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Not only did the Brooklyn Nets steal the news cycle on All-Star Sunday by signing Blake Griffin; the team managed to retain cap flexibility at the same time by getting the big man to agree to a veteran minimum deal. In slotting Griffin into the roster on a minimum contract, Brooklyn will still retain both the midlevel exception–estimated to be worth approximately $5.71 million–and the disabled player exception awarded following the loss of Spencer Dinwiddie, Christopher Lavinio pointed out on Twitter.
The Nets are using one of their veteran minimum contract slots to sign Blake Griffin per @wojespn, leaving them with both the Spencer Dinwiddie disabled player exception ($5.7M prorated) and the taxpayer midlevel exception ($5.7M prorated).
— Christopher Lavinio (@ChrisLavinio) March 8, 2021
While the signing of Griffin begins to address the Nets' lack of size and interior presence following the loss of Jarrett Allen in the James Harden trade, his injury history makes it unlikely that the team is done pursuing big men. Though the team will pursue multiple options, the most prominent target on the board for Brooklyn remains Cleveland center Andre Drummond, who most expect to move on from the franchise prior to the trade deadline on March 25.
Despite the Cavaliers reportedly working to secure a trade for Drummond to gain at least some assets in exchange for his services, there does remain the possibility that the two sides agree on a buyout of the center's contract instead, saving the Cavs millions of dollars.
With the Nets largely stripped of trade pieces, Drummond's entry into the free-agent market is Brooklyn's best hope at acquiring him since the team could not compete in a bidding war with other squads.
For a team that began the break with few viable options in the interior, the Nets could soon have a multitude to choose from.
