T’WOLVES at NETS – Tonight – 7:30 YES; WBBR (1130 AM)

Lawrence Frank yesterday banned use of the term “Big Three.”

Maybe not officially, but the Net coach did want everybody to know there are 13 players on his roster – not just Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson.

Frank’s gripe was a fair one, especially after his bench’s performance during a 112-100 road win over the Wizards on Tuesday.

“We don’t refer ourselves as the Big Three, we’re a team,” Frank said as the Nets readied for tonight’s Meadowlands matchup against Kevin Garnett and the Timberwolves (7:30; YES, WBBR-1130 AM).

“[The bench] has been giving us a big lift, but we do everything together,” Frank went on. “It’s not starters versus the bench. It’s not Jefferson, Carter and Kidd versus everyone else. We’re the Nets.”

Guys like Lamond Murray (six points Tuesday, including two fourth-quarter 3s), Cliff Robinson (eight points) and Zoran Planinic (eight points) have been spelling the starters with encouraging results.

Overall, the bench went 11-for-17 from the field for 26 points Tuesday as the Nets won their sixth straight.

“Some of those guys didn’t play for a time and they stayed ready for when their time came, [and] they were able to step it up,” said Net president Rod Thorn.

“You’re trying to do the best you can, and who you play is irrelevant. You’re gonna play whoever you’re gonna play. This game is so much about confidence and people feeling good about themselves.”

The confidence has kicked in at precisely the right time.

While Frank and Thorn continue to recite the “one game at a time” mantra, the Nets have the No. 3 Eastern Conference seed staring at them. With a 6 1/2-game lead over the 76ers and 16 games remaining for the Nets, only a catastrophic losing streak (or, much worse, an injury) could knock them from their Atlantic Division perch.

So while, sure, they may be taking life possession by possession, Frank knows he needs to limit the minutes of Carter, Kidd and Jefferson.

“We were giving Kidd, Carter and Jefferson a lot of minutes,” Frank said “We wanted to get their minutes down. To do that, that means giving guys more of an opportunity. It’s not really as much a ‘going into the playoffs’ [philosophy] as it is doing it for the health of our team.”

Tonight the bench will have a chance at redemption. The last time the Nets played the Timberwolves – a 100-90 loss on March 1 – the bench was outscored 40-4.