SEATTLE – It sounds like a Robert Ludlum novel: “The Bourne Identity.” “The Holcroft Covenant.” “The Carter Factor.”
Only it’s not nearly as complex. Instead of intrigue and covert operations, you have a simple fact of life for the Nets. See Vince Carter play. See Vince Carter draw attention. See everybody else get good opportunities and flourish.
See the most recent game in Portland for convincing evidence.
“Vince attracts so much attention,” Jason Kidd said. “Guys aren’t going to leave him. Everyone is getting wide open shots. That’s what Vince brings to this team. He gets a lot of attention and, make or miss, guys get wide open looks.”
On Wednesday, in a 106-101 victory over the Blazers that ended a six-game losing streak, the Nets made more than they missed. It was Carter’s first game back after sitting five straight with a sprained right ankle. In those five games, the Nets averaged a dastardly 76.6 points and shot a suspiciously lousy .366. Against Portland, they shot a season-high .537, including 13-of-26 on 3-pointers. That from a team whose season-high had been .466, a team ranked last in scoring.
“Having (Carter) on the court opened up everything; our turnovers were down, we were more efficient. A lot more was open just through his presence,” said Richard Jefferson, who scored a game-high 30 points on 8-of-12 shooting, went 3-for-3 on 3-pointers and scored 11 free-throw points.
So Carter’s presence gave the Nets a win and rejuvenation for tonight’s game here against the Sonics.
“I was just trying to make a difference,” said Carter, who came off the bench, committed four almost-immediate turnovers, but ended with 13 points (6-of-8 shooting) in 28 minutes. “Their game plan was not to let myself or RJ get going in the post. We were just being patient. They tried to double with the big man, we tried to make the right play and guys were making shots.
“That was my goal – to be effective and put pressure on them. I appreciate them respecting that (with double-teams), but I didn’t know what to expect from myself. There’s a mental block sometimes. I said, ‘Hell with it, make things happen for my team.’ ”
Stuff happened. Kidd had a triple-double (12 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds). Five players hit double figures, but one especially huge guy was Bostjan Nachbar. Converting opportunities, (7-of-10, including 5-of-8 on 3-pointers) Nachbar delivered after some awful games. He said he saw things on tape – mechanical things – then went out and prospered behind the Nets’ terrific ball movement through Jefferson and Carter.
“Once you have 6-7-8 games in a row where you’re struggling with your shot, it’s tough to be confi dent,” said Nachbar. “Hav ing (Carter) back, and having RJ play the way he played, opens stuff up for me.”
Coach Law rence Frank stayed with what worked. He tried vari ous combos, then stuck with a forma tion that had Nachbar at the four. For all the size the Nets imported in the offseason, Frank largely went small: Jamaal Magloire didn’t play and Nenad Krstic got 3:34 of struggles.
No one cared. The Nets got a much-needed win.
“How depressing was it around here?” Jefferson asked. “I love Portland and Seattle, they’re beautiful places. But there’s a reason why they have a high suicide rate. I didn’t think our team would make it. Someone was going to go down in Seattle if we lost both these games. Somebody was going to go down. Someone would have gone to a bridge and not made the plane. It might have been me. Seriously. Someone was going to lose it.”