Kevin Durant is injured through the All-Star break, Kyrie Irving is only available part of the time and James Harden now finds his name swirling in Ben Simmons trade rumors every single day. There have been days when the “scary hours” dream of a healthy and available, full-time Big Three felt like it was just around the corner, and other times it feels like it may just never materialize.

But with the NBA trade deadline now just over two weeks away, we'll keep a close watch on what Nets GM Sean Marks and company might look to do and try to outline some dangers for them to avoid.

3 potential Nets trades they 100% need to avoid

3) Don't make a Kyrie Irving panic trade without Kevin Durant's blessing

This one feels highly unlikely. Kevin Durant really, really likes Kyrie Irving. Those two came to the Nets in 2019 in large part because Irving grew up in Northern New Jersey, and he has so many friends and family members who have always supported the Nets. The team would seem to prefer to ride out this part-time player thing hoping for a resolution in any shape or form down the road (e.g. potential rule changes, changes of heart, possible plant vaccines).

Before Irving had returned even as a part-time player, we argued the Nets should do their due diligence and test the trade market for the seven-time All-Star. If they lined anything up and they're still considering a sneaky blockbuster, they better heed this warning:

Sean Marks, if you're listening, do not panic trade Irving! He has looked like a borderline top-10 player when available so far this year. He may be slowly crawling into his prime, as he says. You've come this far, you have to ride this out through the playoffs, even if it means risking Irving walking in free agency, leaving you empty-handed. Keeping hope alive to lock up Irving and Harden as full-time players for the next four or five years needs to be priority No. 1.

Risking the wrath of KD must be avoided at all costs.

2) Don't make a James Harden panic trade

You can rinse and repeat most of the logic from the Kyrie section minus the part-time player and plant vaccine bits. Even though there are tons of rumors that Harden has interest in exploring free agency, that is a bridge to be crossed come June and July.

Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer wrote this on Tuesday: “Harden remains invested in competing for the title in Brooklyn this season, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.”

Harden responded to questions about those reports after Tuesday's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers:

Trading a player who may be set to flee in free agency is usually worth considering … just not when you might be Finals favorites and can offer an All-NBA-caliber talent about $70 million more than any other team and also (arguably) the best chance to win a championship. They also traded more than a little to get him, which was the right thing to do, but more work needs to be done still to avoid feeling burned:

Marks must dare The Beard to walk away from an extra $70 million and the chance to play with Kevin Durant. If he does, only then do you start to think about your possible returns in a sign-and-trade. Luckily, teams like the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers and other alluring markets don't have max cap space to offer. If the money (and the chance to contend) talks, Harden should re-up by July, despite the rumors he has a wandering eye.

So it's fine to spend precisely four minutes considering trading The Beard this deadline. But then you must move on.

1) They must avoid a trade undervaluing their young core

Of the three we've looked at here, this last one feels like the only realistic mistake Brooklyn could make here, and it's a complicated calculus.

The Nets have had key players unavailable for one reason or another all season long. That figures to continue to be the case moving forward. The Nets have done well for themselves drafting young, promising talent. They appeared to procure a tantalizing scorer like Cameron Thomas, an upside 3-and-D wing in Kessler Edwards, a vertical threat and switchable defender in Nic Claxton, plus a big in Day'Ron Sharpe (already an advanced stats darling) using precious little draft capital. It wasn't like they had any lottery picks, but that unit has been very impressive.

Like Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga in Golden State, perhaps this young core offers some win-now help, as well as an upside bridge toward an era extending beyond the current star-studded championship window.

On the one hand, it's not at all safe to assume any of those names except Claxton will earn the trust of Steve Nash to be a rotation player in a huge playoff match. Even the third-year big out of Georgia is somewhat unsafe to rely on because of his injury history. The team has two trade exceptions (one around $6 million and one in the $11 million range), and including one of those names above and a couple second-round picks might land them some reliable veteran help. They need to do due diligence and see what's available there.

I might recommend they keep their young core and use second-round picks to target Indiana's sharpshooter Justin Holiday, but reports are that Holiday is not vaccinated, which would mean dealing with another part-time player (although that's arguably still worth it for the price of a pair of second-rounders). Maybe he'd change his position if it meant competing for a championship and remaining a full-time player. Holiday would be nice value:

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Claxton's name has come up in trade rumors since he's set to be a restricted free agent, and they may not feel they can afford the Big Three and the 22-year-old big moving forward.

So, while there are options, nothing is obvious or simple. They don't want to be risk-averse and miss the chance to bring in win-now help, and they don't want to undervalue the talent they may have successfully mined here.

If I had to guess, I'd say they will really explore trading both Claxton and Sharpe. Thomas is the flashiest as an electric scorer who has already hit a game-winner and earned the trust of Kevin Durant:

Edwards profiles like the type of player every team in the league wants now. Those two seem safer. Still, a title-or-bust team can't rely on 20-year-olds to deliver in June, so this one is tough.

You're looking for good players on smaller contracts who play for bad teams that might prefer a young player or later pick. Indiana's Holiday could work, while the Oklahoma City Thunder have a stretch big in Mike Muscala, a paint big in Derrick Favors and a wing in Kenrich Williams who could all theoretically earn a playoff rotation spot. If the New York Knicks were willing to do business with a division rival, Nerlens Noel and Alec Burks both fit into a Nets trade exception. Los Angeles Clippers big Serge Ibaka fits too, if you wanted to reunite KD, Harden and the Congolese star.

The final calculus here is the buyout market. Brooklyn has been a popular market for former stars. You don't want to overpay for the type of help you might have access to via buyout just a week later.

As of now, we're recommending they don't do much here. Avoid panic trading a member of the Big Three (which they didn't need to hear) and be careful not to undervalue their young core.