The New Jersey Nets have signed Jordan Farmar to a 3 year deal. Farmar fills the desperate need New Jersey had for a backup point guard. Farmar is a perfect fit for the Nets. He’s a young (23 years old) point guard who has played in big games and has multiple championships on his resume. Farmar will be the No. 2 PG, which will be a step up from where he was with the Lakers where he was competing for minutes with Shannon Brown and Sasha Vujacic. Farmar now has an opportunity to excel with a young team and become a leader with his big game experience. The Nets roster for 2011 is shaping up quite nicely now with the recent acquisitions of Farmar, Travis Outlaw and Johan Petro. The deal is reported to be worth a total of $12 million, at an aforementioned 3 years.

Rod Thorn sums up Farmar’s addition and what it brings to the Nets perfectly:

“Jordan will be an excellent complement to Devin in the backcourt. He comes to the Nets with championship pedigree, which will prove to be invaluable to his teammates.”

According to Bill Ingram of HOOPSWORLD.com:

Another front court player who is drawing a lot of interest is Houston Rockets forward Luis Scola, who is a restricted free agent. The Cavaliers have not reached out to Scola, though sources close to the situation tell HOOPSWORLD the New Jersey Nets are preparing a “big money” offer sheet for Scola. That doesn’t mean the Rockets will let him walk . . .GM Daryl Morey has been very clear in saying they will match any offer for Scola. They’re likely waiting for a team to set his value so they can match it and move on, just as they did with Carl Landry two summers ago.

If this is indeed true, the Nets really are just burning extra cap space just to make it look like they did try and make a splash in the offseason. I am not a fan of a Luis Scola $10+ million dollar a year contract. Although he did average 16.2 ppg and 8.6 rpg last season, he is 30 years old, and any long term contract would hinder the Nets moves in the years to come. The Nets signed career backup center Johan Petro to a 3 year deal today, worth around $3 million a year. I would rather have a Brian Zoubek at a minimum contract than spend millions for a center who was nothing more than a garbage minutes center his whole career. After overpaying for Travis Outlaw – Nets fans should hope Prokhorov, Thorn and Co. don’t restrict plans for future moves by wasting cap space.

After the LeBron fiasco of last night, Nets fans everywhere are asking themselves how their off-season really turned out. If you look at expectations, New Jersey’s offseason was absolutely horrible. This was the offseason where the Nets would return to their early 2000′s form. To get their playoff feet wet before they move to their palace in Brooklyn to win rings. This was the offseason where the Nets would sign LeBron James and Chris Bosh, forming a “global entity” as well as a dynasty. This was the offseason where the Nets would land the #1 pick and draft John Wall, trade Devin Harris for a formidable sidekick to whichever star we brought in. But, fans need to take a closer look at reality, rather than the hypothetical.

Dynasties aren’t built overnight. The New Jersey Nets, have young pieces that in time, will transform into something dominant. Now, Brook Lopez, I believe – will become a star next year. Lopez will become a 20 and 10 guy, and a rare true center that can change games. Lopez will even give the new look Miami Heat fits in the post. (Not that they have anyone who can stop him – Bosh can’t guard him). Terrance Williams and Damion James are tearing up the summer league, and Derrick Favors has the potential to be an Amare Stoudemire type talent with his pure athleticism. Courtney Lee is steadily improving. Devin Harris, hopefully, will return to his old form and be something special, especially when paired with Lopez. Travis Outlaw, although not worth $7 million a year – is a solid player, and fills in at Small Forward very well. The Nets have a lot of pieces waiting to be molded into something great.

I’ve been impressed with Mikhail Prokhorov. He didn’t hit the panic button when his targets were signing elsewhere, and he understands the patience he needs to have to build a successful franchise. But, at the same time, he is always looking to make a big splash, so don’t count out the Nets in any discussion for trades this offseason or the year after. Chris Paul will probably still be a target. Carmelo Anthony, although who allegedly prefers the Knicks, will see that the Nets roster is tailored for a superstar Small Forward, and in another year, he’ll see Brooklyn more clearly in his sights more than LeBron James could this year. Hopefully a real GM will be at the helm, like a Kevin Pritchard – who can wing deals for high profile players. We have a true players coach in Avery Johnson. At any rate, the Nets are headed to better things, and although it may take longer than expected – Nets fans everywhere should be happy with the direction in which the New Jersey Nets are going.

The Nets have signed former Clipper and Trail-Blazer SF Travis Outlaw to a 5 year, $35 million dollar contract. Outlaw is a good, young (25 years old) player, and will most likely be the starting small forward at the start of the season, allowing Terrance Williams to play shooting guard. He averages around 9 ppg, and is an above average three-point shooter. Outlaw certainly fits into the Nets youth movement, but is at too steep of a cost? It’s questionable as to whether Outlaw deserves $7 million a year, but the Nets roster looks more solid, and could be dynamic in a couple years. Rumors have the Nets either signing Tyrus Thomas or Luis Scola to fill a big man role next to Brook Lopez and Derrick Favors. The Nets current starting five? Devin Harris – Terrence Williams – Travis Outlaw – Derrick Favors – Brook Lopez. Young, dynamic, and the potential to be great.

As every major sports news is now centered on LeBron James, the New Jersey Nets chances of signing him have squandered into obscurity – no one, absolutely no one – outside of Nets fans, believe that LeBron James will sign with the New Jersey Nets. Does Prokhorov believe this? No one knows as of now, except that this morning we are being bombarded by LeBron to Miami rumors – a dynasty looming on the horizon. New York went to bed fairly confident that James was coming to the Knicks – a confidence fueled by leaked twitter reports, that now seem just lifeless rumors trying to garner attention. Now, this morning, it seems eerily certain that LeBron James will sign with Miami, next to Dwayne Wade and newly signed Chris Bosh.

What does this mean for Nets fans? Bad news. In order to sign David Lee, the Nets best hope is that LeBron James signs with the New York Knicks. This would prevent the Knicks from dealing Lee in a sign-and-trade, especially from an already proposed one to the Golden State Warriors. Nets fans have to hope that: #1, that LeBron signs with their team. A hope that as we draw nearer to 9 p.m. seems more and more distant. And #2, that LeBron signs with the Knicks. This is not a traditional hope for your rival, but in order for the Nets to have a shot at David Lee, LeBron has to sign with the Knicks. The immediate future looks especially bleak for Nets fans, but – we all can hope for a miracle.

NJ.com and ESPN are reporting that Carlos Boozer has agreed to a five-year, $80 million dollar deal with the Chicago Bulls. This comes a short while after Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade sign with Miami, and a day since Amare Stoudemire signed with the New York Knicks. How’s it looking for everyone who said LeBron would be the first domino to fall? The only marquee free agent left after LeBron James is David Lee, and saying he is marquee is a stretch. If the Nets miss out on LeBron James, which is a high possibility (I think he either stays in Cleveland or goes to the Knicks) – the only free agent left on the market who could salvage their high hopes for an offseason would be David Lee. The Nets have already reached out to Lee, and having him would allow the Nets to develop Derrick Favors on a more conservative pace. At any rate, after the huge news of LeBron James’ signing to come Thursday night, it looks like the Nets offseason, after a 12-win season, after all the hype will be considered a disappointment. Solid, yes, but after hopes of John Wall, LeBron James, Chris Bosh are squandered – disappointing.

Does Chad Ochocinco know something we don’t about LeBron’s decision? On July 2nd, Ochocinco (@OGOchoCinco) tweeted:

Then today, July 7th, just hours after Wade and Bosh decided they would team up in Miami, Ochocinco tweeted:

Whether Ochocinco is referring to the Knicks or Nets is uncertain. “Empire State of Mind” is a song by Jay-Z, part owner of the Nets, but is about New York, where the Knicks are.

Ochocinco’s report holds as much water as any media report out there, but I’m not sure anybody knows what to make of this.

Yesterday, Mikhail Prokhorov’s notes from a conference call were leaked to ESPN’s Chris Broussard, and with the news at breaking dawn that Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh will sign with Miami – confirmed Prokhorov’s assertion that both of the aforementioned will indeed sign with the Heat. In that conference call, Prokhorov stated that if LeBron were to go to Miami, they would win 2 or 3 titles, but his decision would ultimately hurt the LeBron James “brand”. I agree with that statement, for if LeBron were to share the spotlight with Wade and Bosh, there would be staunch skepticism on his legacy – championships only coming after he shares the spotlight with another top 3 player in the NBA in Wade.

Prokhorov was still optimistic in signing LeBron, saying that the Nets were higher on James list than the Bulls, Knicks and Clippers because all three of those teams lacked a definitive plan for winning championships. Also, the Nets plans for a “global dynasty” and LeBron’s chance to become a global icon in the process appealed to James, and which is why reports that the Nets impressed James the most with their presentation aren’t surprising. Also, If James were to sign with the Nets, Prokhorov said he would pursue a trade for Chris Paul, who has been linked to James throughout this process.

But, on the still likely scenario that James re-signs with Cleveland, or signs with the Knicks, Prokhorov had a back-up plan: sign either Carlos Boozer or David Lee.

With Rod Thorn’s impending retirement, the Nets have a lot to replace at their GM position. Thorn has been a former executive of the year, and the architect of two Eastern Conference Champion teams. The Nets need someone highly respected in the league to be able to wheel and deal in these crucial next two years for the Nets franchise. ESPN reports that the Nets are interested in current Detroit Pistons GM Joe Dumars to fill the position. Remember that Dumars constructed the Pistons squad that rivaled the Nets in the early 2000′s, and won a title with a team that did not have a traditional superstar. The Nets have also been tied to Jerry and Brian Colangelo, Hornets GM Jeff Bower, and Thunder GM Sam Presti. If I were Mikhail Prohkorov, I would take a look at who has made the best moves in the past few years, and look into just recently fired former Portland Trail Blazer GM Kevin Pritchard.