EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The Lakers got their three-peat, so now what about a Nets repeat?

Can New Jersey, which came from nowhere to win the East in 2002, do it again in 2003?

	Nets owner Lewis Katz and GM Rod Thorn, right, could be celebrating another East title.

Recent history doesn't favor the East's top team. Since the breakup of the Bulls, the Eastern Conference champs -- New York in 1999, Indiana in 2000 and Philly in 2001 -- have all been one-hit wonders. But the East is so bad -- exhibit A is that the Lakers have now won eight straight Finals games, something unheard of years ago -- and the Nets have built their team the right way, using defense and rebounding as a foundation, they should challenge again for the No. 1 seed.

It wasn't until they ran into the Lakers that their defense, ranked in the top five all season, was simply shredded. But until then, the Nets showed they had staying power. They were in first place in the East from Dec. 26 right through the last game of the regular season.

True, they also had the benefit of being injury-free and getting some very good luck in their historic playoff run. But the way the East is now, totally lacking in dominant big men, the Nets look like a solid playoff team.

"You know, we just poured the foundation as we're trying to build a home," said Jason Kidd after the Nets were swept out of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night. "The Lakers have already built their mansion, and they added a couple of guest houses. So for us, it's just the first step of going in the right direction."

To continue on that path, the Nets need to make some changes. Kenyon Martin was ready to trade Keith Van Horn and Kerry Kittles after Game 4 for a bag of balls. Without naming their names, he went off about teammates who didn't come to play -- just as he was guilty of in Game 2.

Perhaps Martin doesn't know this or thinks he's playing in a rotisserie league. But there is a salary cap in place in the NBA. In a matter of weeks, Van Horn will be making $12 million, while Kittles goes up to $9 million for 2003. Considering their history of injuries -- and their wildly inconsistent play -- what general manager would be willing to acquire either, at those prices and with long-term deals?

That's not to say that Van Horn and/or Kittles won't be shopped. Even as the Nets were making their historic run to the Finals, their names were on the trade rumor mill. It makes sense, since the Nets would be better off with a proven low-post scorer and not so many jump shooters who can't get their own shots.

The Nets realize that to become an annual fixture in the Finals, they've got to add a second franchise player. Internally, they have discussed going after Kevin Garnett with a package that would include Van Horn and Kittles. But Minnesota isn't interested in dealing Garnett, unless they're getting a young superstar in return, along with draft picks. The Nets don't have the goods to get it done.

Denver's Antonio McDyess is always a possibility. He's one of Kidd's favorites, having played with him in Phoenix, and Denver doesn't want to re-sign him long term. But there's no evidence that a) the Nets believe McDyess' surgically repaired knees are sound enough to make a big investment in or, b) that the Nuggets are interested in anyone the Nets have, except, of course, Kidd.

Unless there's a major trade, the Nets are looking at small changes. It's a pretty weak free-agent class, which is just as well, because they really can't get involved, anyway. New Jersey is already committed to about $60 million in salaries for next season, about $15 million over the cap.

	Short of making a minor move, it sounds as if the Nets are planning on getting improvement from within. Other than their trade for Kidd, that's really how the Nets were able to make their quantum leap to the top this season.

But they can still get a backup point guard for Kidd, and probably need to. The Knicks' Charlie Ward is always available. As for a talented "four," those are the kinds of players you can't attract with the mid-level exception of $4.5 million per season. Plus, they just don't exist among the free agents for 2002.

Much will have to do with whether there's a change in the Nets' philosophy. After the rocky Stephon Marbury years, team president Rod Thorn did not want to bring in players he viewed as threats to the team's chemistry. That's why he didn't pursue Charles Oakley at last February's trading deadline, despite lobbying from his coaches, who felt they needed Oak's playoff experience.

And despite their payroll, the Nets still have a reputation for pinching pennies. Although the coaches wanted to make a move for Tony Delk when Phoenix made him available, the Nets decided to go with Anthony Johnson, a 10-day-contract kind of player, rather than pick up Delk's $18 million contract.

Short of making a minor move, it sounds as if the Nets are planning on getting improvement from within. Other than their trade for Kidd, that's really how the Nets were able to make their quantum leap to the top this season. They basically added a new player in Kittles, who had missed all of 2001 with a knee injury, along with rookies Richard Jefferson and Jason Collins.

"As a player after my first championship experience -- we lost to Boston -- all it did was motivate me to go out and work harder to try to get better," Nets coach Byron Scott said. "I knew I had a lot more room for improvement in my game. I knew if I got better there were guys on our team that were going to continue to get better and we would get back there.

"That's the same thing I'm thinking about with this team here. Every one of these guys understands they have to get just a little bit better for us to be here again."

Truth is, in the East, they might not have to get that much better to repeat.

Mitch Lawrence, who covers the NBA for the New York Daily News, writes a regular NBA column for ESPN.com.