2001–02 New Jersey Nets season
The 2001–02 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 35th season in the National Basketball Association, and 26th season in East Rutherford, New Jersey. This season is notable for the Nets acquiring All-Star point guard Jason Kidd from the Phoenix Suns during the off-season. The Nets selected Eddie Griffin out of Seton Hall University with the seventh pick in the 2001 NBA draft, but soon traded him to the Houston Rockets for top draft pick Richard Jefferson and rookie center Jason Collins, and signed free agent Todd MacCulloch. The Nets won nine of  their first twelve games and held a 26–11 record as of January 16. The team finished first place in the Eastern Conference with 52 wins and 30 losses, their best record since joining the NBA after the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. As of 2022, this was the only season where the Nets won 50 or more games. Kidd was credited for most of the turn-around, as the Nets had finished 26–56 the previous year. Kidd averaged 14.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 9.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game, as he finished second to the Spurs' Tim Duncan in MVP  voting, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, NBA All-Defensive First Team, and selected for the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, with head coach Byron Scott coaching the Eastern Conference. In addition, second-year star Kenyon Martin averaged 14.9 points and 1.7 blocks per game, although his rebounding had decreased to just 5.3 per game, while Keith Van Horn provided the team with 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and Kerry Kittles, who returned after missing the previous season due to knee injuries, contributed 13.4 points per game. Jefferson averaged 9.4 points per game off the  bench, and was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team, while MacCulloch provided with 9.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, and Lucious Harris contributed 9.1 points per game off the bench. Jefferson also finished in second place in Rookie of the Year voting. Under the guidance of Kidd and Martin, the young Nets team prospered through the playoffs, and ended up advancing all the way to the Eastern Conference title and the franchise's first-ever appearance in the NBA Finals. In the Eastern Conference First Round, they defeated the Indiana Pacers in five games, then defeated the  Charlotte Hornets four games to one in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals. They then defeated the 3rd-seeded Boston Celtics four games to two in the Eastern Conference Finals. However, New Jersey's season would end without an improbable NBA crown, as the Nets were swept in four games by the Los Angeles Lakers. Following the season, Van Horn and MacCulloch were both traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, whom MacCulloch had previously played for. NBA Finals. Summary. The following scoring summary is written in a line score format, except that the quarter numbers are replaced by game numbers. Aspects. Amid  tensions between co-captains Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, the franchise had another stellar season, finishing 58–24 (.707), good for second in the Pacific Division and earning the third seed in the Western Conference. Bryant and O'Neal were voted starters in the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, where Bryant won the game MVP trophy in his hometown Philadelphia. The duo appeared on the All-NBA First Team and Bryant was honored with an NBA All-Defensive Second Team selection. Entering the 2001–02 season, the New Jersey Nets were enduring a three-year playoff drought and had a 73–141 record over  that span. In 1999, the Nets hired Rod Thorn as team president and immediately, he hired the recently retired Byron Scott to coach New Jersey. Thorn then dealt for Stephon Marbury in a three-team trade with the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves, trading Sam Cassell away to the Bucks. Due to the Nets' 31–51 season in 1999–00 season, they had the first overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft, which they used to select power forward Kenyon Martin out of the University of Cincinnati. Despite the reshuffling of the roster and a Rookie of the Year season for Martin , New Jersey struggled, ending the season with a 26–56 (.317) record, and were bestowed the 7th pick in the upcoming Draft. With another lottery pick, Thorn dealt it to the Houston Rockets for draftees Richard Jefferson, Jason Collins and Brandon Armstrong. The next day, Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo announced a franchise-shaking trade; Phoenix would swap their point guard Jason Kidd for his New Jersey counterpart Stephon Marbury. With the Princeton offense installed from the coaching staff, the Nets rebounded to a 52–30 (.634) mark, a twenty-six-win improvement from the last season, and clinched the number-one  seed in the Eastern Conference. Kidd finished the season awarded with first team spots on both the All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams and was selected for his fifth All-Star game. He also finished runner-up to San Antonio Spurs power forward Tim Duncan in the Most Valuable Player voting. Richard Jefferson was an NBA All-Rookie Second Team selection and Thorn, the architect of the franchise's resurgence, was awarded NBA Executive of the Year. Game One. "Wednesday, June 5, 2002, 6:00 at the Staples Center." Los Angeles's Staples Center sold out for the inaugural game of  the 2002 NBA Finals, with nearly 19,000 on hand. The Nets trotted out a lineup of Kidd, Kittles, Martin, Van Horn and MacCulloth to hold up against the two-time defending and heavily favored champions. The Lakers brought out Derek Fisher, Rick Fox, Shaquille O'Neal, Robert Horry, and Kobe Bryant, who drew the assignment of guarding Kidd. New Jersey head coach Byron Scott, a member of the Showtime Lakers, received a standing ovation. Taking advantage of a late arrival to the arena by New Jersey, L.A. dominated the first 17 minutes of play with a 42–19 score by the 6:41  mark in the second quarter. From that point on, the Nets went on a 17–6 to close the lead to a respectable 12. They had no answer for O'Neal, however, who had bullied MacCulloth into 16 points and 6 rebounds by half-time. The Nets outscored the Lakers in the third but stood steadfast as Bryant scored 11 of his 22 in the third. New Jersey battled back, coming as close as three several times in the final quarter. Desperate to take the lead, they utilized the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy midway in the fourth. It backfired, as O'Neal was  5–8 from the free throw line and had 16 points and 9 rebounds in the period alone. New Jersey was doomed by their late start and poor shooting. The Nets, who shot 45% from the field and 74% on free throws were 39% and 57% respectively. Kidd finished with a triple–double, the 26th in Finals history and the first since Charles Barkley's in the 1993 series. Recap Game Two. "Friday, June 7, 2002, 6:00 at the Staples Center." The second game was more of a statement as the Lakers clobbered the Nets by a score of 106-83  thanks to Shaquille O'Neal's 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists. Recap Game Three. "Sunday, June 9, 2002, 8:30 at the Continental Airlines Arena." Game Three would prove to a hard-fought game (much like the first game of the series) as the Lakers and Nets would trade leads throughout the game but thanks to Kobe Bryant's 36 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks the Lakers prevail by a score of 106-103 to take a commanding 3-0 series lead. Recap Game Four. "Wednesday, June 12, 2002, 9:00 at the Continental Airlines Arena." Despite this  being a hard-fought battle (much like the previous game and as well as the first game of the series) the Lakers still won game four and the championship, giving Phil Jackson his Red Auerbach-tying ninth title and the Lakers their third consecutive title (and fourteenth overall) making them the fifth team to win three consecutive titles and denying the Nets their first ever championship since the franchise moved to East Rutherford. Recap