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The Brooklyn Nets have been among the NBA's busiest teams this offseason. After making an NBA-record five first-round draft picks plus two trades, the team's future looks vastly different from what it did one month ago.
While the Nets have been active, their moves have not drawn rave reviews. ESPN's Kevin Pelton gave the team a C minus in his offseason grades series.
“Given the Nets' commanding position as the only team with more than $30 million in cap space this summer, their return has been underwhelming,” Pelton wrote. “Brooklyn did net a 2032 unprotected first-rounder from Denver and can hope to rehabilitate Michael Porter Jr.'s value. The Nets also landed the No. 22 pick with Terance Mann prior to the draft, but keeping all five first-round picks and using them largely on players whose games don't seem complementary was confusing. Brooklyn still can create $20-plus million in cap space, and we'll see whether additional deals materialize before training camp.”
Only the Sacramento Kings (D+), Indiana Pacers (D), and New Orleans Pelicans (F) received worse grades than the Nets. Much of Pelton's discontent with Brooklyn's offseason seems to stem from the team's draft.
ESPN criticizes Nets' offseason strategy following historic NBA draft
The Nets' draft left many front office executives and draft analysts scratching their heads. Not only did they become the first team in NBA history to make five first-round picks in a single draft, they used three of their selections on international point guards in Egor Demin, Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf.
Brooklyn's selection of Demin at No. 8 has drawn heavy criticism. The Russian floor general, who represents the team's first lottery pick since 2010, flashed elite playmaking at BYU but struggled as a ball-handler and scorer for much of last season. A recent poll of 20 anonymous scouts and executives by ESPN's Jeremy Woo labeled Demin as the draft's “biggest reach.”
Beyond Demin, the Nets took chances on lead ball-handlers in Traore and Saraf, both of whom have showcased intriguing offensive potential but struggled as outside shooters. They also took North Carolina wing Drake Powell and Michigan big man Danny Wolf.
None of Brooklyn's selections performed exceptionally well at Summer League. Demin was the most encouraging, shooting 43.5 percent on 7.7 three-point attempts per game. Meanwhile, Traore and Saraf flashed impressive advantage creation with the ball in their hands, but continued to struggle as shooters.
Wolf looked uncomfortable offensively while playing two of his three games at power forward alongside a non-shooting center in Drew Timme. Meanwhile, Powell sat out due to a knee injury.
Time will tell whether Brooklyn's draft deserves the criticism it has received thus far. However, the rest of the team's offseason moves are worthy of a higher grade than a C minus.
The Nets acquired a prized asset in Denver's unprotected 2032 first-round pick in their Cam Johnson trade. They also received Michael Porter Jr., who is two years younger than Johnson and in a similar tier as a player. While Porter Jr.'s contract is viewed unfavorably with two years and $79 million remaining, Brooklyn can offer him a chance to rehabilitate his value during the early stages of its rebuild.
General manager Sean Marks acquired another first-round pick, the No. 22 selection in this year's draft (used on Powell), for taking on Terance Mann's three-year, $47 million contract. While Powell's development will determine the deal's value, the No. 22 selection in what many consider a deep draft is a quality return for taking on a mid-sized contract.
Outside of the draft and trades, Marks re-signed Day'Ron Sharpe and Ziaire Williams to team-friendly deals. He gave both players two-year, $12 million contracts with a team option. Sharpe is coming off a career-best season during which he posted the NBA's second-highest offensive rebounding percentage and showed significant improvement defensively.
Overall, much of the dissatisfaction with the Nets' offseason has been tied to their surprising draft strategy. While those criticisms may ultimately prove valid, it will be some time before fans and pundits can make an adequate judgment. Beyond the draft, it's difficult to say Brooklyn received poor value in its trades, given its overall return of Porter Jr., Terance Mann, an unprotected Nuggets 2032 first-round pick and the No. 22 pick in this year's draft while sending out only Johnson.
