2002–03 New Jersey Nets season

The 2002–03 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 36th season in the National Basketball Association, and 27th season in East Rutherford, New Jersey.[1] The Nets entered the season as runners-up in the 2002 NBA Finals, where they were swept by the two-time defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in four games. During the off-season, the Nets acquired All-Star center Dikembe Mutombo from the Philadelphia 76ers,[2][3][4] and signed free agent Rodney Rogers.[5][6][7] However, Mutombo only played just 24 games due to a wrist injury.[8][9][10] The Nets got off a solid start with a 26–9 record, while posting a ten-game winning streak between December and January, and holding a 34–15 record at the All-Star break.[11] However, the team played below .500 for the remainder of the season, but finished in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 49–33 record, while posting a successful 33–8 home record.[12]

2002–03 New Jersey Nets season
Conference champions
Division champions
Head coachByron Scott
ArenaContinental Airlines Arena
Results
Record49–33 (.598)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Atlantic)
Conference: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finishNBA Finals
(lost to Spurs 2–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionYES Network, WLNY
RadioWFAN

Jason Kidd averaged 18.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 2.2 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, the NBA All-Defensive Second Team, and was selected for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game,[13] In addition, Kenyon Martin averaged 16.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, while second-year forward Richard Jefferson showed improvement averaging 15.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, and Kerry Kittles provided with 13.0 points and 1.6 steals per game. Sixth man Lucious Harris contributed 10.3 points per game, while Rogers provided with 7.0 points per game off the bench, and Mutombo averaged 5.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.[14] Kidd also finished in ninth place in Most Valuable Player voting.[15]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Nets defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in six games,[16][17][18] then swept the 6th-seeded Boston Celtics in four straight games in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals,[19][20][21] and then defeated the top-seeded Detroit Pistons in another four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference finals.[22][23][24] For the second consecutive year, they made it to the NBA Finals. However, they lost to the San Antonio Spurs in a six-game series.[25][26][27] Following the season, Mutombo was released to free agency, and signed as a free agent with the New York Knicks.[28][29][30]

Offseason

On August 1, the Nets re-signed Chris Childs as a free agent; Childs previously played for the Nets from 1994 to 1996. Five days later, the organization traded Todd MacCulloch and Keith Van Horn to the Philadelphia 76ers for Dikembe Mutombo. On August 14, the Nets signed Rodney Rogers as a free agent. On October 25, they signed Anthony Johnson as a free agent. Their final offseason transaction would come three days later, when they waived Donny Marshall.

Draft picks
Main article: 2002 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 24 Nenad Krstić C  Serbia and Montenegro
2 54 Tamar Slay SG  United States Marshall

Roster
2002–03 New Jersey Nets roster
Players Coaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOBFrom
G 1 Armstrong, Brandon 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1980-06-16 Pepperdine
C 35 Collins, Jason 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1978-12-02 Stanford
G 12 Harris, Lucious 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1970-12-18 Long Beach State
F 24 Jefferson, Richard 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 222 lb (101 kg) 1980-06-21 Arizona
G 2 Johnson, Anthony 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1974-10-02 College of Charleston
G 5 Kidd, Jason 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 204 lb (93 kg) 1973-03-23 California
G 30 Kittles, Kerry 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 1974-06-12 Villanova
F 13 Marshall, Donny Injured 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1972-07-17 Connecticut
F 6 Martin, Kenyon 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 234 lb (106 kg) 1977-12-30 Cincinnati
C 55 Mutombo, Dikembe 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1966-06-25 Georgetown
F 54 Rogers, Rodney 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1971-06-20 Wake Forest
F 21 Scalabrine, Brian 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 241 lb (109 kg) 1978-03-18 USC
G 8 Slay, Tamar 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1980-04-02 Marshall
F/C 34 Williams, Aaron 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1971-10-02 Xavier
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Regular season

Season standings
Atlantic Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-New Jersey Nets 4933.598–33–816–2516–8
x-Philadelphia 76ers 4834.585125–1623–1817–7
x-Boston Celtics 4438.537525–1619–2213–12
x-Orlando Magic 4240.512726–1516–2514–11
Washington Wizards 3745.4511223–1814–2711–13
New York Knicks 3745.4511224–1713–289–15
Miami Heat 2557.3052416–259–325–19
#
Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Detroit Pistons5032.610–
2 y-New Jersey Nets4933.5981
3 x-Indiana Pacers4834.5852
4 x-Philadelphia 76ers4834.5852
5 x-New Orleans Hornets4735.5733
6 x-Boston Celtics4438.5376
7 x-Milwaukee Bucks4240.5128
8 x-Orlando Magic4240.5128
9 New York Knicks3745.45113
10 Washington Wizards3745.45113
11 Atlanta Hawks3547.42715
12 Chicago Bulls3052.36620
13 Miami Heat2557.30525
14 Toronto Raptors2458.29326
15 Cleveland Cavaliers1765.20733

Record vs. opponents
2002–03 NBA records
Team ATL BOS CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MEM MIA MIL MIN NJN NOH NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA WAS
Atlanta –0–32–24–00–22–01–30–21–12–22–01–11–11–32–20–21–32–21–32–13–10–20–21–11–11–11–31–12–2
Boston 3–0–2–24–00–21–12–21–10–22–22–01–12–02–21–22–01–33–14–03–22–20–21–10–20–22–01–21–11–3
Chicago 2–22–2–3–10–21–10–41–11–12–20–21–11–11–22–20–22–21–32–11–31–31–11–10–20–20–22–21–11–3
Cleveland 0–40–41–3–0–21–10–41–11–10–42–01–10–21–20–40–22–21–31–20–40–40–20–20–20–21–13–11–10–4
Dallas 2–02–02–02–0–4–02–04–04–01–14–01–34–02–00–22–22–02–02–01–12–02–22–21–32–22–22–02–22–0
Denver 0–21–11–11–10–4–0–20–40–41–11–30–42–22–01–10–40–20–20–20–20–21–32–20–41–31–31–10–41–1
Detroit 3–12–24–04–00–22–0–1–12–02–21–11–12–03–11–31–12–12–22–22–12–21–10–21–10–21–13–12–03–1
Golden State 2–01–11–11–10–44–01–1–1–31–12–22–22–21–10–21–31–11–12–01–12–02–20–40–41–32–22–02–22–0
Houston 1–12–01–11–10–44–00–23–1–1–12–22–23–11–11–12–21–11–10–22–02–03–11–32–21–32–22–01–31–1
Indiana 2–22–22–24–01–11–12–21–11–1–2–00–21–14–03–12–01–23–13–12–12–21–10–20–20–22–03–11–12–2
L.A. Clippers 0–20–22–00–20–43–11–12–22–20–2–0–42–22–01–11–31–11–11–11–10–21–31–31–31–31–31–11–30–2
L.A. Lakers 1–11–11–11–13–14–01–12–22–22–04–0–4–01–12–02–20–21–11–11–11–13–12–22–20–42–22–03–11–1
Memphis 1–10–21–12–00–42–20–22–21–31–12–20–4–2–02–00–41–11–11–12–00–21–31–30–41–31–31–11–31–1
Miami 3–12–22–12–10–20–21–31–11–10–40–21–10–2–1–31–10–40–42–20–40–42–00–21–10–20–24–00–21–3
Milwaukee 2–22–12–24–02–01–13–12–01–11–31–10–20–23–1–0–22–22–23–12–22–20–22–00–20–21–12–20–22–1
Minnesota 2–00–22–02–02–24–01–13–12–20–23–12–24–01–12–0–0–21–12–01–11–13–13–12–22–22–21–11–32–0
New Jersey 3–13–12–22–20–22–01–21–11–12–11–12–01–14–02–22–0–2–23–12–21–31–12–00–21–11–14–00–23–1
New Orleans 2–21–33–13–10–22–02–21–11–11–31–11–11–14–02–21–12–2–3–11–32–12–00–21–10–22–04–02–02–1
New York 3–10–41–22–10–22–02–20–22–01–31–11–11–12–21–30–21–31–3–2–22–22–00–21–12–01–13–11–12–2
Orlando 1–22–33–14–01–12–01–21–10–21–21–11–10–24–02–21–12–23–12–2–2–20–20–21–10–22–02–21–12–2
Philadelphia 1–32–23–14–00–22–02–20–20–22–22–01–12–04–02–21–13–11–22–22–2–0–22–00–21–11–13–01–14–0
Phoenix 2–02–01–12–02–23–11–12–21–31–13–11–33–10–22–01–31–10–20–22–02–0–3–12–23–11–31–11–31–1
Portland 2–01–11–12–02–22–22–04–03–12–03–12–23–12–00–21–30–22–02–02–00–21–3–1–32–24–02–01–31–1
Sacramento 1–12–02–02–03–14–01–14–02–22–03–12–24–01–12–02–22–01–11–11–12–02–23–1–1–33–11–13–12–0
San Antonio 1–12–02–02–02–23–12–03–13–12–03–14–03–12–02–02–21–12–00–22–01–11–32–23–1–3–12–04–01–1
Seattle 1–10–22–01–12–23–11–12–22–20–23–12–23–12–01–12–21–10–21–10–21–13–10–41–31–3–2–02–21–1
Toronto 3–12–12–21–30–21–11–30–20–21–31–10–21–10–42–21–10–40–41–32–20–31–10–21–10–20–2–0–23–1
Utah 1–11–11–11–12–24–00–22–23–11–13–11–33–12–02–03–12–00–21–11–11–13–13–11–30–42–22–0–1–1
Washington 2–23–13–14–00–21–11–30–21–12–22–01–11–13–11–20–21–31–22–22–20–41–11–10–21–11–11–31–1—

Playoffs
2003 playoff game log
First round: 4–2 (home: 2–1; road: 2–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 April 19 Milwaukee W 109–96 Kenyon Martin (21) Kenyon Martin (15) Jason Kidd (14) Continental Airlines Arena
16,102		 1–0
2 April 22 Milwaukee L 85–88 Kenyon Martin (22) Kenyon Martin (12) Jason Kidd (8) Continental Airlines Arena
17,633		 1–1
3 April 24 @ Milwaukee W 103–101 Jason Kidd (26) Collins, Martin (8) Jason Kidd (7) Bradley Center
17,539		 2–1
4 April 26 @ Milwaukee L 114–119 (OT) Kenyon Martin (30) Jason Collins (8) Jason Kidd (10) Bradley Center
18,391		 2–2
5 April 29 Milwaukee W 89–82 Jason Kidd (19) Richard Jefferson (16) Kidd, Martin (5) Continental Airlines Arena
16,601		 3–2
6 May 1 @ Milwaukee W 113–101 Kenyon Martin (29) Jason Kidd (11) Jason Kidd (11) Bradley Center
18,717		 4–2
Conference Semi-finals: 4–0 (home: 2–0; road: 2–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 May 5 Boston W 97–93 Kenyon Martin (21) Jefferson, Williams (9) Jason Kidd (9) Continental Airlines Arena
17,343		 1–0
2 May 7 Boston W 104–95 Richard Jefferson (25) Jason Kidd (11) Jason Kidd (8) Continental Airlines Arena
19,934		 2–0
3 May 9 @ Boston W 94–76 Kenyon Martin (25) Jason Kidd (9) Jason Kidd (11) FleetCenter
18,624		 3–0
4 May 12 @ Boston W 110–101 (2OT) Jason Kidd (29) Kidd, Martin (10) Jason Kidd (8) FleetCenter
18,624		 4–0
Conference finals: 4–0 (home: 2–0; road: 2–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 May 18 @ Detroit W 76–74 Kenyon Martin (16) Jason Collins (10) Jason Kidd (7) The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076		 1–0
2 May 20 @ Detroit W 88–86 Kenyon Martin (25) Jason Collins (14) Jason Kidd (5) The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076		 2–0
3 May 22 Detroit W 97–85 Jason Kidd (34) Jason Kidd (12) Jason Kidd (6) Continental Airlines Arena
19,923		 3–0
4 May 24 Detroit W 102–82 Jason Kidd (26) Jason Kidd (12) Jason Kidd (7) Continental Airlines Arena
19,923		 4–0
NBA Finals: 2–4 (home: 1–2; road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 June 4 @ San Antonio L 89–101 Kenyon Martin (21) Kenyon Martin (12) Jason Kidd (10) SBC Center
18,797		 0–1
2 June 6 @ San Antonio W 87–85 Jason Kidd (30) Jason Kidd (7) Kenyon Martin (4) SBC Center
18,797		 1–1
3 June 8 San Antonio L 79–84 Kenyon Martin (23) Kenyon Martin (11) Jason Kidd (11) Continental Airlines Arena
19,280		 1–2
4 June 11 San Antonio W 77–76 Kenyon Martin (20) Kenyon Martin (13) Jason Kidd (9) Continental Airlines Arena
19,280		 2–2
5 June 13 San Antonio L 83–93 Jason Kidd (29) Kenyon Martin (9) Jason Kidd (7) Continental Airlines Arena
19,280		 2–3
6 June 15 @ San Antonio L 77–88 Jason Kidd (21) Kenyon Martin (10) Jason Kidd (7) SBC Center
18,797		 2–4
2003 schedule

Player statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Regular season
New Jersey Nets statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Jason Kidd 80 80 37.4 .414 .341 .841 6.3 8.9 2.2 0.3 18.7
Kenyon Martin 77 77 34.1 .470 .209 .653 8.3 2.4 1.3 0.9 16.7
Richard Jefferson 80 80 36.0 .501 .250 .743 6.4 2.5 1.0 0.6 15.5
Kerry Kittles 65 57 30.0 .467 .356 .785 3.9 2.6 1.6 0.5 13.0
Lucious Harris 77 25 25.6 .413 .346 .804 3.0 2.0 0.7 0.1 10.3
Rodney Rogers 68 0 19.2 .402 .333 .756 3.9 1.6 0.7 0.5 7.0
Aaron Williams 81 0 19.7 .453 .000 .785 4.1 1.1 0.3 0.7 6.2
Dikembe Mutombo 24 16 21.4 .374 .727 6.4 0.8 0.2 1.5 5.8
Jason Collins 81 66 23.5 .414 .000 .763 4.5 1.1 0.6 0.5 5.7
Anthony Johnson 66 2 12.8 .446 .371 .689 1.2 1.3 0.6 0.1 4.1
Brian Scalabrine 59 7 12.3 .402 .359 .833 2.4 0.8 0.3 0.3 3.1
Tamar Slay 36 0 7.6 .379 .280 .700 0.9 0.4 0.4 0.1 2.6
Brandon Armstrong 17 0 4.1 .333 .167 .833 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 1.4
Chris Childs 12 0 8.8 .300 .167 .667 0.4 1.3 0.7 0.1 1.3
Donny Marshall 3 0 2.0 .000 .000 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Playoffs
New Jersey Nets statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Jason Kidd 20 20 42.6 .402 .327 .825 7.7 8.2 1.8 0.2 20.1
Kenyon Martin 20 20 38.9 .453 .091 .693 9.4 2.9 1.5 1.6 18.9
Richard Jefferson 20 20 35.6 .476 .000 .718 6.4 2.4 0.8 0.2 14.1
Kerry Kittles 20 20 30.7 .395 .413 .762 3.5 2.0 1.5 0.3 10.8
Lucious Harris 20 0 21.8 .391 .333 .783 2.6 1.6 0.5 0.0 7.8
Rodney Rogers 20 0 17.5 .372 .405 .711 2.8 1.4 0.3 0.2 6.7
Aaron Williams 19 0 17.9 .472 .742 4.6 0.9 0.3 0.9 6.5
Jason Collins 20 20 26.5 .363 .000 .836 6.3 0.9 0.7 0.6 5.9
Anthony Johnson 17 0 7.2 .548 .500 .833 0.7 1.1 0.1 0.0 2.5
Dikembe Mutombo 10 0 11.5 .467 1.000 2.7 0.6 0.3 0.9 1.8
Brian Scalabrine 7 0 2.9 .500 .000 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.6
Tamar Slay 6 0 1.8 .250 1.000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5

Player Statistics Citation:[14]

Awards and records

Transactions

Overview
Players Added

Via draft

Via trade

Via free agency

 Players Lost

Via trade

Via free agency

Trades
August 6, 2002 To Philadelphia 76ers
Todd MacCulloch
Keith Van Horn		 To New Jersey Nets
Dikembe Mutombo

Free agents
Additions
Player Date signed Former team
Chris Childs August 1 Toronto Raptors
Rodney Rogers August 14 Boston Celtics
Anthony Johnson October 25 New Jersey Nets
Donny Marshall March 11 New Jersey Nets
Subtractions
Player Date signed New Team
Donny Marshall October 28 New Jersey Nets
Chris Childs March 7 none (retired)

Player Transactions Citation:[31]

References
  1. 2002–03 New Jersey Nets
  2. Wise, Mike (August 7, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Get Mutombo from 76ers for Van Horn and MacCulloch". The New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  3. "Nets Get Mutombo for Van Horn, MacCulloch". Los Angeles Times. August 7, 2002. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  4. "76ers Trade Mutombo to Nets". The Washington Post. August 7, 2002. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  5. Robbins, Liz (September 27, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL; Though Nets Got Close, They Have Far to Go". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  6. "Kings Get Bigger, Deeper by Adding Clark". Los Angeles Times. August 15, 2002. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  7. Smith, Sam (October 30, 2002). "Eastern Conference Capsules". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  8. "Nets' Mutombo Sidelined". Los Angeles Times. December 4, 2002. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  9. Robbins, Liz (December 5, 2002). "BASKETBALL; Mutombo Injury Leaves Nets Unsettled". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  10. Robbins, Liz (December 14, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL; Scott and Mutombo Try to Clear the Air". The New York Times. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  11. "NBA Games Played on February 6, 2003". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  12. "2002–03 New Jersey Nets Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  13. "2003 NBA All-Star Game: West 155, East 145 (2OT)". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  14. "2002–03 New Jersey Nets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  15. "2002–03 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  16. Robbins, Liz (May 2, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Finish Off Bucks and Move On to Celtics". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  17. Kerber, Fred (May 2, 2003). "Nets Get It Done – Boot Bucks Behind Kidd, K-Mart". New York Post. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  18. "New Jersey 113, Milwaukee 101". United Press International. May 2, 2003. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  19. Robbins, Liz (May 13, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Take Long Way to Sweep". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  20. "Nets Make Sweep Kidd's Play". Los Angeles Times. May 13, 2003. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  21. Goodman, Jeff (May 13, 2003). "Nets Sweep Celtics". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  22. "Nets Sweep Pistons and Return to Finals". The New York Times. May 25, 2003. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  23. "Nets Punch Return Ticket to the Finals". Los Angeles Times. May 25, 2003. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  24. Nichols, Rachel (May 25, 2003). "Nets Are Worth a Return Trip". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  25. "Spurs Defeat Nets to Win N.B.A. Title". The New York Times. June 15, 2003. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  26. Heisler, Mark (June 16, 2003). "Spurs Reduce the 'Risk". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  27. "San Antonio 88, New Jersey 77". United Press International. June 15, 2003. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  28. Robbins, Liz (October 8, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Knicks Drawing Closer to Obtaining Mutombo". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  29. "Knicks Make Mutombo Their Center". Los Angeles Times. October 10, 2003. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  30. "Mutombo Signs with the Knicks". Tampa Bay Times. October 10, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  31. "2002–03 New Jersey Nets Transactions". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
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