The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of a rebuild but have definitely made some questionable moves thus far.
First in the draft, they selected three guards: Egor Demin, Nolan Traroe, and Ben Saraf. All three are strong passers, but none of them can shoot or create consistent scoring opportunities. It felt like general manager Sean Marks threw a bunch of darts at the board and is hoping one sticks.
Additionally, Brooklyn was in a stalemate with their top free agent, Cam Thomas, for most of the summer. Thomas is returning on a one-year qualifying offer, and now with three other guards in the fold that need to develop, his long-term fit comes into question.
The most questionable move the Nets made this offseason came via the trade market and could impact their rebuild.
Brooklyn made a huge mistake trading for Michael Porter Jr.
First off, the Nets waited far too long to trade away Cam Johnson. They were reportedly getting offers of multiple first-round picks for the forward over the last year, including during the trade deadline last season. Because of that, they were forced to settle for the Nuggets’ offer of Porter and a 2032 first-round pick.
That 2032 first-rounder could hold some value, especially if Nikola Jokic is retired by then. However, Brooklyn could have gotten far more, and now they are stuck with Porter.
Porter Jr. flashed signs of potential earlier in his career, but he has been a mixed bag the last couple of seasons. His stats on the surface look good: 18 points per game, 51 percent shooting, and almost 40 percent from three. However, he has benefitted greatly from playing alongside Jokic, and Porter has not really grown his game over the years.
He is largely a standstill forward who can shoot very well but offers little off-ball movement. He is not a good slasher, and his handle has not progressed since he entered the league. His defense is mind-bogglingly underwhelming for a guy that size and with the athletic profile he has.
All of those deficiencies, and the cherry on top is making $78 million over the next two seasons. So the Nets can say goodbye to being real players in free agency next summer, with a stacked class on the horizon.
The Nets have no one else to blame but for the Johnson mishap
Brooklyn does have a lot of draft capital over the next few seasons, but if they dealt with the Johnson situation correctly, they could have gotten even more. It could have been a scenario where the rich get richer, as they could have had cap flexibility for next summer and more draft picks.
Now, the Nets are stuck with Porter for the next two seasons. Unless he somehow rebuilds his trade value, that $78 million is not going anywhere for the foreseeable future. Brooklyn is for sure punting on winning next season, but in any other future moves they make, they must try to gain flexibility instead of pigeonholing themselves.
