The New Jersey Nets Are Not Very Good At Basketball

The Nets are now sitting at 0-16 after losing to the Sacramento Kings 109-96 Friday night, leaving them one loss shy of tying the NBA record for season-opening futility, previously accomplished by the Heat (1988) and Clippers (1999).

Head coach Lawrence Frank went so far as say that the Nets "cheated the game" in the first half, but guard Devin Harris displayed the quiet, cool confidence after the game that one would expect out of player on a team that has lost 16 straight games.

"It doesn't matter who we have from here on out. We have to come out with the same type of intensity we had in the second half no matter if it's the Lakers or the Knicks. We have to treat everybody the same and come out with a decent effort. Yeah they're the defending champions, but they can be beat. If we give the effort we need to, we'll keep ourselves in the game."

Notice that Harris doesn't claim that the Nets can beat the Lakers, just that the Lakers can be beat - by somebody - probably not the Nets. But Harris believes if the Nets give a good effort, the Nets can stay in the game, which is good, I guess.

Either way, things are not looking good for Lawrence Frank. Some believe that he could be out of a job as soon as Sunday if the Nets lose to the Lakers and tie the record. Obviously, these people were not swayed by the barely-positive attitude displayed by Harris. That guy should be giving motivational speeches.

Winless Nets lose 16th straight, 109-96 to Kings [Yahoo!/AP] Nets now 0-16, Lawrence Frank could be headed for unemployment line [New York Daily News]