Nets’ Biggest Transition Could Start Now

Two-time defending Eastern Conference champions or not, the Nets are coming to a crossroads.

One man’s decision towers above them all and he’s not giving any hints that sound hopeful, for the moment.

“I play this game to win,” said Jason Kidd after Sunday’s game. “Again, this is my second time of coming up short of winning that championship trophy. So I’ve got to find a team, or stay with the Nets, that has a better chance of winning that championship trophy.”

Coach Byron Scott is one year from the end of his contract. The Nets say they want to re-sign him but Scott hasn’t said what he’ll do.

Chief Executive Lou Lamoriello, who runs the New Jersey Devils, also has control of the Nets in the Yankee Entertainment Sports organization, but is reportedly at odds with Net owner Lewis Katz.

Before the Devils won the Stanley Cup, this prompted speculation Lamoriello might leave, with Yankee owner George Steinbrenner saying he might find a place for him in his organization.

Then there’s the arena issue. Katz hasn’t been able to make a deal with the state for an arena in Newark. Last week New York Islander owner Charles Wang told Newsday he was in an “ongoing dialogue” to buy the Nets and move them “here back to their home” on Long Island. The Nets denied there were any discussions.

NBA Commissioner David Stern, who rarely critiques his teams, recently began trying to nudge the Nets in the right direction, pointing out their game operations needed improvement.

Apparently, so does their long-term direction.

“We encourage the ownership group to, as we say in the philosophical world, to fish or cut bait, with respect to their plans,” Stern told the New York Daily News last week.

“I’m hopeful -- and I want to distinguish that from optimistic -- that we might be getting to a point where they’ll be making a decision in the next several weeks. From my perspective, although this building [Continental Airlines Arena] is certainly adequate for now and a year from now, there seems to be so many sets of plans on hold that I think it doesn’t have a good impact on fans, ticket sales and the like.”

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