The Brooklyn Nets are preparing for their next game as the news and trade rumors ramp up.
Check out the latest buzz below.
Nets Looking to Deal
The Nets have officially decided to break up their core and have placed Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, and Joe Johnson on the trading block, according to ESPN.
The Nets are struggling at 8-11, and all three veterans are having relatively poor seasons.
Because of the high salaries for all three of these players, they'd likely be moved in separate deals.
The report noted the Nets still want to win now and are looking for good value.
“Sources insist that the Nets haven’t abandoned their recent ‘win-now mentality’ and aren’t merely looking to dump salary. Brooklyn’s hope, sources said, is eventually to construct a deal or two that bring back sufficient talent that enables the Nets remain a playoff team,” it added.
Williams, 30, has two years remaining on a five-year, $98 million deal. He’s due $21 million next season and $22.3 million in the final season of his contract, although he has a player option, so he could be a free agent in the summer of 2016.
Lopez, 26, has one year left on his contract. He’s expected to exercise the player option for next season worth $16.7 because of lingering injuries.
Johnson, 33, also has one year left on his contract besides this season, and is set to make $24.9 million next season.
The trio is the highest-paid trio in the league this season at $58.7 million combined.
Possible Trades
With the news that the players are on the block, potential trade scenarios began emerging.
One such scenario is Johnson and Mirza Teletovic to the Charlotte Hornets for Lance Stephenson, Marvin Williams, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
“The first caveat here is that Michael Jordan’s Charlotte Hornets can’t trade Stephenson or Williams until Dec. 15 because acquired free agents can’t be dealt until that date or three months after their contracts were signed, whichever comes first. The second caveat is that the Hornets would have to be willing to surrender relatively inexpensive pieces of their future—albeit ones with very clear limitations—in exchange for the perimeter shooting they desperately need,” Bleacher Report noted.
“Stephenson has been a bust in Charlotte because of his ball-stopping ways and broken perimeter shot. But the Brooklyn native and high school legend would immediately be a Barclays Center darling. Johnson will definitely stop the ball, but he’s built a career on knowing what to do with it when he does. Teletovic is the real steal here, and the piece Brooklyn would least like to surrender. But if you’re trying to move a one-dimensional scoring guard making $23 million per season, you’re going to need a quality sweetener.”
Other possible trades include Lopez to the Lakers for Jeremy Lin and Julius Randle and Williams to the Pistons along with Mason Plumlee for Greg Monroe, Brandon Jennings, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Joel Anthony, and a protected first-round pick.
The biggest scenario named is a New York blockbuster--the Knicks would get Williams, Lopez, and Kevin Garnett while the Nets would get Amare Stoudemire, Andrea Bargnani, Iman Shumpert, and Shane Larkin.
Any scenario will be tough to pull off, needing, as noted above, some type of sweetener like Teletovic.
“If we’re just looking at the Johnson/Lopez/Williams trio, none of them is all that irresistible at their price tags,” said John Schuhmann of NBA.com. “Johnson has the best combination of skills and durability, and the Clippers and Hawks (ironically) are examples of teams that could use his size and scoring on the wing, but good luck finding a workable trade with that contract.”
But others said Lopez is a good piece. “At age 26, and with some significant injuries behind him, Brook Lopez could be a game changer for someone,” said Simon Legg of NBA.com. “There’s elements of his game that need improvement, like rebounding and defense but if a team with the right defensive system could poach him, who’s to say he wouldn’t impact them in a huge way?”
Garnett for Lee?
While the Nets have Williams, Lopez, and Johnson on the block, it’s presumed that many other players are tradeable as well.
If the Nets can convince Garnett to accept the trade, one being proposed is a swap for David Lee of the Golden State Warriors.
“For Brooklyn, the 31-year-old Lee is younger, more productive and, at this point, more talented than the 38-year-old Garnett,” Bleacher Report said.
“The Nets badly need offense, and Lee is more than capable of providing a spark as a scorer and a setup man.”
Lee is known for his consistent double-doubles and also has good court vision for a big man.
Garnett doesn’t offer the same type of play, but still bring relatively good shooting, rebounding, and passing.
“But the real draw for Golden State is Garnett’s expiring $12 million contract. That has more value than anything he or Lee can provide on the court,” Bleacher noted.
Ian Thomsen of NBA.com noted that for a contender trying to win right now, Garnett is the most attractive Net.
“The best (and only?) move may be to package some of the younger talent for another veteran and therefore go all in with this old roster,” he said. “It makes sense to make a run at the East this year while the conference is so weak, but it also means the risk of digging an even deeper hole.”
Nets Deal Kirilenko
The Nets have made one deal already--sending Andrei Kirilenko and a 2020 second round pick to the Philadelpha 76ers for Brandon Davies.
The Nets also gave the right to swap 2018 second round picks and cash.
The Nets are expected to send a minor players such as Jorge Gutierrez to Philadelphia as well.
Kirilenko is going to be waived by Philly, according to initial reports. He will likely sign with another team later in the season.
Because Davies’ contract in nonguaranteed, the Nets got a $3.3 million trade exception in the deal as well.
Davis could contribute some for the Nets. He started six games for the Sixers and is averaging 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds in 19 minutes. Davies went undrafted in the 2013 draft and signed with the Sixers later on.
Davies stands at 6‘10“ and has a 7’2” wingspan.
“Davies has the size and length of a true power forward. Davies has decent post skills and is at his best when he plays with his back to the basket,” noted Nets Daily. “Davies’ biggest deficiency is his defense. He has trouble guarding big men in the paint due to his lack of strength and his below-average lateral quickness makes him a liability defending the pick-and-roll and outside-orientated big men.”
“Getting down to brass tacks, Davies is an undrafted big man from BYU with big holes in his game. One can argue the only reason why he’s seen so much playing time is because he played for one of the worst teams the NBA has ever seen. In all likelihood, the Nets view Davies as a trade-friendly contract and are already making plans for his departure,” it added.
“But the Nets have found diamonds in the rough before, (looking at you, Jerome Jordan) and with Brooklyn’s big men struggling with inconsistent play and injuries, it’s worth paying attention to Davies for the time being.”
With the roster spot opened by the deal, the Nets signed free agent guard Darius Morris, who appeared in games with the Sixers, Clippers, and Grizzlies last season.
Bulls Pull Away From Nets
The Chicago Bulls used a rare lull in the schedule to focus on their defense, and it paid off in the second half against Brooklyn.
Derrick Rose scored 23 points, and the Bulls pulled away from the Nets for a 105-80 victory on Wednesday night. Chicago held Brooklyn to 29 points on 26.2 percent shooting (11 for 42) in the final two periods.
“They came out with a lot of energy. They got us back on our heels,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I liked the way we responded in the second half.”
Chicago had six players, including all five starters, score in double figures in its first game since Saturday night’s 112-102 loss to Golden State. Jimmy Butler had 18 points, Pau Gasol added 16 points and 16 rebounds, and Mike Dunleavy scored 14 points. Taj Gibson finished with 11 points and 10 boards.
“The third quarter, we really got into it,” said Gibson, who also matched a career high with six blocked shots. “We tried to be a dominant team on rebounding, tried to just finish strong.”
Deron Williams led Brooklyn with 17 points, but the Nets dropped their third straight. Kevin Garnett scored 13 points, and Alan Anderson had 12.
“They turned up their defense and they put on a block party,” Brooklyn coach Lionel Hollins said.
Garnett left in the fourth quarter because of a left foot injury. The team said X-rays were negative, and Garnett said he was all right.
Chicago grabbed control with a 17-3 run in the third quarter.
Rose made a 3-pointer, and Gibson had a big dunk before Gasol capped the surge with four straight points, including two foul shots that made it 70-58 with 3:32 to go.
It just got worse for injury-riddled Brooklyn in the final period, with Chicago scoring 15 straight points to increase its advantage to 101-73 with 3:17 to go. Butler finished the run with a jumper.
“It’s a work in progress,” Garnett said. “We’ve got to continue to work. It doesn’t help that guys are out of the lineup so we’ve all got to continue to come in here, continue to work, and try to get better.”
The 25-point margin was the biggest win of the season for Chicago, which also beat Brooklyn 102-84 on Nov. 30. The Bulls had allowed at least 100 points in four of their previous six games, but Rose said the work in practice on Monday and Tuesday helped them turn it around.
“We did a lot of defensive drills,” Rose said. “I think he (Thibodeau) was just trying to make us be aggressive while we were out there instead of just holding back and letting them walk wherever they want to go, run wherever they want to go.”
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MISSING
The Nets played without forward Mirza Teletovic, who was sidelined by a right hip pointer. Joe Johnson (flu) and Brook Lopez (lower back strain) missed their second straight game, and Andrei Kirilenko was held out because of personal reasons, according to the team.
Joakim Noah, the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and rookie Doug McDermott missed the game for Chicago. Noah has a sprained right ankle, and McDermott has been hampered by a sore right knee.
TIP-INS
Nets: Brooklyn dropped to 4-6 on the road. It has lost 10 of its last 12 games at the United Center, counting the postseason. ... Garnett had two steals to give him 1,801 for his career. He is the 16th NBA player with at least 1,800.
Bulls: Gasol has recorded a double-double in each of his last seven games. He leads the team with 13 this season. ... Chicago has scored at least 100 points in seven straight games for its longest streak since an eight-game run from March 26-April 11, 2009.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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