The New Jersey Nets yesterday secured the best record in the Eastern Conference, guaranteeing them home court advantage all the way up to the NBA Finals should they make it.  They also won 50 games for the first time in their history.  Despite these milestones this season has not exactly been smooth sailing for the Nets, with forward Kenyon Martin a constant question mark with eight flagrant foul points.  This means that should Martin be charged with a flagrant foul at any stage in the remaining three games he will be suspended yet again automatically for two more games, adding to his seven total games suspended this season thus far.

The volatile forward is vital to the success of these Nets, which is the reason why he proposed to coach Byron Scott that he sit out the Nets remaining three games in order to be on the safe side.  While his flagrant points are reset for the playoffs any suspension imposed from the regular season will carry across, which means the Nets could start their post season campaign short handed if the worst case scenario rang true.

"I can't risk it. Just got to be extra cautious. The final three games, I'm not going to play a lot but still, I've got to be extra cautious," said Martin.

Coach Scott does not appear wild on the idea, but he is at least considering it.  Scott is more worried about Martin losing timing than anything else, and with Scott considering sending some players, most likely Todd MacCulloch, Aaron Williams, Lucious Harris according to Fred Kerber of the New York Post, to the Injured Reserve to rest niggling injuries Martin certainly will not be heading there.

"I understand what he's thinking," Scott said. "He doesn't want to get in any type of trouble these last three games. But like I told him, 'You're not going to play 30 minutes. You're going to play 20 minutes or 25 minutes.' If I think there's any chance something's about to happen, he's going to be out of there and he won't play the rest of that game. But I want to make sure he keeps his timing and keeps his game going. I don't want to just sit him down for the last two games and not play him at all. [But] if he wants to sit and not play the last two games, we'll talk about it."

Team president Rod Thorn took the same view as coach Scott, although Thorn seemed a little less willing to compromise.

"We'll play whoever's healthy," Thorn said. "You can tell by the way he's playing lately the only way he's going to get a flagrant is by falling into it."