ORLANDO, Fla. — The sports world may have been abuzz about LeBron James’ decision Friday to go back to Cleveland, but Lionel Hollins wasn’t.
Asked how he felt about the Nets playing a part in James going to Cleveland by participating in the three-team trade that saw Brooklyn receive Jarrett Jack and Sergey Karasev from the Cavaliers — a move that opened up enough cap space for the Cavs to offer James a maximum contract — Hollins said he was only worried about how it helped his team.
“From my perspective, it’s about helping Brooklyn get better, and Jarrett Jack is a nice addition for us,” Hollins said. “What Cleveland did afterwards, and LeBron, that’s between them.”
Hollins had a similar answer when asked how James going to the Cavs could transform the landscape in the Eastern Conference. The Heat have been the conference’s representative in the Finals each of the past four years while James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh played together.
“I have no idea,” he said. “We’ll find out when we start playing. When you look at it on paper, everything looks good. I think every team thinks their landscape is the best, but when we start playing, that’s what’s important.”
The truth of the matter, however, is that with James going to Cleveland, things are currently wide open in the East. The Cavaliers will be a favorite, and deservedly so, given the presence of the league’s best player on their roster. But the rest of the team is very young — particularly if they don’t trade for Kevin Love — and could take time to get used to the rigors of a playoff run.
The rest of the contenders in the East — including the Heat, who re-signed Bosh and were expected to keep Wade, along with the Pacers, Bulls, Raptors and Wizards — all have holes, so the Nets have reason for optimism, assuming Brook Lopez and Deron Williams recover from their respective offseason surgeries.
Their chances of competing in the East, however, would certainly be buoyed by the return of Paul Pierce to the Nets. Hollins, however, offered no insight into Pierce’s future with the team.
“I can’t speak on Paul,” Hollins said. “What’s going on with Paul and his contract and free agency, that’s something you have to talk [about] with [general manager] Billy [King].”
Hollins did, however, say he has been finalizing his coaching staff, with Paul Westphal, Joe Wolf, Tony Brown and John Welch — a holdover from Jason Kidd’s staff — signed so far for 2014-15.
Meanwhile, Hollins — who capped off a whirlwind few days by watching the Nets’ Summer League team get blown out in its final game, 101-75 to the Rockets — said he spent Thursday evening and Friday morning meeting with players after arriving in Orlando. He had sit-downs with Marquis Teague and Mason Plumlee and a breakfast meeting Friday with Lopez.
“Just getting to know him,” Hollins said of Lopez. “I introduced myself. We had breakfast and I just wanted to talk to him and get to know who I was and find out a little about him, his family and that whole bit.
“Nothing deep … just a way of starting a relationship that’s going to be growing as the season goes and it’ll be like that with everybody.”
Hollins said he has spoken to Deron Williams over the phone, has called and texted Kevin Garnett, but had yet to hear back, and planned to speak with everyone else on the roster in the coming days.