Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2019 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2019/20 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Brooklyn Nets.
Signings:
- Standard contracts:
- Kevin Durant: Four years, maximum salary ($164.26MM). Fourth-year player option. Acquired via sign-and-trade.
- Kyrie Irving: Four years, $136.49MM. Fourth-year player option. Includes unlikely incentives. Signed using cap room.
- DeAndre Jordan: Four years, $39.96MM. Signed using cap room.
- Garrett Temple: Two years, $9.77MM. Second-year team option. Signed using room exception.
- David Nwaba: Two years, minimum salary. Second year non-guaranteed. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Theo Pinson: Two years, minimum salary. Second-year team option. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Wilson Chandler: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Two-way contracts:
- Non-guaranteed camp contracts:
- Deng Adel: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
- Devin Cannady: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
- John Egbunu: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
- C.J. Massinburg: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
- Lance Thomas: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
- C.J. Williams: One year, minimum salary (Waived).
Trades:
- Acquired the Sixers’ 2020 first-round pick (top-14 protected) and the draft rights to Jaylen Hands (No. 56 pick) from the Clippers in exchange for the draft rights to Mfiondu Kabengele (No. 27 pick).
- Acquired Taurean Prince and the Hawks’ 2021 second-round pick from the Hawks in exchange for Allen Crabbe, the draft rights to Nickeil Alexander-Walker (No. 17 pick), and the Nets’ 2020 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
- Acquired the draft rights to Aaron White and the draft rights to Nemanja Dangubic in a three-team trade with the Spurs and Wizards in exchange for DeMarre Carroll (sign-and-trade; to Spurs).
- Acquired Kevin Durant (sign-and-trade) and the Warriors’ 2020 first-round pick (top-20 protected) from the Warriors in exchange for D’Angelo Russell (sign-and-trade), Treveon Graham, and Shabazz Napier.
Draft picks:
- 2-31: Nicolas Claxton — Signed to three-year, minimum salary contract. Fully guaranteed. Signed using cap room.
- 2-56: Jaylen Hands — Signed G League contract.
Contract extensions:
- Caris LeVert: Three years, $52.5MM. Starts in 2020/21; runs through 2022/23.
- Taurean Prince: Two years, $25.3MM. Includes $3.7MM in incentives. Starts in 2020/21; runs through 2021/22.
Departing players:
- DeMarre Carroll
- Allen Crabbe
- Ed Davis
- Jared Dudley
- Treveon Graham
- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
- Shabazz Napier
- D’Angelo Russell
- Alan Williams (two-way)
Other offseason news:
- Kevin Durant expected to miss entire season due to Achilles tear.
- Joseph Tsai finalized purchase of Nets from Mikhail Prokhorov.
- CEO Brett Yormark stepped down; David Levy named new CEO.
- Wilson Chandler suspended 25 games for failed PED test.
- Rodions Kurucs arrested for alleged domestic incident.
- Lost Trajan Langdon from front office; lost Gianluca Pascucci from front office.
- Hired Jeff Peterson as assistant GM; hired Andy Birdsong as assistant GM; hired J.R. Holden as director of player personnel.
- Lost assistant coach Chris Fleming to Bulls.
- Named Tiago Splitter player development coach.
- Hired Shaun Fein as head coach of G League affiliate (Long Island Nets).
- Exercised 2020/21 rookie scale options on Jarrett Allen, Dzanan Musa.
Salary cap situation:
- Used cap space; now over the cap.
- Hard-capped.
- Carrying approximately $126.08MM in guaranteed salary.
- No exceptions available.
Story of the summer:
The fact that the Nets somehow weren’t the only team this summer that acquired two of the top 10 players on last season’s All-NBA rosters shouldn’t diminish what they were able to accomplish.
Sure, the Clippers may have “won” the offseason by signing Kawhi Leonard and trading for Paul George, but few clubs in NBA history have had a more successful free agent period than the 2019 Nets, who landed both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.
While the Nets may never match up with the Knicks in terms of their arena, brand, and history, they’ve clearly surpassed their New York rivals on the court and in the front office in recent years. It had to feel good for Brooklyn to secure commitments from two superstars with NBA championships on their résumés at the same time the Knicks were sending out a statement acknowledging their fans’ disappointment and insisting they were still upbeat about their rebuilding plans.
Once the free agency celebration died down and the hangover wore off, a clear-eyed look at the Nets’ roster did leave us with some questions.
With Irving replacing All-Star guard D’Angelo Russell and Durant not expected to play in 2019/20, how much better can the Nets actually be this season? Would bringing in DeAndre Jordan along with his two friends Irving and Durant interfere with the development of up-and-coming big man Jarrett Allen? And even when Durant is recovered from his torn Achilles and ready to return, will he ever be the same player he was before the injury?
As we mulled over those questions, the Nets’ offseason took a turn for the worse, as newly-signed forward Wilson Chandler was suspended for 25 games for violating the NBA’s PED policy and second-year forward Rodions Kurucs faced accusations of domestic violence.
Those developments put a bit of a damper on what should have been a victory lap for the Nets, and Durant’s absence means the team likely won’t to get to fully reap the rewards of its free agency success until the 2020/21 season.
Still, the franchise deserves kudos for the way it has reshaped its roster. After all, it feels like just yesterday that the 2015/16 Nets completed a 21-61 season with no promising young prospects on the roster and no lottery draft picks on the horizon due to that infamously lopsided trade with the Celtics.
Brooklyn still hasn’t drafted a player in the lottery since then, but general manager Sean Marks and company put together a core – and built a culture – that two of the NBA’s top players wanted to be a part of. It should be a long time before the franchise endures another 21-61 season.