Lichtenstein: Marks Gets A Reminder Just How Far His Nets Have To Go

By Steve Lichtenstein
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I wondered whether Sean Marks, while sitting in his Barclays Center box Monday night, was playing the "What if" game.

The Nets' 41-year-old general manager could be forgiven for having some serious second thoughts while watching the short-handed Spurs, his former employer, wallop his club, 112-86.

Marks, who took over for the disgraced Billy King about 11 months ago, was reportedly being groomed for a high-level gig in one of the most highly regarded organizations in pro sports. In his four years in San Antonio, Marks worked everywhere from assistant coach under the esteemed Gregg Popovich to assistant general manager within president R.C. Buford's office. He even spent a year as the general manager of the Spurs' D-League affiliate.

Marks may have had to wait another three years, another five years --- who knows? But at some point, the old guard would have retired and Marks would have been in prime position to take over the management of a team that has won five NBA championships in a seamless transition.

Instead, he is running in quicksand trying to use the Spurs' model to rebuild a franchise that lacks the necessary assets to compete at the NBA level now and for the foreseeable future.

The initial results haven't been pretty. At 9-35, the Nets sport the worst mark in the NBA by five games. Marks has seen his signature free agent, point guard Jeremy Lin, play in just 12 games.

MORE: Nets' Jeremy Lin To Miss 3 To 5 More Weeks With Hamstring Injury

Though Marks admitted some disappointment in his team's record during a pregame press conference to announce that Lin will miss the next three-to-five weeks after re-aggravating his hamstring strain, he expressed no remorse and is not wavering from his plan.

"I think if you ask any GM in the league, if they said, 'You're going to be without your starting point guard, what do you think about that?' ... that's tough," Marks said. "When you don't have some of your key players out there, it's a little bit difficult, but at the same time, it's been great to see how the team's culture, how they play, has sort of changed."

Marks wouldn't even pin any of the blame on his new "Performance Team," which includes decorated medical professionals and trainers from outside the basketball community.

"(The Performance Team) has done a terrific job," Marks said. "Not only Jeremy, but through the whole summer, preseason, and during the season, managing guys. You look at a guy like Caris (LeVert), that's been out two college seasons. Now all of a sudden, he's back and healthy and playing well. We've got numerous examples of how these guys have put their blood, sweat and tears into our guys."

The other area of emphasis in the Marks-ist regime is player development, and, again, it's hard to pinpoint any real success stories off the bat given the team's woes. LeVert looks like a player, but he has been managed so that he is most often placed in situations where he can succeed, such as on second units. Monday was a scheduled rest day for Marks' 2016 first-round pick.

MORE: Lichtenstein: Atkinson Stands By Nets' System, Even If It Won't Succeed With Current Roster

In previous posts, I've delved into the ups and downs of some of the Nets' other young players, such as Isaiah Whitehead and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. With the Celtics owning Brooklyn's first-round selection in the next two drafts, thanks to King's summer 2013 blockbuster trade for Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry, it's crucial that coach Kenny Atkinson and his staff eventually hit on some of the under-25 crowd on this roster and develop them into consistent NBA rotation players, not just minutes-eaters on a lousy team.

Popovich joked about having superstar Tim Duncan for 19 years, but the Spurs have been able to both support the future Hall of Famer and then move on without him because of how well they have turned unheralded international players and low draft choices into solid contributors.

"We've always had people in the program who are particularly gifted in developing young guys," Popovich said. "I think it starts with trying to figure out what players you want to put around your best players, finding people who have gotten over themselves, who want to fill a role. In perpetuity.

"We've had some excellent development people," Popovich continued. "Kawhi Leonard is Kawhi Leonard because of his own personal work ethic for sure, and the work of Chad Forcier, who is now in Orlando, and Chip Engelland, who has been with me forever. (Leonard) didn't shoot jump shots, let alone 3s, when he was in college. Now he's pretty darn good at it. He works daily and those two guys have worked with him incessantly. So it takes a staff that understands and can do the work and bringing in guys, whether it be the role player or a star like Kawhi, who want to get better and really have a passion for the game."

As an example of how Marks has been following that blueprint in Brooklyn, he could have easily won an offseason bidding war for a free agent like Dion Waiters, the explosive 25-year-old shooting guard who ended up in Miami and shocked the Warriors with a late-game bomb on Monday night, as the Nets had (and still have) oodles of salary cap space. However, Marks presumably didn't see a fit with the team's culture.

It's easy for Nets fans to look at the lack of talent on the current roster and the standings and conclude that Marks has done a lousy job during his rookie season. Patience is not a virtue in New York City.

Despite the putridity, however, Popovich insists we should not lose faith in the New Zealand native.

"(Marks is) one of my favorite people of all time -- the Big Lug," Popovich said. "He's intelligent, humorous, hard-working, has a great knack for the game, understands what it takes. He's got the staying power, the persistence to use the long view and get it done the right way. He's a special guy."

It may be hard to believe, but from both party's sound bites on Monday, Popovich misses Marks more than the other way around.

For a FAN's perspective of the Nets, Jets and the NHL, follow Steve on Twitter @SteveLichtenst1