Rafer Alston made one very valid point about a recent report regarding Rafer Alston. The report, claiming the Queens-product point guard wanted out of the Nets, did not come from Rafer Alston.
“I don’t think the story said I said it. You didn’t hear a quote come from me,” Alston said yesterday about last week’s report he wanted to be with the Knicks or Heat and not as the third PG on the Nets in a contract year. “For somebody to put that out there right before camp, I immediately called in and told them that story didn’t come from me.”
So while he never expressed love or hate for his Nets situation, he stressed he didn’t circulate the story, even if he does feel that way in a contract year.
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Eduardo Najera already is with the docs. Najera, who required a sports hernia surgery after the season, developed a resulting back problem. “We’re holding him out until we can get that figured out,” said coach Lawrence Frank.
In other AMA news, Tony Battie went through half of yesterday’s practice before some arthritis flared in his right knee. . . . Keyon Dooling did cardio work as he returns from arthroscopic hip surgery.
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Former Net Cliff Robinson said he’s helping to “get my feet wet and see if I like” the idea of coaching. With so many Nets wings, Robinson, 42, was one of the bigger guys in the gym. So, a comeback?
“My wife was even giving me a hard time about coming back, but no,” Robinson said.