Cameron Johnson will be one of the top names on the free agent market, and long-time teammate Mikal Bridges is urging him to stay with the Nets, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post.
Johnson and Bridges have been together since Johnson was drafted in 2019 by Phoenix, where they were nicknamed “The Twins” because of their close friendship. They spent three and a half years as Suns teammates before both being shipped to Brooklyn in February as part of the Kevin Durant trade.
“I just know a lot of people probably want him on different teams,” Bridges said. “I just tell him, I’ll just be like ‘I know money and this and that, but just know where I want you. And you can’t leave your Twin!’ But he knows. He knows that I never want him to go. And I hope that he stays and they offer him a really good deal. Get my boy paid and go from there.”
Johnson will be a restricted free agent, so the Nets will be able to match any offer he receives, but they can’t talk to him about a new contract until the official start of free agency at 6 p.m. ET on Friday. General manager Sean Marks told Lewis on draft night that he’s hoping to reach an agreement with Johnson before he meets with any other teams.
“I think it’s one of those things that maybe … we should expect the unexpected,” Marks said. “Things happen all the time in this. We’ll be prepared for that. Cam knows how we feel about him. We hope he’s a Net and so we’ll just have to sort of play it all out. … I think we’ve got a nice young group and he can see how this group has a chance to do something special here and do something special in Brooklyn.”
There’s more from Brooklyn:
- The Nets weren’t afraid to gamble on Dariq Whitehead with their 22nd pick, even though he underwent a second surgery on his right foot last month, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Whitehead was considered one of the top prospects in the nation heading into his freshman season at Duke, and the 18-year-old is confident that he can eventually get past his physical issues. “I think I can definitely get back to that guy who I was,” Whitehead said. “I feel like people definitely from last year, they tend to think that I’m not athletic, and that was due to me pretty much playing on one leg. But I feel like I can definitely show the athletic part, and then really my playmaking.”
- The Nets selected a pair of teenagers in the first round in Whitehead and Noah Clowney, but Marks said that’s not an indication that the team is focused on rebuilding rather than winning right away, relays Ian Beglay of SNY.tv.
- Nikola Milutinov, whose draft rights the Nets acquired in a 2021 trade, has signed a two-year contract with Olympiacos, according to Dario Skerletic of Sportando. The 28-year-old center spent the past three seasons with CSKA Moscow.
Cam Johnson was Coby White’s team mate in college, would be nice if the Bulls re-up Coby and add Cam. If they move DeRozan for a PG, PWill at SF and Cam at PF would be interesting. Coby can spell Lavine or the PG sometimes and that with Caruso and Drummond (if he re-ups) is not terrible, and might allow them to develop sone of their other young’ns.
I’m disappointed Milutinov is not coming over now, but it makes sense for him. He’s more comfortable in Europe. He’s likely taking the roster spot of another Nets’ stash, Vezenkov, who’s expected to sign with the Kings.
Outside of an obscene contract Cam is an easy match.
Lakers need Cam Johnson.
IMO
After signing Bruce Brown four-year contract $50 million full MLE, Lakers can make a trade offer to Nets for Johnson.
DLo for Johnson and a peanut
Do you really think the Nets want 3 years of DLo?
Cam is not going anywhere.
I like the Nets picks. Clowney is a solid big prospect. He plays both ways. He’ll fit right in with this team. Whitehead is a great talent. Just let him heal and help with his conditioning. No need to rush him. He’s got big time potential. Great pick imo.
Biggest unknown and question for Nets is Ben. Best case is he shows up. And tries to take over again. To me he should be playing 3-4. Even start playing decent so you can get value for him. I can’t believe a guy his age. His size, his talent, his athleticism. Is just going to give up on a career now. Bklyn will back him 100%. But they won’t wait for ever.
This twin thing sounds like way more than a friendship