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Nets' diagnosis: Dr. J Report: Erving to lead New Jersey operations
Posted: Tuesday April 25, 2000 07:10 PM
NEW YORK (Ticker) -- Dr. J may be headed back to the Nets. The New York Post is reporting that the New Jersey Nets will turn to Hall-of-Famer Julius Erving, the most popular player in the franchise's history, to run their basketball operations. The Nets are expected to fire coach Don Casey after they finished 31-51 this past season. Speculation is swirling that general manager John Nash and team president Michael Rowe also will be dismissed. Erving is the executive vice president of the Orlando Magic and vice president of RDV Sports, the company that counts the Magic and the International Hockey League's Orlando Solar Bears among its holdings. Reclaiming the player who led the franchise to two ABA titles would be a master stroke for the Nets, who have failed to make the playoffs five of the past six years. The Nets soiled their history when former owner Roy Boe sold Erving to the Philadelphia 76ers following the ABA-NBA merger in 1976-77. In their 19 years in the NBA, the Nets have won only one playoff series. Ironically, it came over Erving and the defending NBA champion 76ers in 1983-84. Nicknamed Dr. J for the way he operated on the basketball court, Erving combined superlative athletic skill with a high-flying style that brought new excitement to the sport. Voted one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players, Erving was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1993 after a 16-year career. He averaged 24 points per game and scored 30,026 points. After playing five years in the ABA, including three with the Nets, Erving spent the final 11 years of his career in the NBA with Philadelphia and won an NBA title in 1983.
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