Mixtape for Deron

Nets fans are riddled with psychological complexes; that'll happen when you're constantly trying to convince people you exist. So when NJ shocked the world by trading for the superstar they craved in Deron Williams back in February, we didn't need the media's brash reporting to kickstart our anxiety. Once we heard the term "player option," our collective paranoia and inferiority leaped out of bed and bound down the stairs to fight for a seat at the breakfast table. I've since been able to push down the fear of losing Williams to free agency and the resulting Brooklyn oblivion. I'm trying on a brand new outfit for a Nets fan: Confidence.

A lot of Nets supporters seem to have done the same; I guess that's the reach of a great point guard. As Nets fans, we're suddenly optimistic about Williams' future with the team, and all it took was a five-game winning streak, 14 rebounds a game by Mr. Kardashian, and Brook Lopez playing like every day is Free Comic Book Day.

But, as we're told by everyone with a voice and a Nets press pass, the length of Deron's tenure with this squad hinges on the plan laid out by Billy King and Avery Johnson and endorsed by Prokhorov. Williams' Facebook page says he's thrilled about the glimpes of future that King has dropped into Williams' brain, but who knows what's real life anymore.

But you know what? We don't care. We're in love. We've fallen harder for this point guard savior than we did the last. The result is this mixtape, which is as much about Deron Williams as it is about Nets fandom and all its uncertainties. Is it filled with our begging him to stay? Yeah... it is. But it's also about what one man can do for a community; about what one man can do to the wounded hearts of so many faithful. Are we nervous about the future? You bet. But at least now we have a partner to share the anxiety with. Will he leave us? Maybe. But we dealt with heartbreak before, and it's taught us an important lesson: Love what you've got while you've got it.

Now for the tracklist...

1. Julian Casablancas, "Out Of The Blue"
"Take all your fears, pretend they're all true. Take all your plans, pretend they fell through. But that's what it's like... That's what it's like for most people in this world."

2. Pixies, "Here Comes Your Man"


"I know the nervous walking. I know the dirty beard hangs out by the box car, waiting take me away to nowhere plains. There is a wait so long... here comes your man."

3. Bonnie "Prince" Billy, "Blokbuster"
"I was waiting to know. And I was waiting to see. And I waiting to go, I was waiting for thee."

4. Real Estate, "Beach Comber"
"You’re stealing from the lost and found. But what you find ain’t what you had in mind. Until you find your Rolex in the sand, you won’t be stopping."

5. Built to Spill, "The Plan"


"The plan keeps coming up again. The plan means nothing stays the same. But the plan won't accomplish anything, if it's not implemented."

6. The Hold Steady, "Constructive Summer"
"We're gonna build something this summer. We'll put it back together, raise up a giant ladder with love and trust and friends and hammers."

7. Dirty Projectors, "Stillness Is The Move"


"On top of every mountain there was a great longing for another even higher mountain, in each city longing for a bigger city."

8. Rick Moranis, "Press Pound"
"Press 1 if you want me; Press 2 if you don't; Press 3 if you'll forgive me; Press 4 if you won't; Press 5 if you doubt me; Press 6 if you trust; Press pound if you love me. Or hang up if you must."

9. Joanna Newsom, "Good Intentions Paving Co."
"All the way to the thing we've been playing at, darlin', I can see that you're wearing your staying hat, darlin'. For the time being all is well. Won't you love me a spell?"

10. The Mountain Goats, "International Small Arms Traffic Blues"


"Our love is like the border between Greece and Albania: Trucks loaded down with weapons, crossing over every night, moon yellow and bright. There is a shortage in the blood supply, but there is no shortage of blood. The way I feel about you baby, can't explain it; you got the best of my love."

11. Jerry Garcia & David Grisman, "Russian Lullaby"
*Instrumental