With Tyshawn Taylor and Tornike Shengelia having received throwaway minutes in a handful of games early in the season, the Nets took advantage of their current break in the schedule to give the two rookies some seasoning in the NBA Development League last night.
Both Taylor and Shengelia were sent to the Nets’ D-League affiliate, the Springfield (Mass.) Armor, for a home game against the Erie BayHawks, who are affiliated with the Knicks. With the Nets off until tomorrow’s game in Brooklyn against the Sixers and the Armor having games both last night and tonight against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Nets coach Avery Johnson said any further decisions about what to do with the rookies would be made after last night’s game.
“We’ll see how things go there and then we’ll figure out whether we want them back for practice tomorrow, if we need their bodies, or have them for [tomorrow] or stay down there a little bit longer,” Johnson said.
Taylor scored 32 points on 13-of-28 shooting in the 127-119 loss. Shengelia compiled a triple-double with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, adding three steals and three blocks. The last Nets to player sent to the D-League to record a triple-double was Terrence Williams in Dec. 2010.
* The Nets had full participation in practice yesterday, including the return of Jerry Stackhouse, who has been out for the past five games with a sore right knee, and Josh Childress, who has been out for the past two games with a sore left foot.
Johnson said before Wednesday night’s loss to the Knicks at the Garden that how Stackhouse came through practice both yesterday and today would determine whether the veteran swingman, who injured himself when he banged knees with Jason Kidd at the end of the Nets-Knicks game in Brooklyn on Dec. 11, would be able to return to action tomorrow.
* Johnson said one thing the Nets haven’t thought about doing to address star point guard Deron Williams’ season-long shooting woes is to bring in a shooting coach.
“We haven’t talked about that,” Johnson said, “and if we’re going to start talking about stuff like that’s it’s more mental.
“I think right now, he got in the gym early, he was soaking wet sweating before we even got out there. … He didn’t miss many shots today in our workout and there’s nothing mechanically wrong with his shot.”