#54 Rodney Rogers
Player File
6' 7", 255lb forward Rogers from
Wake Forest ('93) enters his 10th year as an NBA pro.
Birthday:
June 20, 1971
Birthplace:
Durham, NC
Drafted:
9th overall in the 1993 Draft, by Denver.
Career: Denver
'93 - '95; traded with draft rights to Brent Barry to LA Clippers for
Randy Woods and draft rights to Antonio McDyess on June 28, 1995; LA Clippers
'95 - '99; signed as free agent to Phoenix on August 2, 1999; Phoenix
'99 - '02; traded with Tony Delk to Boston for Randy Brown, Joe Johnson,
Milt Palacio and first-round draft pick on February 20, 2002; signed as
free agent by NJ August 14, 2002.
2001 - 2002 Regular Season Stats:
Games Played:
77 (50 Phoenix, 27 Celtics)
Minutes PG:
24.4
Points PG:
11.9
PCT: .471
Free Throw PCT:
.785
Rebounds PG:
4.5
Assists PG:
1.5
Blocks PG:
0.38
Steals PG:
0.86
Turnovers PG:
1.4
Nicknames:
"Deebo" is Rogers' official and preferred nickname, from the
giant bike-riding bully in the movie Friday,
played by Tom "Tiny" Lister, Jr.
Our readers have come up with "Jolly," "Roger Ramjet,"
"Big Rod," "Rodney Replacement" and others.
Known For: Instant offense, three point threat, tough defender, makes big plays, can play all three front line positions.
The Real Deal: Rogers is gonna love being reunited with Kidd. He's got a real flair for the sixth man role, pouring in points or making a clutch defensive play late. Though he looks like he never passes up a meal, Rogers runs the floor well, is a decent passer, and can take his man outside or drop a trey with equal abandon. And best of all, he's royally pissed at the Celts for not thinking enough of him to find the money to resign him. Wait until he's unleashed against Boston in the regular season.
Joe's Take: Rogers fits this team far better than Van Horn ever did. It takes a lot for Van Horn fan Joe Netsfan to say that, but it's true. Hard not to like what we've seen so far in the preseason. Undersized but can play center in a small ball lineup. Rogers may well wind up leading this team in scoring without ever starting a game. Just one important piece in the Nets' championship hopes, and more importantly, in their bid to resign Jason Kidd.
Champagne's Take: Thorn made sure that he could get Rogers from Boston before he traded Van Horn and MacCulloch to Philly for Mutombo – one of the many reasons we chose "In Rod We Trust" for our '02 -' 03 site slogan. Thorn swapped out a starter and signed up a 6th man, and it's nothing but an upgrade (yes, I was a Van Horn apologist, but I'm in recovery). Rogers helps make the Nets incredibly deep and wide – imagine, this is a guy who could be a 1st teamer, and he's backing up Richard Jefferson. And rather than going to waste as a freelancer living entirely out past the arc, where they had him in Boston, the Nets seem to want to try to get him bulling around inside again. They should; he's huge. This season, Rogers could prove to be the best new piece the Nets added this summer.
Rodney Rogers stats and bio: click here.
2002 - 2003 Nets Roster
Brandon Armstrong - G
Chris Childs - G
Jason Collins - C
Lucious Harris - G
Richard Jefferson - F
Anthony Johnson - G
Jason Kidd - PG
Kerry Kittles - G
Kenyon Martin - F
Dikembe Mutombo - C
Rodney Rogers - F
Brian Scalabrine - F
Tamar Slay - G
Aaron Williams - PF/C
Archive | Backlash | Bio | Calendar | Champagne's Blog | Diatribe | Game x Game | History | Home | Joe Netsfan's Blog | Media | Opponents | Players | Playoffs | Search | Specials
© 2002 Shawn Belschwender and Michael Kozlowski
