Nets point guard Deron Williams is being paid $19,754,465 this season. That’s just over $240,908 a game and $60,227 a quarter. After a strong start to the season, Williams had a bad December hindered by a calf injury and was supplanted in the starting lineup by Jarrett Jack.
Jack has thrived in his new role as a starter for Brooklyn, which has won four of five. With head coach Lionel Hollins all but saying that Jack will be the starter for the forseeable future, Williams will have to accept his fate as a max player coming off the bench for now.
“We’re winning man, so that’s all that matters,” Williams said after Monday’s 107-99 win over Sacramento. “We have team guys, we’re not selfish, we’re not bigger than the team. So whatever’s needed. The first group is really rockin right now. Let ’em rock.”
Brooklyn’s starting lineup over the last five games, Jack, Sergey Karasev, Joe Johnson, Kevin Garnett and Mason Plumlee, are only outscoring opponents by just 0.3 points per 48 minutes, but Hollins likes the way the team’s chemistry is progressing among the starting and bench groups, and the team is finally consistently winning games.
“It’s been coming and you could see it growing,” Hollins said of Brooklyn’s chemistry. “Before, we didn’t have a good mix, so hopefully this will help us out.”
Along with Plumlee, whom we profiled last week, Jack has been the Nets’ primary catalyst over the last five games and has been better as a starter this season than Williams was.
| AS STARTER | Games | Minutes | FG % | 3 FG % | Points | Assists | Rebounds | O Rtg | D Rtg |
| Williams | 25 | 34.5 | 40.3 | 38.2 | 15.6 | 6.8 | 3.1 | 109 | 108 |
| Jack | 5 | 36 | 52.9 | 37.5 | 19.4 | 5.4 | 4.2 | 113 | 109 |
Granted the five-game sample size is relatively small, but Jack has clearly outperformed Williams while in the starting lineup. Jack’s field goal percentage is more than 12.5 percentage points better and the Nets are three points better per 100 possessions while Jack is starting ahead of Williams.
Brooklyn is now 4-1 with Jack in the starting lineup this season, compared to 10-15 with Williams.
“I just think the more opportunities we get, the more we’re able to learn and grow with each other,” Jack said of the new starting unit. “Me and Joe have developed a synergy. I know what plays to call and when to call them and where he likes the basketball most of the time. And then me and Mase have developed a bit of chemistry in the pick-and-roll as well. I think we present a formidable chance against any opponent we face.”
Hollins was complimentary of Jack’s ability in the pick-and-roll and mid-range offensively and his strong help and communication on defense, and it hasn’t helped that Jack’s ascent has coincided with Williams’ December struggles.
Williams is shooting 32.1 percent from the field while averaging just 11 points. For the month, Brooklyn is being outscored by seven points per 100 possessions while Williams is on the floor.
“I thought Deron started off [the season] extremely well, playing well, and as time’s gone on his shooting percentage has gone down,” Hollins said.
Williams has dealt with confidence issues in the past, which Hollins addressed on Monday.
“Confidence is something that’s inside you and your belief in what you can do,” Hollins said. “And there are players that are supremely confident no matter what the game looks like. And there are other players that’s not going well they tend to back up.”
One man who knows Deron Williams quite well is Sacramento interim head coach Tyrone Corbin, who was with Williams during his entire Utah tenure (first as an assistant under Jerry Sloan and then as head coach).
“During the course of the season, you go through some peaks and valleys,” Corbin said. “He’s certainly still a quality player in this league. I thought he was coming along and he hurt his calf muscle and that set him back a little bit.”
Another player Corbin praised happened to have been Jack, calling him a consummate pro.
“The guy just relishes opportunities every time he gets a chance to start, get more minutes on any team he’s been on in his career, he’s done well,” Corbin told SheridanHoops.
The problem Hollins and the Nets now face is that they have this expensive player coming off the bench in Williams who hasn’t exactly set the world on fire in his new role.
| OFF BENCH | Games | Minutes | FG % | 3 FG % | Points | Assists | Rebounds | O Rtg | D Rtg |
| Williams | 3 | 19.1 | 31.6 | 20 | 7 | 3.3 | 1.7 | 95 | 117 |
| Jack | 25 | 25.1 | 43.8 | 14.3 | 9 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 97 | 107 |
In reserve this season, Brooklyn has been outscored by 22 points per 100 possessions with Williams on the floor in just under 60 total minutes of playing time. To compound the problem, Jack hasn’t been that great off the bench either. And in 27 games together, the Nets are -3.6 points per 48 minutes with the Williams-Jack tandem on the floor. Hollins even tried to keep Deron and Jack off the court at the same time on Monday.
So while Williams and Brook Lopez remain on the bench, the starters have played well and Hollins sees no reason to insert the pricey duo because of their once-prominent roles in this franchise.
“While they’ve been out we started to play better and winning,” Hollins said. “So why would I go back and change the lineup for now? I mean I would hope they play better, and they did. And hopefully they’ll continue to play well and maybe we’ll have a good mix of the starters and bench. Both of those guys are accepting their roles and are amenable to helping us win.”
Williams is saying the right things, for the time being.
“It is what it is. I said last week if they’re playing great and my role is smaller than what I’m accustomed to, then it’s fine with me,” Williams said. But Williams also mentioned that it’s been hard for him to find a rhythm coming off the bench and it’s hard to imagine Williams being happy in a few weeks if Jack remains the starter and the Nets continue to win.
For right now, Hollins is playing the starting five that is winning games, with Jack prominently featured and Williams cast to the side. How Williams adapts to his changing role could go a long way in determining how well the Brooklyn Nets’ season ultimately turns out.
Shlomo Sprung is a national columnist for SheridanHoops who focuses on analytics, profiles and features. He is also the web editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. A 2011 graduate of Columbia University’s Journalism School, he has previously worked for the New York Knicks, The Sporting News, Business Insider and other publications. Follow him on Twitter.
I’ve liked Jack (be-nimble, Jack-be-quick) from the beginning of the season, as he has the up-tempo skills similar to the Western Conference PGs who always torch the Nets. However, he’s not big and strong enough on defense, so while he’s clearly great on offense, he’s far from a perfect solution. I think I am justified to call Jack, Kyle Lowry – light, especially since he is smaller and not as strong. Many fans have criticized Jack, and although he may have been guilty of shooting too early in the shot clock, he also makes some great passes and fakes, and has an uncanny ability to get off a good shot in the paint or slash and score.
What Hollins is up to, is playing up tempo with the starting group of Jack, Plumlee & Karasev (who had been kept Inactive for much of season). They are a fun trio to watch. Nets fans are hoping that 21 year old Karasev is a very young Ginobili. Although KG (PF) and Joe Johnson (SF) do slow things down, as the starting complement, that group will get its share of rebounds and JJ is going to make All Star-like offensive contributions in about 1/2 of his games – he’s unstoppable.
DWill and Lopez are being brought into game together, as only DWill can play with Lopez’ slow methodical style. Brook has looked “weak” more so than “soft”, most of this season. He lost, perhaps 15 lbs, and it looks like it was all muscle. The best hope for DWill is to prove he can play some minutes together with Jack, in an up tempo game. However, with Lopez playing, DWill automatically tends to slow down game. Nothing is going to change much until Lopez can be traded, for a decent return. Brook is the odd man out (literally, as he wants to be a Wookie in the next Star Wars). Although Brook has a player option left on his contract, its unlikely Nets would want to extend him (big money) and therefore could lose him for nothing if he chooses to opt out in July. Billy King’s dilemma is that he’s got until Feb 19 to hope Brook can play at the best basketball level of his career (he already has the best shooting touch of any NBA Center), even if off the bench, and ALSO stay healthy.
Only after Lopez is moved, will it be possible to re-evaluate the feasibility of trading DWill (and getting back a cheaper good PG), who’s yet to demonstrate any regaining of his vertical lift, despite supposedly being over his ankle issues(?). A better decision can be made in February. I also wouldn’t be surprised if Teletovic has to be moved too, as a sweetener, and because he could be lost in free agency. And if Nets don’t get a true Center for Lopez (they could go for a true PF similar to Favors), they still may have the option of bringing back Andray Blatche from China, in early March (he seems to be keeping sober).