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After the shocking Kyrie Irving trade request, the Brooklyn Nets have to be reeling. Reports are they did not see this coming, and now they have six days to completely change their team. The Nets will have to make some tough decisions on the fly, including blowing the whole thing up. That means a Kevin Durant trade could even be possible. With that as a real possibility, these five teams need to get Nets general manager Sean Marks on the phone ASAP.
Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks need to get Luka Doncic some help. It sounds like they are one of the top destinations in a Kyrie Irving trade, but if they could get Kevin Durant, that’s both a better player and a better fit with their superstar.
Mavs fans often get frustrated about the team’s lack of bold moves season after season. However, what that means is that they are a good team with most of their own draft picks in the future.
Spencer Dinwiddie, Christian Wood, and Davis Bertans, with at least two future unprotected picks, is the best deal the Mavericks can offer. That might not be great, but if it’s a true fire sale in NYC’s biggest borough, this could make for a compelling Kevin Durant trade offer.
Los Angeles Lakers
LA is another team that is in on a Kyrie Irving trade but should also bring up Durant’s name when talking to Marks.
The best Nets trade here would be for a complete reset of the franchise. The Nets send Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons to the Lakers for Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverley, the recently-acquired Rui Hachimura, and the Lakers’ 2027 and 2029 unprotected first-round picks.
This gets nearly $13 million off the Nets cap this season and almost $80 million for next year. Between this and trading Irving, Brooklyn will have a completely fresh start in 2023-24, with two picks that could be major lottery selections in four and six years. Those picks make the Nets not having their own picks for a while a little easier.
Miami Heat
The Heat are in a great position as far as future picks are concerned. They have all their own and an Oklahoma City Thunder (protected pick via the Los Angeles Clippers) in 2026. The Heat could do a Godfather offer to the Nets with picks and pick swaps for the next five or six years.
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On the player side, it’s relatively simple, too. Kyle Lowry and Duncan Robinson get close enough to what Durant makes to facilitate the trade.
And if that’s not enough for a Kevin Durant trade, maybe they could even do a Ben Simmons for Bam Adebayo swap as well. The Heat center is still just 25 years old, so he can be a long-term rebuilding piece in a way Simmons is not or fetch more in a flip scenario than Simmons would.
New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans are another team that has picks for days (with several future Lakers and Bucks picks) and could do a Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving trade.
New Orleans got off to a good start to the season, but their recent 10-game skid put an end to that. Bringing in Durant to pair with Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, and Brandon Ingram could stop that slide and be an interesting mix of talent.
The Pelicans wouldn’t have to give up any of their top six rotation players either because with all the picks they can offer they can also match Durant’s salary with Jonas Valanciunas, Dyson Daniels, Devonte’ Graham, Jaxon Hayes, and Kira Lewis Jr.
The picks are great and Daniels (19), Hayes (22), and Lewis (21) are all still incredibly young.
New York Knicks
Kevin Durant turned down the Knicks in free agency a few years ago before ending up with the Nets, so who knows if he’ll go there now. However, after a Kyrie Irving trade, Durant may be more willing to move to Manhattan.
Like the Pelicans, the Knicks have any of their own picks and other teams’ as well and can offer a smorgasbord of future selections.
Along with a bunch of picks, the Knicks can send Evan Fournier, Derrick Rose, Cam Reddish, Obi Toppin, and Immanuel Quickley across the Brooklyn Bridge and get Durant in return.
This might be the best return in a Kevin Durant trade the Nets can get. They get several picks and some proven young players with upside in Quickley, Toppin, and Reddish. This is another good deal that can help Brooklyn reset the whole franchise after the stunning Irving demand.
