The Nets have managed to turn around their season despite the loss of Deron Williams, winning four of five without him. They’re all but assured of getting their star guard back Monday, and it couldn’t come at a better time — facing the Knicks at the Garden.
“I’m feeling all right, feeling all right,’’ said Williams, who had cortisone shots and platelet-rich-plasma injections in both ankles. He practiced Sunday and expects to make his return in Monday’s Martin Luther King Day matinee, saying, “That’s the plan.’’
Coach Jason Kidd was as vague and evasive as always, calling Williams a game-time decision. But he did acknowledge the Nets will be cautious in regard to Williams’ workload — “We won’t roll him out there and play him 38 minutes.” — and admitted the game will have added intensity.
“The Knicks and the Nets games are always that, especially being in Brooklyn now,’’ Kidd said. “There’ll be a lot of energy in that building, and it’s going to be tough, but we’ve got to find a way to win on the road.’’
Brooklyn suffered a 113-83 beating at the hands of the Knicks at Barclays Center on Dec. 5. With Williams presumably back in the lineup, they’re looking for some payback.
“We definitely owe these guys from the last game and hopefully we can keep it going,’’ Williams said. “It’s a different game. We definitely had a letdown that game. They came in and played a heck of a game, hit a lot of tough shots on us, so we have to try and limit those.’’
The Nets were a different team after moving Williams off the ball and inserting Shaun Livingston at the point on Jan. 2. Williams had a season-high 29 points in that win over Oklahoma City, hitting 6 of 9 from 3-point range, and he had a 21-point encore the next game against Cleveland before getting hurt. They’ve won six of seven overall since going small, and the new-look team believes it has to avenge the Knicks’ beating.
“We definitely do. They came in and beat us pretty well at our place. We have to take that upon ourself and take it personally. We’ve got to come and compete,’’ Livingston said. “It’s definitely exciting with the buzz. You’d be lying if you said it’s just another game, because there’s a buzz throughout the city. Everybody feels it.’’
If Livingston stays at the point and Williams plays off the ball, look for the Nets to stay small with Joe Johnson at small forward and Paul Pierce at power forward. After getting a PRP injection and week off last season, Williams stormed back to average 22.9 points and eight assists over his final 28 games.
“It took me a while last year, it wasn’t like it happened overnight,” Williams said. “It was a little process. I’ll only know until I go out there.”
With the NBA offices closed for MLK Day, the Nets’ trades — getting Marquis Teague from Chicago for Tornike Shengelia, and shipping Tyshawn Taylor and cash to the Pelicans for a conditional second-round pick — officially won’t go through until Tuesday.