Trade-Deadline Aftermath In Regards To The Nets
Feb 19, 2010 Analysis, Opinion, Trades
The Nets decided to stand pat at the trading deadline this year, but it seems like they were the only ones. There were a lot of teams clearing space at the deadline, and now the Nets aren’t the only ones with a lot of cap space available going into this offseason. Now that the dust has settled, I think it is important to look at the teams with newly discovered capspace and compare their situations to the Nets.All numbers moving forward are based on an estimated salary cap of $53 million next year.
Sacramento Kings
Breakdown
By shipping Kevin Martin out, the Kings have freed up slightly less than $19 million (before taking into consideration the contract of a lottery pick). This can make them a player for a a real good second tier guy. It has long been a plan that if the Nets can’t get a max contract guy (Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh), the Nets would end up “settling” for a second tier guy like Joe Jonson, Rudy Gay, or Carlos Boozer (this is if any of them are willing to take less than the max). The Kings can now sneak in and take away one of these guys.
Advantage
So why would a player go to Sacramento over New Jersey? There is a pretty special player named Tyreke Evans over there. There has to be a shooting guard out there just salivating about the chance to play with him, plus they have another lottery pick coming this year. A nice little core building in Sacramento.
Caron Butler Isn’t the Answer
Jan 21, 2010 Devin Harris, Trades
While I understand a growing contingent of Nets fans would be willing to personally drive Devin Harris to the airport if he were to be traded in the near future, I can only plead to those fans to please think about what you’re possibly getting in return. Because when it comes to the recent Devo for Caron Butler rumors that are making their rounds, I really don’t think this is the kind of the deal Nets fans should be looking to make.
In 07-08 and 08-09, Butler averaged more than 20 points per game on about 46 percent shooting, including 35 percent on threes two seasons ago. In 07-08 he put up a fantastic 20.59 Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and last season, he put up a respectable 18.84 on a depleted Wizards team.
The problem is, Butler’s 2009-10 numbers come nowhere close to what he put up the past two seasons. With a True Shooting percentage of 51.4 and a PER of 13.67, these are Butler’s worst numbers since 2003-04, his second season in the NBA. He is the epitome of a below average offensive player at the SF right now, averaging 16.9 points on 43 percent shooting, including 29 percent from three.
And while the Wizards play better D with Butler on the floor than off (defensive efficiency of 110.2 per 100 possession on the floor vs. 111.1 per 100 off) Butler has been called out by some as being a bit lazy on defense. ESPN’s John Hollinger said he easily lost focus once Washington’s season went in the tank last season. Basketball Prospectus said in its preseason preview that Butler “gives back some of that value at the defensive end.”
So we have a player posting near career-low numbers who’s inconsistent on defense. Sounds like he’ll fit right in around here, right?
While I’m not opposed of acquiring a player like Butler before the trade deadline, it can’t be at the expense of Devin Harris. While Harris has struggled mightily, he proved last year with Vince Carter that he can be productive with an offensive-minded running mate. Plus, who’s your point guard after this season? As we already know, John Wall is no guarantee.
I still think Devin Harris needs the benefit of the doubt here. I’m as unhappy with him as the next guy, but I only think you’re in a position to move him if you get the number one pick in June. Until then, Harris is an average player at a tough position to fill, who has shown the ability to raise his offensive game when he has other players around him who can take some of the scoring burden off his shoulders. While I can’t imagine they have a terrible amount of value, the Nets would be better served looking to package Courtney Lee, Chris Douglas-Roberts or Yi Jianlian with some of their expiring contracts if they’re trying to acquire a “core” piece. I was semi-satisfied to read this morning that the Nets might back down from their Devin trade talk, but with the way this organization is being run, anything can happen it seems.
Is Devin Harris On the Block?
Jan 11, 2010 Devin Harris, Trades
While most of the trade talk has focused on the Nets’ expiring contracts, the ESPN’s Chad Ford, over at the TrueHoop mothership introduces a brand new scenario where the Nets could potentially move Devin Harris and an expiring contract or two for an impact player that would help the Nets win now:
The thinking is that if the Nets can land two good players now, that might be better than having to overpay to good players this summer out of desperation.
This tidbit comes on the heels of reports that the Lakers and Rockets had both shown interest in Toronto’s Chris Bosh – one of the big free agents to-be this summer. Such a trade could dramatically alter the free agent landscape this summer because of the “Bird Rights” which allows a player’s current team to offer them the most money in free agency. By moving Bosh (or Wade or LeBron hypothetically) to another team, it lessens the Nets (and Knicks) ability to sign one of these marquee names, leaving those two teams with secondary players to spend their valuable cap space on.
According to the Ford report, only Brook Lopez is “untouchable” on the Nets.
I have to admit, I’m a bit surprised by this report. Not because I think Devin Harris is necessarily untouchable, but because I really didn’t think the Nets would be willing to move one of their “core” guys and abandon their 2010 summer plans.
Total speculation here, but here are my two theories why the Nets would move Devin Harris now:
1. The Nets braintrust believe that his struggles are not linked to injury and that he’s simply not a cornerstone player and that last season (where Devin was really only dominant through the first half) was a fluke.
2. The Nets are really, really panicked that they won’t be able to land a free agent this summer because of the current trade market, and their current record. Remember, Bosh, Joe Johnson, and LeBron all indicated that a team’s record matters. I also think money talks, but we’ll see.
Still, trade talk around the Nets just got a lot more interesting.
Nets Send Najera to Dallas for Humphries, to Cut Sean Williams
Jan 9, 2010 Eduardo Najera, Kris Humphries, Trades
Dave D’Alessandro wasn’t kidding when he said a deal between the Nets and the Dallas Mavericks was imminent. Overnight, the Nets and Mavs agreed to swap Eduardo Najera and PF Kris Humphries, according to Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Nets also received Shawne Williams in the trade, who hasn’t played this season, and is expected to be bought out of his contract. To make room on the roster, the Nets will formally end the Sean Williams era, cutting the troubled F/C. Wojnarowski expects the deal to be formalized by the league on Monday morning.
Beat writer Al Iannazzone, picking up on the report, makes the deal sound a little more tentative, but agrees that it should all come together on Monday. Iannazzone also thinks the Nets could send a trade exception over to Dallas.
Let’s take a tale of the tape here regarding the two main pieces in this deal, Humphries and Najera. Humphries is going to add anywhere between $200K and $700K to the salary cap next season and is 10 years younger than Najera.
Humphries doesn’t get a lot of minutes in Dallas, but he’s fairly efficient when he plays. He’s currently averaging 17.2 points and 10.6 rebounds per 40 minutes, good for a Player Efficiency Rating of 15.25, which is slightly above average. According to his 82games profile, he takes about 54 percent of his shots close to the rim or at the rim, good for a 54 percent effective field goal percentage. His eFG is about 37 percent on his jump shots.
Here’s ESPN’s John Hollinger scouting report on Humphries, before the season started:
Humphries has two major weaknesses. First, he’s a selfish offensive player who forces shots. Even though he can score, he too often flings quick jumpers and breaks plays, especially when he catches in the high post area. He shoots the ball like it’s contagious, flicking it from in front of his face within nanoseconds of picking up his dribble. The result is usually a low liner into the front rim. He can finish and draw fouls around the basket and is an impressive offensive rebounder, but he doesn’t earn brownie points with the coaches when he lets it rip off the dribble from 15. Also, he needs to improve his foul shooting (58.5 percent career).
The other weakness is his defense. Humphries has a strong build but is undersized for a 4 at 6-foot-8, and his effort is inconsistent. He keeps gambling by trying to steal post entry passes instead of playing solid D behind his man, and with his quickness he should be a better pick-and-roll defender.
As for Najera, the man was never healthy enough in his tenure with the Nets to make an impact, only playing in 27 games last year and 13 this year. Many thought the Nets were insane for giving him a four-year deal before last year, and those critics were proven correct. Najera was supposed to bring leadership and toughness on the defensive end to the Nets, but did neither. When the Nets were showcasing him Tuesday night against the Bucks, he looked slow and out of shape, so we’ll see if he even plays with Dallas.
Sean Williams was probably an even bigger enigma. Swat looked like he had potential his rookie year, starting 29 games and averaging 5.6 points and 1.5 blocks. But he continually did things on and off the court to play himself out of the rotation. Last season, the Nets sent him down the the D-League where he was ejected from a game, and he was also arrested in Denver for throwing a monitor at a store clerk. The guy probably needs help in a venue away from basketball, and from one human to another, I hope he finds it.
Could We Have Hump Day in Jersey?
Jan 8, 2010 Eduardo Najera, Terrence Williams, Trades
In his mailbag over at the Star-Ledger web site, Dave D’Alessandro speculates that talks between the Nets and the Dallas Mavs regarding a Eduardo Najera for Kris Humphries swap are heating up and a deal is “imminent.”
There was a little confusion about this when we posted about it earlier in the week so let me source Dave D. here. He believes adding Humphries for Najera would add about $700K to the payroll, not a significant amount.
Humphries, a PF, is averaging 5.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in about 13 minutes of play this season.
In another nugget from the mailbag, Terrence Williams’ playing time has been reduced recently because he slept through the team’s shootaround before the Bucks game on Tuesday. Maybe if more Nets players overslept, they wouldn’t look like they were sleepwalking out there, right?
Nets on the Net: 1/5/10 Edition
Jan 5, 2010 Brooklyn, Courtney Lee, Jarvis Hayes, Nets on the Net, Trades
Al Iannazzone talks about the Nets rebounding woes over at Nets Insider. NAS will also be taking a look at this later today so stay tuned: “Personally, I think it’s one, getting a body on everybody, but then it’s pursuing the ball,” Vandeweghe said. “To me, it’s a matter of desire, and you’ve got to want the ball and realize that rebounding is part of defense. The only way you get the ball back is either you get a rebound, you get a steal or the other team scores – and the last one’s not so good. So you’ve got to get rebounds.”
Talking about Courtney Lee and his shooting issues: “He’s got to become a better isolation player,” Nets president Rod Thorn said. “He has to get his shot off quicker, and there’s an adjustment there. And he needs to continue to work on his dribble-drive move. He’s good all the way to the basket, but his intermediate range is what he has to get better at — the one- or two-dribble pull-up.
Expect Jarvis Hayes back for real tonight: “He’s such a big part of our team,” center Brook Lopez said. “He’s definitely one of the leaders on our team. We have been missing that leadership on the floor. Just basketball-wise, he’s a guy who can stretch the floor, really open things for us.”
Marc Spears of Yahoo has some trade talk involving the Nets. First a proposed trade with Dallas offering Eduardo Najera for Kris Humphries and Shawne Williams are on “life support.” It also looks like a trade deal dried up between the Nets and Denver that would have sent Josh Boone for Joey Graham. More on Nets trade talk in a few hours.
The Empire State Development Corporation talks eminent domain in Harlem today. No word on whether there will be any questions about their activity in Brooklyn.
Nets Tried Trading For Nate Robinson?
Jan 2, 2010 Rafer Alston, Rumors, Tony Battie, Trades
Apparently they did. Check out this tweet from Adrian Wojnarowski, a very credible source in my opinion:
Prior to Christmas, Knicks turned down a Nets offer of Rafer Alston and Tony Battie for Nate Robinson and Darko Milicic, league sources say.
That’s…well…interesting to say the least. Rod and Kiki have said a number of times that they weren’t going to take on any new salary for next year to make this year’s team better. A deal like this makes sense for both teams because all of the names involved are expiring contracts. If anything, this just confirms that Rafer doesn’t really have a place on this team anymore and they are looking to move him. I doubt that they can get a pick for him due to his poor play this year, but if they can get someone who they think will help this year, and won’t count against next year, I say they move him.
Nets Renegotiate Deal With Warriors (Updated)
Sep 21, 2009 2009 Offseason, Golden State Warriors, Trades
UPDATE: So it turns out the Nets aren’t getting any second rounders…yet…Fred Kerber has the breakdown:
So the Warriors and Nets huddled and came up with a new solution. The Nets would receive Golden state’s first rounder in either 2012, ‘13 or 14. The first rounder is protected 1 through 7 in both 2012 and 2013, protected 1 through 6 in 2014. If the Warriors still stink worse than the American League Central in 2014, then the Nets would get two second rounders: in 2014 and 2016.
So as we originally thought, this deal was done basically to help the Warriors try and complete a deal. We get in return a far less protected pick in either 2012, 2013, or 2014. Whatever year we do get this pick, one thing is for sure, we are definitely getting the better end of the deal. This also strengthens my belief that the Nets aren’t making any moves before camp. Mainly because they have less definite picks than the original reports gave us, plus we won’t be likely to move our first rounder, especially if it is far less protected.
—
According to Yahoo’s Marc J. Spears, the Golden State Warriors sent two future second round picks to delay the delivery of a the first round pick that they agreed to send the Nets in the Marcus Williams deal:
For agreeing to delay receiving the first-rounder from Golden State, the Nets will acquire two future second-round picks from the Warriors. The first-round pick originally was lottery protected in 2011. It now has lesser protection for 2012, though sources did not reveal in detail the exact level of protection.
The move allows the Warriors more time and flexibility to package their 2011 first-round pick in a deal, if they so choose. A source, however, said Golden State currently does not have any potential trades on the horizon – including anything involving disgruntled forward Jackson.
This deal works for both teams in my opinion. The Warriors can use their pick in a trade, and the Nets continue to stockpile picks, a smart move for a rebuilding team.
Now there are whispers that the Nets agreed to this move because they are looking to make a deal relatively soon. I am not really sure I agree…I have said it a number of times, I really do think that the Nets should (and will) stay put to start the season. With that being said, if we near the deadline and we can use one or both of these picks in a deal (Mark and I did mention in one of our podcasts that we think there is a chance the Nets add a big piece via a deadline deal this year instead of looking for one in free agency), I am all for it.
We should find out for sure by the end of this week though. Camp opens up soon, and you have got to think that if the Nets are going to make a deal, it will happen before then. If there is no deal, we are probably standing pat until at least the trading deadline.
Nets and Heat Talking Trade?
Sep 2, 2009 2009 Offseason, Keyon Dooling, Rafer Alston, Trades
The Miami Herlad is reporting this morning that the Nets and Heat have spoken about a possible trade involving either Rafer Alston or Keyon Dooling. “Nothing materialized, but the door was left open for further talks,” the Herald report said.
As Sebastian broke down last week, I think Rafer Alston is a good fit as backup to Devin Harris and I would hate to see him flipped in a trade so quickly. He could bring a stability to that backup PG spot this team has lacked for years. While Dooling played above and beyond my expectations last year, the Nets appear to have a little more depth on the bench at SG depending on what the team wants to do with Chris Douglas-Roberts. Then, of course, is the issue of what Miami is going t offer back in a trade, which will most certainly need to be some level of salary relief geared towards keeping the Nets well under the cap for next summer.
The Trade That Changed Everything: In Thorn We Trust
Aug 17, 2009 Rod Thorn, Trades
While some might question whether or not the Nets have made roster moves this summer for team-building reasons or for strictly budgetary ones, NBA.com, in a review of some of the top trades of the past 20 years, reminds us of what was arguably the best trade ever in the franchise’s history when the Nets acquired Jason Kidd from Phoenix for Stephon Marbury. Kidd had the “character issues” tag when he was acquired, but back-to-back final trips later, I think most Nets fans forgot the assumed risks that came with Kidd. On days where I question the wisdom of team president Rod Thorn, I often come back to that trade and remember that we have one of the best minds in basketball running this ship. Nobody is perfect, but when you can pull off a move that good, you should be able to buy yourself a lot of good will.
Published by Mark Ginocchio