The Nets, who at one point held an 8-18 record and appeared dead in the water without top scorer Caris LeVert, have won their last six games to pull within 1.5 games of a playoff spot in the East. Now, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, they’re hinting in talks with teams that they might be buyers at the trade deadline.
As we outlined on Tuesday, it appears that the top five teams in the Eastern Conference are virtual locks to make the postseason, but the final three spots remain very much up for grabs. The Pistons, Hornets, Magic, Heat, and Wizards are among Brooklyn’s competitors for one of those playoff spots, but none of those teams is currently over .500. In other words, the door is open for the Nets to potentially return to the postseason for the first time since 2015.
Although Windhorst doesn’t offer any specifics for what the Nets might be looking for in advance of the trade deadline, the club seems set at point guard with D’Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie. The center position – manned by Jarrett Allen and Ed Davis – also looks fairly stable. So wings and forwards could be Brooklyn’s top priorities if the team goes shopping for reinforcements.
It will be interesting to see whether the Nets are open to taking on any multiyear contracts in deadline deals. Brooklyn projects to have significant cap room in 2019, but exhibited a willingness to cut into that projected space a little by extending Dinwiddie last week. If they were to make, say, Kenneth Faried‘s $13.76MM expiring contract available for a player earning comparable money on a multiyear deal, that could open up some intriguing opportunities for the Nets. They may not want to further compromise their 2019 cap flexibility though.
In any case, if the Nets’ recent success continues, it appears we’ll be able to add them to the list of this season’s buyers. They’d join the Pelicans, Pistons, and Kings, among many others, on that list.
Nets win six in a row suddenly they’re buyers at the deadline. Talk about looking for a ray of light amid a World of 10-year Darkness… or is it 15 years?
They’ll get on a familiar 8 game losing streak real soon, don’t worry.
I’m not sure you’ve watched this team play very much. They play a great style of basketball and are not devoid of talent. If the young guys keep developing and LeVert returns in February, they have a good shot at the playoffs. Look at the level of competition in the East
Here’s a litmus test… Nets play the crummy Bulls tonight on the road.
Road games are never easy but if they are contenders and not Pretenders, the Nets need this one. No question about it. So let’s take a look tonight…
Nice win !
Nets are an interesting thing to keep an eye on for this year then. Let’s see if they make the playoffs would be great for the franchise.
Give the Nets some credit from working their way out from under that awful trade with the Celtics. That team plays hard every night.
They should deal Russel and give the keys to Dinwiddie and continue the process w him alongside LaVert & keep on growing a solid foundation …
Faried for Solomon Hill?
If the Pels sent a second rounder with Hill, the Nets might do it
Why? What has hill shown to make you want to absorb that deal?
Crabbe and Dudley for Hayward
Why would the Celtics do that…?
Just adds to the overcrowding Boston already has at the position
Faried and a pick for Kent Bazemore?
Interesting, but I don’t see Nets giving up a 1 after finally getting control of their own pick. It’d probably be 2s for a couple years.
I didn’t say a 1st rounder, I just said a pick. I didn’t even consider it to be a 1st rounder for Bazemore.
They can have Cameron Payne for free
May be? Ugh
Nets’ roster is far from a joke. From their meager assets the past 4 years, they’ve put together a good young group. Russell, RHJ, LeVert and Allen are all 23 and under. Dinwidde (25) has grown with them. Early returns on the two foreign players (19 and 20) they got in last year’s draft are good. They need to lock up (or deal) Russell and RHJ as RFAs this summer.
Beyond that, I’m not sure if tanking is the best approach for them (their current position in the standings and the shallowness of this draft work against it). I’m not sure if relying exclusively on the summer’s FA market is a great approach either (might depend on what their real cap space situation will be, after the cap holds for their 2 RFAs). In any event, it’s at least worth exploring if the use, at the deadline, of their expiring deals for multi-year deals, might be a better way of adding talent.
Nets have 2s, Levert & Harris; they need a 3. Dudley, Kurocs & RHJ have the 4, and Luke mentioned 1 & 5.
The Lakers should want an Ingram-Harris trade but they will be stubborn in support of their previous choices.
The Pels would be interested in Carroll but they only have seven decent players for trading.
Did anyone really think the nets would be close to this position in 2015…