It is in the best interest of the nets to tank this year since Rockets are also ass. They will likely be stuck with a good pick no matter what.
Day after day, the deal for Harden has become the best deal of the decade for the Rockets and the day of the apocalypse for the Nets.
I wonder what their contract situation is like. It makes sense to tank this season. But that's a bandaid to the situation. If left unsolved we are just gonna get a very good pick next season
That's true but it says when one team shoots 56% and the other team shoots 36% that they don't have much of a chance of winning. Durant put up nice stats and he adds to winning. He is a reluctant leader. What happens when he is gone? The Rockets got lulled into thinking they were good for a few games after losing Harden. When he was here he added at least 20 wins. If half the team was out he would go for a 50 point triple double and you win. When Durant is gone nuclear winter sets in. MOST players are mercenaries that are looking for that contract because it is the only consistency they will know. They are well aware like baseball that they are going to be passed around like candy in trades for other stars. They have to be diligent and persevere but they are not good like players in the past because that ability to build consistency with a group is stolen from them in the LBJ star player empowerment era. If they are lucky like a PJ Tucker they build their game around a role that is not valuable at the time but becomes more valuable as the game changes. The modern player has to be very resilient because they are often going to be asked to play very differently from team to team with less opportunity. KJ Martin may want to consider that before wanting to move over to another team. Wood is a prime example of the type of mercenary that the current NBA breeds. Scoring gets paid, not defense and teamwork.
It's not great, but honestly, who cares, if there is a year to tank, this one is it. Just to add to my previous post, a team like the Suns are still very much an attractive trade partner. Bridges/Crowder/Saric + ungodly amount of picks for KD works out easily. They need to pull the plug. The Suns can add an extra two years to be championship contenders working out a trade like this.
I’m not positive and will look later but I think if the Rockets exercise their swap because the NETS pick finishes higher, I believe the Rockets pick conveys to UTAH… not good for the NETS.
2023 first round draft pick from Houston or Philadelphia (outgoing swap, Brooklyn outgoing to Houston or Utah) Houston will receive the more favorable of its 2023 1st round pick and Brooklyn's 2023 1st round pick; Brooklyn will receive the more favorable of (i) the less favorable of its pick and the Houston pick and (ii) Philadelphia's 2023 1st round pick and Utah will receive the least favorable of the three (via Houston's right to swap for Brooklyn; via Philadelphia to Brooklyn) [Brooklyn-Cleveland-Houston-Indiana, 1/16/2021; Brooklyn-Philadelphia, 2/10/2022; Brooklyn-Utah, 6/30/2022] From realgm.
Edit: What @ElPigto said. I think/hope the point that Bobby Marks and Zac Lowe were making is the right one; the rational view is the Nets are basically past the point of no return and the hopes to "reload" with Simmons, Irving are done, since they are both basically net negatives at this point. That leaves a very unhappy (depreciating)Durant as the sole asset to recoup some draft stuff from, maybe look for him to move when 22 FAs become tradeable in January
It was one game. Even we got that. Everyone was scoring for them last night. That won't always happen. Kyrie's replacement (something called Edmond Sumner) had a career game... with 11 points. No, this team is done. Dig in, Kyrie. Don't back down now!
I didn't value Ime to be that important in earlier posts, but seeing the Nets play the last 1.5 games, it may be that Nash was such a negative in the locker room and may have completely lost the team to the point where just simply removing him may be enough to get them to focus, regardless of who you replace him with.
It is either that, or removing Nash as well from the picture, this combination may be giving the locker room a bit of a cleanse of toxicity. No Kyrie, and Nash was likely hated by the players as well since KD wanted him gone. They still have holes in the roster, but this may be giving them a temporary boost.
Stupid Charlotte. Had that game. I thought for sure the legend the Rockets cut, Theo Maledon, would single-handedly win that game.
Their cap is wrecked. They owe Durant $50m each of the next 3. Simmons has two more years after this one at $37m and $40m Joe Harris two years at $18m & $19m. They are over the cap next year without Kyrie. It's going to be very difficult for them to dig themselves out of this mess. I can't see them bringing Kyrie back. This latest debacle might have ended his career .... No one is going to take Simmons off their hands, they are gonna have to eat at least this year's cap hit and I have my doubts as to their ability to move him next year and it'll cost them an asset to get off of it then. Then there's the elephant in the room - Durant. $150m and 3 years after this year. They couldn't get anything for him this offseason - I don't see that changing now or later. They aren't getting off of that contract until 2025/26 when its an expiring.
