The Brooklyn Nets have made a pair of roster moves with a mind on the upcoming Play-In and hopefully playoffs. On Thursday afternoon, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the Nets are waiving forward james johnson. That should open up a roster spot to convert rookie Kessler Edwards to a standard NBA contract.

There was a stretch back in perhaps early December when Johnson was playing some good basketball. Coach Nash liked the former Heat players’ ability to switch defensively and that he was unselfish and played hard. But things began to sour for Johnson as of late.

If Johnson is indeed gone for good, Nets fans probably won’t lose much sleep as his questionable play lately has frustrated the Brooklyn Brigade, and apparently his coaching staff as well. Johnson appeared to make too many poor decisions like this one (below) recently to earn the trust of his star teammates:

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the decision as noted now opens up a roster spot so they can promote rookie wing Kessler Edwards to a standard contract. And that part should definitely excite fans.

Edwards logged 18 important minutes for the Nets when they beat the home town rival New York Knicks on Wednesday. He finished with 7 points, 3 rebounds, and a block as the team came back from a 21 point deficit.

The second round pick in 2021 was unspectacular but solid in the big win, draining 3 of his 7 field goal attempts. He has a sturdy body for such a young player that gives him the profile, and shooting mechanics, to become a rangy three-and-d player in time.

Perhaps this moment back in November foreshadowed today’s events:

Live and breathe the NBA?

🚨 Get viral NBA graphics, memes, rumors and trending news delivered right to your inbox with the Clutch Newsletter.

Just kidding.

The Nets have to win two home games, one vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers and one vs. the Indiana Pacers in order to clinch the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference heading into the Play-In. That would be vital since it would mean they’d host the first Play-In game with the winner securing the 7th seed and getting to face the second seed for round one.

Who they might host come April 12 would come down to record but a date with the Cleveland Cavaliers is feeling more likely by the day.

Who that second seed lying in wait for the Play-In winner will be depends in part by what happens in Milwaukee this evening.

The Boston Celtics are 50-30 with a half game lead on the Bucks, however, they won’t be at full strength for the showdown:

If you’re content to count some chickens that are still very far from hatching, that means there’s a decent chance that Kessler Edwards will be joining Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving on the road in Milwaukee for round one of the playoffs. There are still a ton of moving parts, but that scenario might feel a bit more likely this time tomorrow.

Edwards has averaged 10.4 points, to go with 6.4 boards, and 1.2 dimes per 36 minutes. Impressively, he’s averaged 1.1 blocks and 0.9 steals per the same time frame. He’s shooting an encouraging 36 percent from downtown. If he could eventually carve out a consistent role that shooting percentage might increase since he hasn’t had much of an opportunity to develop a rhythm.

Edwards has made his case for a standard contract at the season’s buzzer here. With only two games remaining, it seems as if he’ll need to keep that next-man-up mentality and stay ready in case Steve Nash calls his number for some of the biggest minutes of his young career in the weeks ahead.