By no means is it a two-piece jigsaw puzzle. But it’s not quite nuclear physics either. And no matter how you look at rebounding, the Nets stink at it.
Buck Williams, the greatest rebounder in Nets history — and No. 12 all-time in NBA annals — admits rebounding is a science, something of an art form. But he insists everyone — tall, short, bulky, skinny — can possess the leading requirements for rebounding.
Effort and attitude.
“Most people off the street think rebounding is you come out here and just outjump people and use your athleticism,” said Williams, who averaged 11.9 rebounds in his eight Nets seasons. “There’s a craft to it. It’s being very persistent, being dedicated, being relentless.
“And it’s always having that attitude of, ‘I’m really going to make my guy work today to box me out.’ So first, it’s total effort.”
But there is more to rebounding, Williams said.
“There’s attitude, and then you’re watching the flight of the ball,” said Williams, who now runs a commercial real estate firm in the D.C. area. “There’s really almost a science to it.”
If so, the Nets obviously have lacked in effort and flunked science for basically the second half of the season. In the season’s first 38 games, the Nets outrebounded opponents, 41.5 to 40.5, and won the battle on the boards 21 times. In the next 32 games, the Nets were outrebounded 24 times, by a 42.8-37.8 margin. And there was the recently ended hideous span in which the Nets went 16 games without outrebounding anybody. Overall, the Nets rank 25th in the league.
“You don’t rebound, you don’t win. You can’t allow teams to get second and third shots at the basket,” said Williams, who still more than doubles the No. 2 all-time Nets rebounder, Derrick Coleman (7,576 to 3,690). “There has to be a conscious effort and it’s something you need to do every day. You can never stress enough how important rebounding is. And the guards are critical.”
Williams looks at the Nets and sees 7-footers at center and power forward but said the backcourt guys are vital for a team to be successful on the glass. When were the Nets at their best rebounding? When they had Jason Kidd. And it was no coincidence that also was when the Nets ran better than they ever have.
“The guards have to come back and help out. It’s not just one or two guys. There has to be a team commitment to rebounding,” Williams said. “When I played in Portland, Clyde Drexler, Terry Porter, those guys came back and helped out on the glass and that’s why we were such an effective running team. The guards can take so much pressure off the big guys and then you can start your break from the guard position.”
If the Nets need a role model, they could always bust out old team films of Williams. Or they could look across the river.
“David Lee is a good rebounder,” Williams said. “He’s relentless. He goes after every rebound.”
And that is half the battle.