With the NBA offseason winding down, the Brooklyn Nets remain a dumping ground for unwanted contracts. After absorbing Terance Mann, Michael Porter Jr. and Haywood Highsmith in salary dumps, the Nets still have over $16 million in cap space.
They could utilize a portion of their remaining space in a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers, who are attempting to shed salary to re-sign restricted free agent Quentin Grimes.
“There has been buzz all summer long about the Sixers looking to potentially move one of, if not both, Andre Drummond and Kelly Oubre,” said NBA insider Jake Fischer. “If they are able to find a deal for one of those two guys as we get closer to camp, that would open up some more wiggle room for Philadelphia to be able to pay Grimes a little bit more.”
After re-signing Cam Thomas, Day'Ron Sharpe and Ziaire Williams, Brooklyn still needs to spend roughly $7 million to reach the NBA's salary floor before opening night. Drummond is on a $5 million expiring contract, while Oubre is in the final year of his deal at $8.38 million.
A trade for either player could help the Nets reach the NBA's minimum payroll while adding to their pool of assets.
Nets could present trade partner for 76ers amid Andre Drummond rumors
The Nets have acquired two first-round picks and a second-round pick alongside Porter Jr., Mann and Highsmith in salary dumps this offseason. Philadelphia could attach an asset to Drummond or Oubre to shed their salary in the coming weeks. The 76ers have 10 second-round picks available to trade.
The 76ers traded Drummond to the Nets as part of a package for James Harden in 2022 before re-signing him last offseason. The veteran center struggled across 40 appearances (23 starts) in 2024-25, averaging 7.3 points and 7.8 rebounds on 50.0 percent shooting in 18.8 minutes per game.
Philadelphia spent second-round picks on centers Adem Bona (No. 41 in 2024) and Johni Broome (No. 35 in 2025) in the last two drafts. Both present better options to fill backup center minutes behind Joel Embiid this season.
Meanwhile, Oubre was a starter for Philadelphia last season after signing a two-year, $16.4 million contract. He posted decent counting stats across 60 appearances, averaging 15.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists. However, his outside shooting continued to regress, as he shot 29.3 percent from three on a career-low 4.2 attempts per 36 minutes.
Unlike Drummond, the 76ers may be able to move Oubre without attaching a draft pick to his contract. If not, the Nets could take on his salary with the intention of flipping him at the deadline, similar to their recent trade with the Miami Heat for Highsmith.
