From Russia With Loss: When Money Can't Win Championships

The New Jersey Nets are owned by Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov. They are planning on moving from small market New Jersey to large market Brooklyn (but let's forget about the entire Brooklyn New Yorkers debacle). They already have the full support of the king of New York, Jay-Z. They looked poised to make a big noise in the free agency. They looked poised to be one of the top teams in the NBA. But now, they look like the richest laughingstock in the NBA.

Well, they started out well. When Prokhorov bought the Nets, many were wondering how the Russian would handle the NBA. Many thought that the Nets owner would use his money to sway big names like LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to New Jersey. Unfortunately, the biggest move the Nets made was adding...Anthony Morrow, a 3-point shooter. But no one really considered this a failure by the Nets, but with money and fame on their side, many were surprised that they didn't make much of a splash. But many thought their tide has turned when they heard that Carmelo Anthony was being shopped by the Nuggets. Though Anthony wanted to be traded to Chicago or New York, many thought that the aggression that the Nets were working with would eventually sway Anthony's decision.

So they shopped around a lot of people, even willing to part with their #3 pick, who would turn out to be Derrick Favors. They were about to dump many picks and players for one great scorer before the season even started. But Anthony would not sign an extension with the Nets, which made the addition of Anthony useless as he would be a free agent in 2011. So the preseason came and went with Anthony staying put. The New Jersey Nets were looking for a better season. They had the pieces in place to be better. They had a strong power forward prospect in Favors, a good inside man with Brook Lopez, and a good scorer and guard in Devin Harris. Though they played better this season, they still found themselves in the dregs of the Eastern conference.

They then further pursued Carmelo Anthony. They had a deal lined up and many people had said that Anthony would be a Net in the coming days. Prokhorov was going to meet with him in Denver. Then, suddenly, the embarrassment set in. The Anthony trade was off and Prokhorov looked like a fool. They put so much on the line and were so close, but the deal fell through. When the New York Knicks put their name in the running, the Nets tried to make another play at Anthony. But Anthony went to the Knicks. The Nets then made a great play at grabbing Deron Williams, a star point guard, costing the Nets a inferior point guard in Harris and a struggling prospect in Favors. Williams is a great point guard and current has the Nets somehow in the running for the 8th seed. But what can the Nets offer Williams as a future? He will most likely bail in 2012 when his contract expires because the Nets have nothing to offer as a team. Lopez is a great center and Kris Humphries is very impressive as a forward, but the rest of the team is very weak.

The Nets have everything they need. If they need money, they can look for Prokhorov. If they need some publicity, they have Jay-Z. But if they want championships, they have nothing to look forward to. For all of Prokhorov's money and all of Jay-Z's fame, the Nets still lack the basketball to make a blip on the championship radar.