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Although they somewhat go hand-in-hand with each other, pleasing All-Star point guard Deron Williams is the number one priority in New Jersey with winning games ranking as secondary. Right now the Nets are focused solely on trying to put a team talented enough around Williams to convince him to stay long-term next summer. They flirted with making some big-name acquisitions this summer, but instead settled for role players as they couldn’t hit the home run. The Nets are going to be in frequent contact with the Orlando Magic in hopes of working out a trade for dominating center Dwight Howard. Landing Howard makes them instant contenders. Until then, though, they’re just going to be a mediocre team overwhelmed with rumors and distractions.

4th Place, Atlantic Division

- Yannis Koutroupis

This was supposed to be New Jersey’s big year, but after missing out on Tyson Chandler and Nene they are scrambling to find their way into the playoff picture. They have money to spend, but without the big names to spend it on it’s difficult to see how that helps New Jersey this season. Deron Williams said he is committed to the Nets, but if they can’t land a couple of significant players through trades or signings they may be faced with life after Deron Williams next summer instead of trying to build around him.

4th Place – Atlantic Division

- Bill Ingram

Outside of Deron Williams, this isn’t exactly a gorgeous roster right now. Brook Lopez is a formidable center and MarShon Brooks appears primed for a promising rookie campaign, but beyond that this just doesn’t appear to be a group with the weapons to compete against so many tougher teams in the East this year. Unless they’re able to trade for Dwight Howard—and they still appear like the frontrunners to do so, even if that doesn’t happen until closer to February—this is a middle-of-the-pack team.

3rd Place, Atlantic Division

- Joel Brigham

The New Jersey Nets are banking their future on the premise point guard Deron Williams will decide to sign a long term deal with the franchise as it moves to Brooklyn. Williams’ future plans will ultimately be driven by the type of talent the organization is able to surround him with in the lineup, but thus far the club hasn’t been able to make a huge splash via free agency or trade. Center Brook Lopez is coming off a season in which he averaged over 20 points per contest and hasn’t missed a game during his three-year career. Unless the team acquires more talent, the Nets are primed to miss the postseason for the fifth straight campaign.

4th Place, Atlantic Division

- Lang Greene

A full season of Deron Williams may help the New Jersey Nets sneak into the playoffs, but they won’t be a legitimate contender until they land a second star. The Dwight Howard trade rumors will likely continue for much of the season, which could become a distraction for this young team. If the Nets land Howard, they may be good enough to join the East’s top tier of teams. If they don’t land Howard, they will be average at best. MarShon Brooks and Shawne Williams are nice additions, but this team will need drastic improvement from young players like Brook Lopez, Anthony Morrow and Damion James if they want to make any noise come playoff time.

4th Place, Atlantic Division

- Alex Kennedy

Top Offensive Player: Deron Williams’ numbers might suffer as his new teammates learn how to play with him, but he’ll likely lead the Nets in a number of important areas anyway. The best thing that happened to Williams (and, by extension, the Nets) was the signing of former Knicks forward Shawne Williams. The 6-9 marksman gives Deron another perimeter threat along with shooting guard Anthony Morrow, and that will help facilitate the pick-and-roll game with Lopez. The Nets’ spacing is going to be much different this year, particularly when slashers like Damion James and rookie MarShon Brooks step on the floor. Deron’s challenge will be to tie it all together.

Top Defensive Player: The Nets have a few role players who can play solid defense like Sundiata Gaines, Shelden Williams or Damion James, but Deron Williams might be the team’s best. Williams took heat in Utah for his effort on defense the past few seasons. That aside, he has been able to use his size and smarts to smother opposing point guards for most of his career. Even if he’s not the top defender on the team, Williams does have the most defensive ability of any of the starters. If King brings Kris Humphries back or signs Andrei Kirilenko all of that would change, obviously.

Top Playmaker: It goes without saying that Deron Williams is the team’s best distributor, but point guard is also the Nets’ best overall position. Even when Williams went down with a wrist injury last season, Gaines and Jordan Farmar showed some good qualities at point guard. Gaines eventually went down himself with a hip injury and Farmar struggled with his shooting. All that aside, if the Nets do need a trade chip at some point it will probably be Gaines or Farmar that get tossed into a deal. As for Williams, he finished 11th in the NBA in assist rate last season and third overall with 10.3 assists per game.

Top Clutch Player: Anthony Morrow hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 26 seconds remaining against the Pistons in his first game with the Nets. Maybe that doesn’t make him Larry Bird, but his accuracy (Morrow is the second most-accurate 3-point shooter in NBA) means he’s always on the floor at the end of games. The addition of Shawne Williams, who hit over 40% of his 3-pointers last year, will give Morrow some breathing room on the perimeter this year.

The Unheralded Player: Shelden Williams never lived up to the hype that comes with being the fifth-overall pick in the NBA Draft. There’s no escaping that, but there’s also no denying that he’s become a useful player over the last three seasons. Williams is only 6-9, so he uses his long reach to grab rebounds and defend near the hoop. It doesn’t really matter that he has no offensive game to speak of. Williams costs around the veterans’ minimum and he had a better rebounding rate last season than Serge Ibaka, Al Horford, Al Jefferson and Pau Gasol.

Best New Addition: MarShon Brooks’ jump shot needs improvement and, like any rookie, his defense isn’t up to par. What makes Brooks so intriguing however is his handle. The former Providence star can slip in and out of the lane with ease and freezes defenders with his crossover dribble. The Nets didn’t have anyone last season who can attack the basket like Brooks, so this opens up an entirely new facet to Johnson’s offense. He’s going to have to earn his touches, but Brooks is an entirely new weapon that needs to be explored.

- Alex Raskin

1. Deron Williams – There aren’t many guards that combine Williams’ combination of passing ability, size, scoring and leadership. Nets fans will recognize a lot of Jason Kidd in their new star, particularly in what he demands from his teammates and the organization. Williams has a lot of options open to him next season, but nothing is more enticing than a place that gives him a voice and that’s exactly what King and Johnson have done.

2. Brook Lopez – For all the talk about what he can’t do (Lopez’s rebounding numbers and defense suffered considerably last season) nobody wants to acknowledge what he can do. Lopez can score in the post—something he and Johnson are committed to this season—or he can pull back for a 15-foot jumper. The combination of the two skills might make him the most offensively gifted center in the NBA. Dwight Howard’s athleticism allows him to dunk over anyone, but Lopez’s skills are the kind that won’t erode with age and injury. By the way, Lopez has yet to miss an NBA game in three seasons.

3. Avery Johnson – The last time the NBA had a lockout, Avery Johnson piloted the Spurs to an NBA Title. Maybe he won’t be able to do the same for New Jersey, but his experience does give him the knowledge of when to hit the gas and when to ease onto the break in a shortened, condensed season. Johnson also takes significant interest in his players. When Damion James was spending most of his rookie season rehabbing a foot injury, Johnson put together some reading material and made the effort to make James feel as though he was still part of the team. Coaching isn’t about big things. Rather, it’s millions of details that make someone a great coach, and that’s something that Johnson understands.

4. MarShon Brooks – There aren’t many great shooting guards in the NBA nowadays, so Brooks’ development could give the Nets a rare advantage. The rookie is going to have to prove himself because Deron Williams isn’t just going to hand over the basketball. That shouldn’t be too hard for someone who once scored 52 points against the ninth-ranked team in the country.

5. Cap Flexibility – Billy King is interested in making moves, as long as they don’t compromise his cap flexibility. That means he’s been bargain hunting while keeping something in his back pocket if and when Dwight Howard becomes available. The Nets also have other tradable assets such as two solid backup point guards (Farmar and Gaines) as well as the Houston Rockets’ first-round pick (top-14 protected). King might also be able to net Kris Humprhies or Andrei Kirilenko for below-market value and that would obviously give him more roster flexibility.

- Alex Raskin

It’s hard to tell if the Nets will be significantly improved defensively, but they’re certainly in better hands offensively. Last season the team fought the shot clock as former point guard Devin Harris took too much time to initiate the offense. Now Deron Williams has plays humming along the moment he crosses half court. The Nets have depth at point guard, a great scoring center, good shooters in Morrow and Shawne Williams, and some solid roll players like Shelden Williams and James. Things can be better, but they’ve definitely been worse too.

- Alex Raskin

The Nets still lack an athletic power forward like they had last year with Humphries. Kirilenko remains a possibility as well, but Johnson needs a fleet-footed big man who can defend the pick and roll. Lopez and Shelden Williams don’t have the agility to be that guy, so there’s likely a few more moves to be made. Other weaknesses include post defense and rebounding, but Lopez certainly looked good while blocking five shots and grabbing 11 rebounds against the Knicks on Saturday. The Nets will also struggle to get significant offensive contributions from small forwards James and Shawne Williams. Neither player has ever been a high-volume scorer.

- Alex Raskin

There is no question we start this season with a lot of uncertainty regarding personnel. However, that can’t be our focus. We can only control what we do to prepare this group each night to compete. In the end, that’s how your career will be judged, and that will determine how far this team can push beyond expectations. Deron, I need you to stay with me, and I need you to be a real leader in helping mold some young guys into capable players. Brook, you need to go back to what made you successful as a rookie, and that is bringing your lunchpail every night and making a living within 8 feet of the rim. No more settling for post-ups at 12’ when you can fight for prime real estate. No more drifting to jump shooting range when you can compete for rebounds out of area. Those are things you will be held accountable for this year: and no one wins when you play soft – not us as a team, and not you as a professional.

- Anthony Macri

Can the Billy King put the finishing touches on this roster?

If King wants to trade Lopez during the season, he might have a chance to land Howard. He could risk it and go after the big fella after the season, but that road is fraught with uncertainty as well. The best bet might be to try to win as many games as possible now, hold on to Lopez and hope things improve enough to entice Howard to join with a re-signed Deron Williams next year.

- Alex Raskin