Following the Nets: Getting to 10

DALLAS -- For a few teams, reaching the 10-win plateau was a piece of cake. Take the Phoenix Suns for example. On Nov. 17, they became the first team to win 10 games this season and it took them a mere 12 games to do it.

For others it was a struggle. The Minnesota Timberwolves won their 10th game this season on Jan. 29.

But for 29 of 30 NBA teams, the 10th win of the season can be described in the past tense. Not for the New Jersey Nets. For them, on March 11, getting No. 10 is a goal for the immediate future. As you know, the Nets are the sole straggler as they sit at 7-57 after a loss in Dallas on Wednesday night. Their .109 winning percentage puts them on pace to win 8.9 games and puts them on the wrong side of history, one-tenth of a win shy of the NBA's worst-ever record, 9-73 by the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers.

If it feels as if the Nets have been winning nine-tenths of a game lately its because they've played tough, but ultimately fallen short.



ShareWednesday in Dallas was another in a recent close-but-no-cigar stretch for New Jersey. Against the Mavs, who have now won 13 straight games, the Nets built an early 18-point lead, but couldn't fend of Dallas' waves of talent.

"We played well in the first half," Nets guard Jarvis Hayes said. "But in the third quarter we started out a little flat. We have to continue to take steps and learn how to win games."

In Memphis on Monday, against a Grizzlies team that's three-and-a-half games out of the West's final playoff spot, the Nets were within three with 2:19 remaining in the game before Memphis never let its lead fall below five points the rest of the way.

Guards Devin Harris and Courtney Lee have developed a rhythm as of late because, as Nets coach Kiki Vandeweghe says, "they're healthy."

In his last five games, Lee has averaged 22.8 points per game, and save his 4-for-12 performance from the field against the Mavs, he's been nothing short of spectacular in his four games prior, shooting 60.6 percent.

Despite Lee's marksmanship, Harris' return to form and rookie Terence Williams' emergence (he has scored in double-digits in five of his last six games), the Nets continue to struggle to put opponents away. The little things -- lapses in concentration, not getting back in transition, turnovers -- always seem to squelch any progress toward 10. And that number -- 10 -- is very much on the Nets' minds.

"It's something we're very conscious of," Hayes said. "And you can't look at it as pressure. I don't think any of us look at it like pressure. I think we look at it as something we don't want."

With only 18 games remaining in the season, moral victories -- or morale boosting efforts -- won't cut it any longer. Getting to at least 10 remains the goal, but even getting to eight won't be easy.

The Nets have a day off Thursday before playing the Thunder in Oklahoma City on Friday. On Saturday, it's on to Houston. Then, the Nets return home only to find the East's No. 4 seed, Atlanta, waiting for them on Tuesday.

Time and the schedule are not on the Nets' side.

Rob Peterson is following the Nets as they hit the road trying to avoid finishing with the worst record in league history. You can follow Rob following the Nets on Twitter.