reed. You get to meet iconic figures like Willis Reed, it was pretty cool, it was a neat experience.
NETS.COM: The Nets finished 26-56 in your rookie season under a new coach, John Calipari. How was the experience adjusting to the NBA?
KK: Coming off those Derrick Coleman years and Kenny Anderson years it was a team trying to restart with a new coach and a young rookie. I want see what the average age was for that team because you look at that roster my first year in the NBA we had 10-, 12-year vets. I think Kendall Gill was seven years in the NBA, maybe eight. Kevin Edwards. Xavier McDaniel was like 12 years. Reggie Williams. Robert Pack. Shawn Bradley was fairly young. I was the only rookie on that team my first year. We had a lot of older guys and so you look at today’s game where every team the average age is like 24 or 25 I think that average age was probably 30 or close to it. It was an interesting experience for me learning the whole NBA. I was fortunate to play with Kendall Gill and Kevin Edwards my first couple of years and then we made a big trade and got Jimmy Jackson, another two-guard, perimeter player I could learn from. It was good for me because I was green, my coach was green. Everything was new to us as far as practice time and learning to be a professional.
NETS.COM: What were the keys to the Nets taking a big jump to 43 wins and the playoffs in your second season?
KK: We had talent. We got Keith Van Horn, which was huge, second pick in the draft. Sam Cassell, once he got out of Houston I think he came from Dallas, part of that trade. You bring in Sam Cassell and Keith Van Horn along with myself and Kendall Gill and Jayson Williams, that was our starting five. It was a pretty good starting five. Chris Gatling off the bench, sixth man of the year candidate. Sherman Douglas was giving us pretty good minutes. It was a good team. We faced that 70-win Bulls team in the first round. It was an experience.
NETS.COM: How was it playing for John Calipari at the start of your career?
KK: I enjoyed playing for Cal. My high school coach prepared me to deal with any other coach after him. The passion that poured out of Calipari every day, his love of the game, his competitiveness, just wanting to win, I was able to relate to that because of my background. At times it was a little overbearing. I thought a lot of guys in the NBA weren’t accustomed to that at that level, the veteran players in particular. It wasn’t always well-received, but I thought he was good for me because he really challenged me to get more out of myself. He challenged Keith Van Horn. He challenged everybody, he challenged the veterans. As a player that’s pretty much all you want from your coach, who sees more from you than you see from yourself and wants to get more out of you and not let yourself settle. He lived every possession, coached every possession like it was the last possession. It was fun playing.
NETS.COM: After the Nets made the playoffs in 1998, the next season was delayed by a strike and after a poor start Calipari was fired. What went wrong that year?
KK: You really know how much preparation matters in sports. You prepare for the regular season in the offseason, you prepare in training camp. We got off to a horrible start. I think it was 3-17 and they decided to let Calipari go. He was the scapegoat there and it was unfortunate because I thought the blame wasn’t on coach it was clearly on us as a group. Whenever you fire a coach and the team is still losing then you pretty much know it’s not the coach. That’s what happened there.
NETS.COM: You missed the entire 2000-01 season after knee surgery. How concerned were you about your basketball future at that point?
KK: I think I had my first knee surgery in 1999. The next year is when I had that major surgery in 2000. I missed that year. We drafted Kenyon Martin. I was away in California most of the year doing my rehab and was kind of watching the team from afar. That wasn’t a good year for anybody. I was very concerned about the future. My prognosis at the time, they didn’t know if the operation was going to be able to work for a basketball player. As a young player, you’re just hoping you get a chance to play the game again. You’re hoping everything else heals up right and you’re able to go out there. It was concerning for the team, it was concerning for me and my family. I went to California to clear my head and I had an excellent therapist I was working with. I came back in April and practiced with the team a couple of days. Light workouts. It felt pretty good. I played Summer League in Boston, a couple games with the younger guys; (Richard) Jefferson and (Brian) Scalabrine were drafted that year and (Jason) Collins. I got a chance to play in a few games and I felt like I’d be fine.