Humphries excited to be Brooklyn-bound

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – If ever there was someone who wanted to see this whole move to Brooklyn from New Jersey through, it’s Kris Humphries.

The power forward has been with the Nets since he was shipped to the Garden State from Dallas during the 2009-10 campaign. So he’s glad he finally has a little something positive to look forward to now. 

“I was with the team before we went to Newark,” Humphries said at the team’s training facility today. “I was with the team when they started talking about [owner Mikhail] Prokhorov taking over and all that stuff and going to Brooklyn, when they broke ground all that. I’ve been here for the whole process. 

“I’m excited to go in there, and play and be a part of it and get it going. It’s kind of strange that all this has happened.”

Humphries, who inked a two-year, $24 million deal this week, is coming off a career year. He averaged a double-double, posting 13.8 points and 11 rebounds per contest in 62 games – numbers he hopes to improve on in 2012-13.

“I’m excited to be back,” he said. “It’s going to be unbelievable, the whole Brooklyn thing. From here out, I’ll start ramping up training and get ready to come in and piece everything together. We’ve got a lot of new guys and it’s going to take a minute to figure everything out. I know the coaching staff is busy and I’m just excited to be here.”

Humphries had to wait it out a bit during free agency, given the Nets’ whole pursuit of Dwight Howard. 

Once the Nets were out of the chase for the Magic’s superstar, they turned their attention to re-signing Humphries and Brook Lopez. Humphries’ name was mentioned as a possible part of a sign-and-trade with the Cavs during those Howard trade rumors, but he said he never was asked if he’ll accept a trade to Cleveland.

His name was also tossed around in Charlotte as a potential fit there.

“It’s the nature of the business,” Humphries said. “I wanted to be back, so I’m glad that I’m here. A lot of things get floated around in the air and ultimately, it’s Billy [King’s] and Avery's job to put together the best team. So I feel honored to be back, and I’m excited about getting together with my new teammates and getting it going.”

Even though the Nets have a lot of new parts – like Joe Johnson, Reggie Evans and Mirza Teletovic, for example – Humphries expects his role to be the same as it was previously. He’ll be doing a lot of dirty work that sometimes goes unnoticed, but surely will look to score when he has to.

“A couple of things that I do regardless of what team I’m on is rebound, run the floor, [play] defense, block shots,” Humphries said. “In terms of what we are dong offensively, I think my game has progressed a lot in the last couple of years, with Coach Avery really working with me and helping me improve.”

Humphries was also asked about the Tweet he sent out after he agreed to terms earlier in the week. He poked fun at Kanye West’s line in his “Way Too Cold” single, saying he wasn’t dropped from the team after all. But Humphries wasn’t interested in revisiting his barb. 

“I mean, I literally addressed the situation one time and I’m not going to address it again,” he said. “I addressed once on Twitter and that’s that.”