NETS’ VAX DATE LOOMS
GM Marks believes all players will have jab before season
Not all Nets players are fully vaccinated, at least not yet. Nets GM Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash hosted their aheadof-the-season press conference with reporters on Tuesday, and Marks conceded that if the season were to start today, several players would be unable to participate due to
New York City’s COVID-19 vaccination policy.
Indoor venues in New York, including the Barclays Center, are requiring vaccinations, and the NBA recently confirmed that the local regulation applied to players on the home teams. Marks would not comment on which players were unvaccinated, but expressed optimism he would have a full team available when training camp begins in San Diego on Sept. 28; the regular season begins
Oct. 24.
“There would obviously be a couple people missing from that picture,” he said on Tuesday afternoon. “I won’t get into who it is, but we feel confident in the following several days before camp (that) everybody would be allowed to participate and so forth.”
Marks and Nash hosted a press conference that lasted nearly 35 minutes and discussed a variety of topics as their loaded team embarks on its journey toward a championship. Here are the highlights.
EXTENSIONS STILL IN THE WORKS
Kevin Durant signed a four-year contract extension with no options worth nearly $200 million that will keep him in Brooklyn through the 2025-26 season. James Harden and Kyrie Irving, however, have yet to sign their own contract extensions in Brooklyn.
Marks said in the immediate aftermath of Durant’s extension that Harden and Irving weren’t that far behind. A month and change later, pen has yet to hit paper. With most players traveling during the offseason, the Nets GM said he expects contract talks to pick up now that the squad is returning home before training camp.
“We’ve had very positive conversations with both those guys and, whether it’s family members, people and so forth, I think it always helps to do these things in person,” Marks said. “With this being summer, we’re very cognizant of letting people have their own time away before we all get back into the swing of things here. We’re looking forward to sitting down with them over the course of the next week, two weeks, and furthering those discussions.”
Marks also said he’s pleased with the health status of each of his stars. Irving’s gruesome ankle injury in the second round against the Bucks all but spelled the end of the Nets’ pursuit of a title, as Harden was forced to rush his return from and play through a visibly injured hamstring.
“The progress of their rehab and overall health, from what we’ve seen, they look great,” the GM said. “Our performance team has been with them. Our coaching staff has been with them, spending considerable time with them. I can attest that they’re in great spirits. They’re ready to go, like the rest of the team.
“We’ve talked about it, really ad nauseum, that it’s a grind. It’s a marathon. It’s not a sprint. But we’re obviously always trying to save those guys from themselves half the time. They feel good, they look great, so that’s a positive thing.”
ALDRIDGE CLEARED
The Nets re-signed veteran center LaMarcus Aldridge this summer after he abruptly retired mid-season due to a heart condition. Marks said he tried to talk Aldridge out of returning to play, but saw the conviction the ex-Trail Blazers star had for coming back to the floor.
“I spoke to LaMarcus multiple times over the summer, specifically right when he decided to step away from the game, and I respect that decision completely,” he recounted. “I think we furthered our conversations and he called, and he said, ‘look, I’ve been cleared.’
“I’ve had multiple doctors, including our own, and several specialists throughout the country. It’s not something that we take light-hearted, it’s not something he should, either, and he was very comfortable, wanted to be back here and stated, like several of our guys, that there was unfinished business here.”
The Nets acquired Aldridge midseason after his contract buyout with the San Antonio Spurs, and while he only appeared in five games, he made a mark, with averaged of 13 points, five rebounds and 2.2 blocks a night. Aldridge is a seven-time All-Star.
VETERAN PRESENCE
Aldridge adds veteran expertise; so do Patty Mills and Paul Millsap. Nash said he sees Mills as the glueguy locker room replacement for DeAndre Jordan, the larger-than-life personality whose production never lived up to his $40 million contract.
“Patty obviously is a championship player with the Spurs, been there for 10 years. I think he’s an incredible lift to our culture, just being the type of character he is, the personality he has and his ability to shoot and play with pace helps us immensely as well,” Nash said. “Paul Millsap’s a tough, intelligent, skilled big who’s seen it all, so another guy that can play a few positions and stretch the floor or play inside, can pass and play-make and facilitate and understand and be able to fit into any defense.”