1994–95 New Jersey Nets season

The 1994–95 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 28th season in the National Basketball Association, and 19th season in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Nets had the 14th overall pick in the 1994 NBA draft, and selected Nigerian center Yinka Dare out of George Washington University. During the off-season, the team re-signed free agent Sleepy Floyd, signed Sean Higgins, and undrafted rookie point guard Chris Childs, and hired Butch Beard as their new head coach.

Under Beard, the Nets lost five of their first six games of the regular season, but then won five of their next seven games, leading to a 6–7 start to the season. However, after holding a 12–15 record as of December 21, 1994, the team struggled losing eight of their next nine games, and played below .500 in winning percentage for the entire season, holding a 19–31 record at the All-Star break. The team dealt with injuries as Derrick Coleman missed 26 games due to assorted aches and pains, and a wrist injury, while Kevin Edwards only played just 14 games before sitting out the remainder of the season due to a partly torn Achilles tendon, Benoit Benjamin missed 21 games due to a lower back injury, and Dare only played just one game due to knee injuries. Both Coleman and Kenny Anderson had a public feud with Beard, as the Nets lost 15 of their final 19 games of the season, and finished in fifth place in the Atlantic Division with a disappointing 30–52 record, missing the NBA playoffs.

Coleman averaged 20.5 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, while Anderson averaged 17.6 points, 9.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game, and Armen Gilliam provided the team with 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and finished in ninth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting. In addition, Edwards contributed 14.0 points and 1.4 steals per game, while Chris Morris provided with 13.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and led the Nets with 106 three-point field goals, Benjamin averaged 11.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, and second-year forward P.J. Brown contributed 8.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. Off the bench, second-year guard Rex Walters contributed 6.5 points per game, while Childs provided with 5.8 points and 4.1 assists per game, Jayson Williams averaged 4.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and Floyd contributed 4.1 points and 2.6 assists per game, but struggled as he shot just .335 in field-goal percentage.

The Nets finished twelfth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 684,102 at the Brendan Byrne Arena during the regular season. Following the season, Morris signed as a free agent with the Utah Jazz, while Benjamin was left unprotected in the 1995 NBA expansion draft, where he was selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies expansion team, and Floyd retired.