Why the Nets would give up their leading scorer in Vince Carter, a proven NBA commodity who had serious chemistry with Devin Harris and a talented youngster in Ryan Anderson for what they got seems a bit obscene at first.

Sure, Rafer Alston is a talented point guard that showed flashes of brilliance during the playoffs, but the Nets already have a point guard, a good one at that and a more than competent backup in Keyon Dooling that proved during the season that he can be more than an understudy if he has to be. So where does Alston fit? Is Harris going to move to shooting guard to accommodate the loss of Carter? What’s going on here?

The same thing goes for the signing of Tony Battie, who despite being an excellent rebounder off the bench and a trusty veteran, comes in with players like Sean Williams, Josh Boone and cough, Yi Jianlian capable of manning the position and in need of minutes. With that being said, where will he fit in with the Nets?

Courtney Lee however is an interesting player. I think he can definitely be a solid small forward if given about 30 minutes a night and with some more pressure on him. He’s also an excellent three-point shooter that is far more explosive than Bobby Simmons, with much more upside. If he can score a dozen points a game and provide some energy, this trade may not be so bad.

With the drafting of Terrance Williams from Louisville as well, the Nets also continue to get younger and more energetic in addition to having cleared a ton of cap room by trading away high-priced veterans like Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter over the past two years.

It’s the end of an era.

But it could be the beginning of something great as well.

From CBSSports.com:

One of the more colorful characters in college basketball, to call Williams “unique” would be an understatement. When he first arrived on Louisville’s campus as a freshman, he was a brash, cocky youngster with a me-first attitude, but he quickly adhered to head coach Rick Pitino’s rules. He not only became the team’s leader and “spokesman,” but in this day and age where players opt out of college for a chance to play in the pros, he was very comfortable staying with the Cardinals until his eligibility ran out.

Never at a loss for words, Williams became the media darling on the team and also one who knew how to ignite the spark in his teammates, even though his actions sometimes rattled his opponents. In the 2009 Big East Tournament, Syracuse point guard Jonny Flynn described facing Louisville as “being chased by eight pit bulls, and you just got to keep running for your life.”

After Williams led the Cardinals to a 76-66 win over Syracuse in the Big East title game, he jumped on a press table, impersonating Syracuse’s Eric Devendorf for his teammates. He shook the television announcers’ hands at the conclusion of the victory and entertained reporters, saying he saw “Tweety birds” when he took a forearm to the face, and boasting about the 55 text messages he had waiting after Louisville won the Big East.

My Thoughts: It’s obvious the kid grew a lot during his time with Pitino and I love his energy. He’d be a fun addition to the team and given the fact that he’s a good rebounder and a decent three-point shooter, he gives the team even more options.

Jordan Hill-Arizona

From CBSSsports.com:

Hill has made remarkable strides in all areas of his game despite his virtual neophyte status. He rates as one of the premier rebounders eligible for the draft, excelling at attacking the offensive glass with the athleticism to evolve into an offensive threat.

Hill has tremendous explosiveness for a big man, causing problems for defenders trying to stay in front of him. Hill can create contact off the dribble and but defensively he’s nearly a finished production because of his elevation, wing span and explosive leaping ability. He developed into an exceptional shot blocker, and closed out his career ranking sixth in school history with 140 blocked shots.

Hill’s rebounding skills saw him set the school single-season record with 375 as a junior, and his career total of 763 boards place him ninth in Arizona history. A high-percentage shooter, Hill made 65.2 percent of his field goals as a freshman (second-best percentage in Wildcats’ annals) and 62.0 percent of his attempts as a sophomore (fourth on the season list). In 97 games for UA, his field-goal percentage of .578 ranks fifth on the school all-time record list.

My Thoughts: He’s a damn big power forward with great rebounding ability with the potential to be a better offensive player than he is right now. My personal choice for the Nets this season if they can land him.

Scoring 12 or more points in six of his past 16 games, Anderson is beginning to understand what it takes to become a success in the NBA. However, the main reason why he’s gotten an opportunity to play as much as he has been lately has had more to do with Yi Jianlian’s injury than anything he’s done specifically on the court. Despite the fact that he’s played well in Yi’s absence, no one knows what the future holds for either of them.

“He (coach Lawrence Frank) really hasn’t talked about long term. He definitely will work Yi back in (until then) we might play together, me at the five and Yi at the four just to get him back in,” Anderson told the Associated Press a few days ago. “The whole season I was playing behind Yi. It’s funny how it works. If anything this stretch gave me more confidence knowing I can play big minutes.”

Shooting five for 13 in 35 minutes in his first two games since returning, it’s safe to say that Yi isn’t exactly ready to retain his starting spot. That should give Anderson a few more games to show the Nets brass that he’s the better player. Despite the fact that on paper Yi appears to be the better scorer and rebounder, I think Anderson is the grittier player and a much more explosive scorer. Earlier in the season, it was obvious that Anderson was the better three point shooter, but inconsistency has gotten the better of him since then. If Anderson can find a way to get hot from beyond the arc again, he may cement his spot in the starting five.

So far, since Yi’s return, Anderson only has 13 points and has only taken eight shots in over 45 minutes of action. If he wants to be a starter in this league, that will have to change. Otherwise, the Nets will have to settle for a pair of underachievers at power forward, rather than one.

Photo by Bill Menzel