Karl Malone To Sign With New Jersey Nets This Week

[THUNDER HANDS]

He is meeting with Nets GM Rod Thorn tomorrow to work out a deal. Could be in uniform after the New Year's break.

As per WFAN on the Nets halftime radio broadcast.

Wow.

First Vinsanity, then the Mailman, I'm gonna have to keep adding to my sig line.

:D

[lazarus]

1. so he decided

he doesn't want a ring? :evilgrin:

[Smirking_Chimp]

2. Wow Christmas never stops around here.

[WilliamPitt]

3. Coupla more weeks

and it'll be Kobe and Rudy T. all alone on the Lakers bench.

What a fucked up team.

[lazarus]

4. Meh

Karl wasn't going to return to LA the minute it became apparent they weren't in the title hunt.

Why he's going to New Jersey is beyond me. No way he wins a ring there.

His only real shots at a ring were San Antonio (quite likely) or Minnesota (possible).

[goodbody]

13. Karl was only there a year

with the Lakers, and he was injured for half of that season so he's hardly a measure of what's going on now. Shaq and Phil leaving are though, but not Karl.

It is curious why he chose the Nets though. I would think he would have followed Shaq.

[WilliamPitt]

14. He did

He went to the East.

[Champ]

5. Nets are going to jump into the East Race

-Center-
Malone
Jefferson
Carter
Kidd

Pretty good lineup, I'm sure NJ can find a solid center to get 8 rebounds a game and get in the way. Malone plays good D, can score and rebound. You can't go wrong with that backcourt.

[lazarus]

6. One problem with that

Malone is only going to play 15-20 minutes a game.

And finding a solid center to get 8 boards a game? Best of luck.

The Nets are in the playoff picture, but only because you have to be really, really, really, really, really bad not to make the playoffs in the East. Heck, you can make the playoffs with a losing record.

In the Atlantic, you can win the division with a losing record.

And who's on their bench?

Brian Scalabrine, Jason Collins, Ron Mercer, Travis Best?

Your only true center is Jabari Smith, who lives on the IRL. A few forwards (Collins, Scalabrini, Krstc).

There aren't any good centers just floating around out there, and who are you going to trade for one?

As I said in another thread, watch for them to trade either the overrated Jefferson or Kidd for a second tier point guard and a couple of inside players. Kidd to Dallas makes the most sense.

Malone is not a starter, and he can't play a lot of minutes. He's strictly bench time.

[THUNDER HANDS]

7. we don't need a center

We have a great, and I mean GREAT, rookie in Nenad Krstic from Serbia.

The kid is 7-feet tall and aggressive as hell, atypical for a Euro bigman. He loves playing inside and driving to the basket.

Also we have Jason Collins starting at the 5 for us. He's not flashy, far far from it, but he's fundamentally sound (ie, slow as a tree stump) and does the little things it takes to win.

We need a starting Power forward because right now all we have is the afformentioned Veal Scalabrine. That's not good enough to get it done.

Putting Karl Malone in there for a season is a fine stopgap. Playing 25 minutes a night, we can get by with him. If all he has to do is rebound and play defense, and leave the scoring to Kidd, Carter and Jefferson, we can probably scare some teams in the East.

I think with a healthy Kidd and Carter and a servicable Malone, we can knock off Detroit or Indiana or Miami in the first round if we sneak into the playoffs.

Kidd is still the best player in the conference, even with Shaq in there.

[lazarus]

8. Again, though

You have to have some bench play.

And I think this "sneaking into the playoffs" is a problem. I did a lengthy post on this that didn't get many responses. It's so easy to get into the playoffs in the East, teams are constantly making short term moves to get that 6, 7, or 8 spot. All that does is guarantee a low slot in the draft, and GMs in the East tend not to draft well.

I do hope Krstic works out, though.

But I question if this was a good long term move. It'll be very difficult for any team in the East to actually win a title, so maybe a long-view rebuild would be better. Other teams were also interested in VC, maybe trade him and Kidd both, have a bad season or two, and work the free agent/trade market.

[THUNDER HANDS]

9. why would it be difficult

for any team in the East to win a title?

All the Western teams have their flaws. Minnesota scares me the most because right now Garnett is in the top 15 in EVERY statistical category

Scoring, Rebounds, Assists, Blocks, Steals. He's a monster!

Duncan and Co. are okay, but I think they are beatable.

Phoenix reminds me of my Nets from last year and years past, but I don't think they have enough to get out of the West.

As for my Nets, this trade was a no-brainer. They essentially traded a role player for a superstar.

The draft picks that they traded were protected. And they still have their own, plus the Clippers pick.

They have enough to work with to either way, either drafting a big man, or signing one in the offseason.

Keeping the big three in tact will get them closer to a championship than trading one or two of them for a series of lesser role players.

[Champ]

10. No one is playing better with the Suns

They have only been beaten 3 times and they do play in a stronger conference overall. The starters on Phoenix's front court each average between 14-17 ppg, Nash gets about 11 assists per game. Shawn Marion and Amare average over 20 ppg and Amare gets about 9 RPG. The Suns have an awesome lineup in Steve Nash, Joe Johnson, Q-Richardson, Marion, and Stoudamire. The Nets may have an awesome backcourt but lack a presence inside, the Suns starting lineup is awesome from top to bottom. 3 All Stars, Nash and Amare will likely start for the West at the All Star Game.

[catzies]

18. Oh My God, Friday's night's game was electrifying!

I missed the first half of Bill Moyers' last show because I couldn't tear myself away from that game.

The Sonics' first quarter was one of the best quarters of basketball I've seen in a long time!

[Champ]

11. I think only 2 teams from the East could've won it(Possibly Detroit again)

Miami and Indiana were the 2 teams.
I think Indiana before suspensions was the best team in the East and possibly had the best roster from starters to reserves in the league.

Here is how it looked
PG-Tinsley - Anthony Johnson
SG-Stephen Jackson - Reggie Miller - Fred Jones
SF-Ron Artest - James Jones- Jonathan Bender
PF-Jermaine O'neal - Austin Croshere
C- Jeff Foster - Scot Polard

That is a very good lineup from top to bottom including the bench. The best lineup in the East imo, the Heat have talent but it is mostly 2 stars with players that were the best available used to fill the lineup. Heat also have a pretty good bench.

PG-Damon Jones (11.5 ppg and only 3.7 apg for a PG)
SG-Dwayne Wade (23 ppg, 7 apg, clearly an effective player)
SF-Eddie Jones (Nothing special, about 10ppg and 3apg)
PF-Udonis Haslem (Over 10 ppg and 8 rpg, appears to getting better as he enters his 2nd year)
C-Shaq (21 ppg, 11 rpg)

The Heat have 2 stars with players basically used to fill a spot. The Pacers had a good PG, SGs, SF, PF, and a C. They were a complete team. The Pistons still have a great lineup in Billups, Ric Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Wallace, and Wallace as well as a good bench. I think they can match up well with most teams in the West but I don't think they will make the finals this year. The East will come down to Miami, Indiana, Washington,(I think they have a solid top-to-bottom lineup) and New Jersey if indeed Kidd, Carter, and Jefferson perform as well as I expect them too. I also think Lebron has the ability to carry Cleveland far but the team needs better players to make the Finals or even think about winning it.

[lazarus]

15. Spurs are beatable

But not by many people, and not in a seven game series.

Remember, in the playoffs, it's defense. You have to beat a team 4 out of 7.

The Spurs are leading the league in three different defensive categories, and have a damned good offense. The other night we went on a 22-4 run with Duncan on the bench.

I would question Vinsanity's being a "superstar". Yeah, he's popular (somehow), but look at his track record. He's been injured, and pouty. Hopefully this move will change his attitude, but your two main players are both coming off major injuries.

Let's just wait and see. That's why we play the games, after all.

Oh, Thursday night is TWolves vs Spurs on TNT. Should be a good one.

[Champ]

12. Jefferson overrated? How?

The numbers are there, in only his 4th season in the league he continues to increase his numbers, averaging 22 ppg, 9 rebounds, and 4 apg. His ability and how good of a player he is isn't overblown. What makes the most sense is having a floor general like Kidd running the floor with the likes of Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter on the recieving end of passes. Both of those players especially Carter know what to do when they have the ball and can bring some entertainment and excitement to New Jersey again.

[lazarus]

16. To compare him to my favourite player

Same position, Manu Ginobili:

Ginobili has created +272 net points. Jefferson is -16.

:-)

I just got tired of him when he ended up starting ahead of a bunch of players no GM would ever trade for him (Carmelo, Lebron, etc). He benefits greatly from Kidd's passing, increasing his scoring.

I dunno, maybe it's just perception. That's not to say he's a bad player, though. He's quite good.

I just don't see how three wing players, two of whom are injury prone and old, are going to be a playoff contender.

[henslee]

20. Laz. when I move to Vegas & start bettting B-ball, can I IM you?

And do you know college too?

[lazarus]

21. Heh

This is all for entertainment purposes only. And I don't know college.

Oh, a press release from New Jersey just came out. Malone isn't coming, and is likely to sign with the Spurs.

[Telly Savalas]

22. That's a good lineup on the nights Carter isn't injured.

Good luck on having a few of those.

[catzies]

17. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


I cannot believe you heard this before we did on my other website, www.jazzfanz.com

[catzies]

19. Found a link. NOT happening.

"As for those rumors about Malone signing on to shore up New Jersey's thin frontcourt, Thorn said they were not accurate. While he said the Nets have reached out to the Mailman's representatives, they did not expect the 41-year-old power forward to deliver for them. "From everything we've heard, if he comes back it will be with a team like San Antonio," Thorn said. "I assume he's already made a deal and he knows ."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/marty_burns/12/20/carter/

[PDittie]

23. I wonder if they made efforts on the Internets

Karl Malone said he still has no intention of re-signing with the Lakers, but he does plan to meet with Laker owner Jerry Buss and GM Mitch Kupchak.

"For all that has gone on, they called me, said they wanted to meet with me and I thought it was a good idea," Malone said. "I'll say this. It ain't a lot of people that make efforts. I have absolutely no reason not to listen to what Dr. Buss and Mitch have to say." The Spurs, T'Wolves, and Heat remain Malone's biggest suitors, with Dallas and New Jersey also expressing interest.

San Antonio Express-News:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA122404.5C.BKNspurs.notebook.38daea57.html

[davidinalameda]

24. is Kobe's wife going as well

part of a two player deal perhaps?

[goodbody]

25. Kobe's the only player in the NBA

with a young, attractive wife who cares about where they live?

Karl Malone is basically retired. Talk about him all you want, but he's gone. Some players young wife wouldn't make a dent in him if he truly wanted to continue professionally.

Say Goodnight, Karl.