The Nets shot 52.5% from the floor and they outrebounded the Kings 43-31 and those were the big reasons for the win tonight. Brook Lopez led the way for the Nets tonight with 29 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 blocked shot. Devin Harris was outstanding at running the offense tonight as he finished up with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists. Travis Outlaw (18 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist) and Jordan Farmar (14 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal) also had solid games for the Nets tonight. The Nets are off to a rousing 2-0 start to the 2010-11 season.

The Nets wanted this game more than the Pistons did as they outrebounded them 44-37 tonight. Center Brook Lopez led the way for the Nets with 25 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocked shots tonight. Point guard Devin Harris was also outstanding for the Nets in this game with 22 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals. Anthony Morrow was 3 for 6 on three point shots in his Nets’ debut as he finished up with 13 points and 2 rebounds. Jordan Farmar & Terrence Williams each pitched in with 10 points apiece to help new head coach Avery Johnson win his Nets’ debut. The Nets are 1-0 this year and only need 11 more wins to match last year’s total.

The Nets were only 12-70 last season but they have changed the roster quite a bit while bringing in head coach Avery Johnson to run things. Jordan Farmar, Anthony Morrow, Troy Murphy, Derrick Favors, Joe Smith, Travis Outlaw, Stephen Graham, Damion James, Quinton Ross and Johan Petro are the new guys and at least two of them will be starters. I like the Nets to win way more games than 24.5 this season so bet a lot of cash on the over! The Nets are also 100-1 to win the NBA Championship this year but it would be madness to make a bet on that happening this year.

45-year old head coach Avery Johnson was a winner as a player and now he’s one as a head coach. The Nets were 12-70 last season so Johnson will have a lot of work to do. He has a 194-70 (73.5%) record during the regular season as a head coach and he is 23-24 (48.9%) during the post season. The Mavericks lost in the NBA Finals 4 games to 2 with Johnson as the head coach in 2005-06 so he know how to win. The Nets turned over half the roster bringing in some decent talent so I can easily see them approaching 30 or more wins this year under Johnson who will be the coach that gets the Nets back to the playoffs but he’s going to need a little time.

The Nets will likely have three new starters around 22-year old Brook Lopez and starting point guard Devin Harris. Lopez really improved big time in his second year in the NBA. Lopez played in 82 games (all starts) for the Nets last season and he averaged 36.9 minutes, 18.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. Lopez has now played in 164 games (157 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he has averaged 33.7 minutes, 15.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game. I look for Lopez to be even better this season now that he has more help on hand and that should be scary for the opposition this year.

24-year old Johan Petro will back up Lopez this year. Petro played in 36 games (16 starts) for the Nuggets last year and he averaged 12.1 minutes, 3.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Petro has now played in 306 games (120 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 16.7 minutes, 5.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE NETS CENTERS IN 2010-11: A