<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nets-news-cam-johnson-dorian-finney-smith-reveal-conversations-sean-marks-amid-trade-rumors');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nets’ Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith reveal conversations with Sean Marks amid trade rumors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Nets-Cam-Johnson-Dorian-Finney-Smith-reveal-conversations-with-Sean-Marks-amid-trade-rumors.jpg"></figure><h1>Nets’ Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith reveal conversations with Sean Marks amid trade rumors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-09-30T16:37:25-07:00">September 30th, 4:37pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-09-30T16:37:25-07:00">September 30th, 4:37pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Brooklyn Nets general manager <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-gm-sean-marks-reveals-why-took-knicks-mikal-bridges-trade-offer">Sean Marks revealed an honest goal for the organization</a> entering year one of a rebuild.</p><p>“We’re looking at it as, ‘Who are the next Nets?’ Who do we look at and say, ‘Ok, this person can be part of this rebuild, and this person is on the team for the next two, three years,'” the GM said. “Development is going to be, if not the 1A [priority], certainly 1B, in terms of some of the young guys we have and the young guys we’ll be bringing in.”</p><p>Youth, development and upside will be buzzwords for the Nets, who have the NBA’s lowest win/loss projection this season at 19.5 games. But what about the players who don’t fit those descriptors? After all, the team has several veterans, such as Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Dennis Schroder and Bojan Bogdanović, who could be of value to contenders.</p><p>All four players are still on the roster at the start of training camp. However, it would be shocking if one or more were not traded before this year’s deadline. Trade negotiations typically heat up after Jan. 15, when teams can trade free agents they signed during the prior offseason.</p><h2>How are Nets veterans dealing with trade speculation?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Nets-Sean-Marks.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Of the group, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/best-cam-johnson-trade-destinations-if-nets-continue-roster-blowup">Johnson should have the most trade value</a>. While he has struggled to stay healthy with Brooklyn, the 6-foot-8 forward has shot 41 percent from three on 6.0 attempts per game over his last three seasons. With his name frequently involved in trade rumors, Johnson and Marks have had an open line of communication.</p><p>“The conversations have been just letting him know that I understand the business,” Johnson said at Nets Media Day. “I just said there’s never a hard feeling about anything that happens. I like Sean a lot, and I appreciate Sean a lot. That won’t change if I was traded two months ago, that won’t change if I’m traded two months from now, that won’t change if I remain a Net for the rest of my career.”</p><p>“So I let him know that. And then after that, it’s just, ‘Let me know what’s going on.’ I’d like to be in the loop of what can happen, of what he’s thinking, of what the team’s thinking,” Johnson continued. “He was very good to have that conversation with. And he gave me a lot of good feedback as well.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Cam Johnson on his conversations with Sean Marks amid trade rumors:</p><p>“I like Sean a lot, and I appreciate Sean a lot. That won’t change if I was traded two months ago or two months from now… It’s just, 'Let me know what’s going on.' I’d like to be in the loop of what can happen… <a href="https://t.co/Ympke8wt3C">pic.twitter.com/Ympke8wt3C</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1840805793505165669?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Johnson played in 58 games last season while battling a slew of injuries. A hot start to the season could ease the minds of front offices across the league and grow his value. The veteran sharpshooter is under contract for two years, $45 million after this season, a deal that could look favorable with the salary cap expected to rise due to a $76 billion media rights deal.</p><p>Several teams have been linked to Johnson, including the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets and Cleveland Cavaliers.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-unlikely-first-round-picks-dorian-finney-smith">Finney-Smith is another three-and-D wing who would offer a seamless fit</a> on several contenders. While he is not the same caliber shooter as Johnson, the <a href="https://x.com/NBA/status/1523439003760005120" rel="noopener">31-year-old has risen to the occasion in the playoffs</a>, shooting 41.7 percent from deep on 5.5 attempts per game over 35 career appearances. His hard-nosed defense should pique the interest of several contenders.</p><p>Finney-Smith is under contract for $14.9 million before a $15.4 million player option next season, allowing teams to match his contract far easier than Johnson’s. While the veteran wing said he is focused on competing with Brooklyn, he is grateful for Marks’ open-door policy amid trade speculation.</p><p>“I spoke to Sean, spoke to the coaches. They’ve been really open, and I appreciate that,” Finney-Smith said. “A lot of times in this league, coaches won’t say anything to you, and they’ll just try to sweep it under the rug like your name ain’t all over the internet. We got families, so we don’t want to hear that. But that’s what comes with the business.</p><p>“But I appreciate them just letting me know that they hear it and it’s a lot going on. Coach said that just means that a lot of teams want you. It could be the other way around, where you’re trying to find a spot. So there are always a lot of positives in everything.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dorian Finney-Smith on his conversations with Sean Marks and Nets coaches amid trade speculation:</p><p>"They've been really open, and I appreciate that. A lot of times in this league, coaches won't say anything to you, and they'll just try to sweep it under the rug like your name… <a href="https://t.co/XPHob6jUPS">pic.twitter.com/XPHob6jUPS</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1840838688672006237?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Nets open training camp on Tuesday and will kick off the preseason on Oct. 8 against the Los Angeles Clippers. While their names should continue to be a fixture in trade rumors during the first half of this season, Marks feels Brooklyn’s veterans still have an important role on the new-look roster.</p><p>“I think it’s really important for everybody to not necessarily read into what everyone else’s opinions may be,” he said. “If you look at every rebuild and every team around the league, it’s paramount and important to have veterans on your roster and guys that are going to buy in, help lead, and help be a voice for our coaching staff. They have to be sending the right message to the young guys.</p><p>“I get that their timelines may not look quite the same as what the organization’s looks like, and that’s why I think it’s very important to have transparent conversations with them. We’ve had those conversations. I think they know what’s expected of them. We know what’s expected of us and vice versa. So, for us it’s just to keep the door open. If they need to come in and have a conversation with [head coach] Jordi [Fernandez] or myself, the door is always open and we’ll be clear and honest with them. We expect the same thing on their front.”</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nets’ Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith reveal conversations with Sean Marks amid trade rumors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-hornets-eyed-isaac-okoro-sign-and-trade-before-cavs-extension');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets, Hornets eyed Isaac Okoro sign-and-trade before Cavs extension');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NBA-rumors-Nets-Hornets-eyed-Isaac-Okoro-sign-and-trade-before-Cavs-extension.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets, Hornets eyed Isaac Okoro sign-and-trade before Cavs extension</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-09-14T14:30:50-07:00">September 14th, 2:30pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-09-14T14:30:50-07:00">September 14th, 2:30pm</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Cleveland Cavaliers and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/cavs-news-isaac-okoro-agree-38-million-contract">Isaac Okoro agreed to a three-year, $38 million contract</a> extension on Saturday, securing the Cavs’ starting frontcourt alongside center Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Cleveland used its Bird Rights to extend Mobley’s rookie deal on a five-year, $224.3 million contract before <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/cavs-news-jarrett-allen-cleveland-agree-3-year-91-million-extension">Allen inked a three-year, $91 million extension</a> in August. However, the Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets were reportedly engaging in a potential sign-and-trade move for Okoro before striking a deal to stay in Cleveland, according to Hoopshype’s Michael Scotto.</p><p>“The Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets were among the teams who expressed interest in acquiring restricted free agent Isaac Okoro via sign-and-trade before he agreed to a three-year, $38 million deal to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, league sources told [Hoopshype],” Scotto said on his X, formerly Twitter.</p><p>The Cavs extended their qualifying offer worth $11.83 million on June 29, which Okoro declined before the Nets and Hornets expressed interest. However, both sides could agree to a new deal before its October 1 expiration date, keeping Okoro in Cleveland ahead of the upcoming season and beyond.</p><p>“Deal includes a small amount in bonuses tied to team success,” Scotto said of Okoro’s deal when the news broke. “Okoro passed on taking his qualifying offer to help keep core together and try to compete for a title.”</p><p>After rumors of the Cavs potentially trading Okoro ahead of the upcoming season, both sides were amidst negotiations on a multiyear deal before making Okoro’s three-year extension official on Saturday, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.</p><p>“Isaac Okoro, there’s only been a little bit of talking back and forth. I’m sure it will increase as we get closer to camp,” Windhorst said. “The Cavs are realizing that all the money is spent out there. Okoro has the option of taking his qualifying offer. I am told the Cavs made a multiyear offer. Whatever that’s worth, it’s kind of a no-brainer [that] they would make a multiyear offer.”</p><h2><b>The Cavs’ front office is all-in on its core players</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Cavs-small-forward-Isaac-Okoro.jpg"><figcaption>David Richard-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>After firing former Cleveland Cavs head coach JB Bickerstaff at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, the Cavs front office secured its core, including Isaac Okoro, during its pivotal offseason. Coming from its deepest playoff run in six years, the Cavs signed their superstar <a href="https://cavsnation.com/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-immediate-reaction-150-3-million-contract-extension" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell to a three-year, $150.3 million extension</a> in July before securing Allen to a new multiyear deal and bringing back Tristan Thompson on a one-year contract.</p><p>Under new head coach Kenny Atkinson, they will look to build on their Eastern Conference semifinals 4-1 loss to the Boston Celtics, who beat a depleted Cavs team that played without their starting center Jarrett Allen all series and were without Mitchell for Games 4 and 5.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets, Hornets eyed Isaac Okoro sign-and-trade before Cavs extension

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-unlikely-first-round-picks-dorian-finney-smith');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets unlikely to get first round picks for Dorian Finney-Smith');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Nets-unlikely-to-get-first-round-picks-for-Dorian-Finney-Smith.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets unlikely to get first round picks for Dorian Finney-Smith</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-09-11T20:51:46-07:00">September 11th, 8:51pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-09-11T20:54:30-07:00">September 11th, 8:54pm</time><address><a>Michael Aaron Gomez</a>Michael Aaron Gomez is a creative writer and longtime NBA fan. He has been a fan of the Lakers since the three-peat but believes LeBron James is the greatest player of all time.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/knicks-news-stunning-mikal-bridges-nets-rockets-trade">Brooklyn Nets trading Mikal Bridges</a> to cross-town rival New York Knicks signaled the rebuild for a team looking to reset after the implosion of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/kevin-durant-kyrie-irving-james-harden-the-worst-big-3-experiment-in-nba-history">Big Three</a> of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden. While Ben Simmons hasn’t played meaningful minutes with them, they tried putting their cards on Bridges, but they realized they were simply treading water. Additionally, the Nets explored a trade for Dorian Finney-Smith, but their asking price for two first-round picks was too high for contenders.</p><p>However, Tim McMahon of ESPN aid that the Nets won’t find that deal in this market, and they should settle for less if they want to offload the 3-and-D wing.</p><p>“If you’re looking for 3-and-D wings, you’re calling Sean Marks,” McMahon said in a recent episode of The Hoop Collective. “There’s no reason Dorian Finney-Smith should be in Brooklyn past the trade deadline. Now, last year, the Nets were telling teams they wanted two first round picks for him. That’s not going to happen, but he is the epitome of a 3-and-D wing.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"></figure><h2><b>The Nets go on a fire sale</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Dorian-Finney-Smith-making-a-move.jpg"><figcaption>© Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Among teams scoping the Nets’ <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/nets/news/assessing-the-state-of-the-brooklyn-nets-rebuild" rel="noopener">fire sale</a>, the Los Angeles <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-among-teams-could-profit-nets-fire-sale">Lakers have discussed acquiring Dorian Finney-Smith</a> and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-still-among-teams-linked-cam-johnson-trade">Cam Johnson, as GM Rob Pelinka</a> even expressed willingness to include their tradable first-round picks in 2029 and 2031. However, the Nets may hold the upper hand here, since they know the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-lebron-james-104-million-contract-free-agency">Lakers have little time left with LeBron James</a>, who is entering year 22 at 39 years old.</p><p>Likewise, his on-court partner Anthony Davis is approaching the downslope of his prime. However, the Nets themselves are running out of time to get as much value from a Dorian Finney-Smith trade.</p><p>Finney-Smith is already 30 years old, and he can pick up a $15.4-million player option in 2025-26. As an unrestricted free agent, he can walk away for nothing if the Nets fail to trade him, after rejecting substantial offers on the last two trade deadlines.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets unlikely to get first round picks for Dorian Finney-Smith

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-named-as-potential-jimmy-butler-destination-in-2025');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets named as potential Jimmy Butler destination in 2025');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Nets-named-as-potential-Jimmy-Butler-destination-in-2025.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets named as potential Jimmy Butler destination in 2025</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-08-31T15:30:30-07:00">August 31st, 3:30pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-08-31T15:30:30-07:00">August 31st, 3:30pm</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/5-must-watch-nets-games-2024-25-schedule">Brooklyn Nets fans look forward to games</a> for the upcoming season, there could be something else to look forward to when it comes to the 2025 free agency period. Among the possible free agents, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/heat-news-gm-makes-eye-opening-comments-jimmy-butlers-lack-contract-extension">Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler amidst his contract controversy</a> could be a player that might be interested in <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/08/31/sports/what-nets-cap-space-edge-could-mean-for-2025-nba-free-agency/" rel="noopener">Brooklyn as a possible destination</a> according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post.</p><p>“The six-time All-Star is the most accomplished standout on that list not named James, and he likes Brooklyn, according to sources close to the player,” Lewis wrote via <a href="https://x.com/LegionHoops/status/1829902061485637679" rel="noopener">Legion Hoops on their X,</a> formerly Twitter, account.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-heats-jimmy-butler-seeking-113-million-contract-extension">Butler was initially seeking a new sizable contract extension</a> after the season where the Heat lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Boston Celtics. The star wouldn’t play that series as he dealt with an MCL sprain in the first play-in tournament game and missed the rest of the postseason, but the Heat wouldn’t budge leading to Butler choosing to play out this season and l<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-jimmy-butler-heat-contract-extension-offseason">ooking for a big deal at the end of next season</a> according to Shams Charania.</p><p>“Jimmy Butler, he’s going to play out next season under his current contract with the Heat,” Charania said. “I’m told he will not be signing an extension with the Heat or any other team ahead of his opt-out in 2025 free agency. This clears up any notion of a trade demand out of Jimmy Butler. He intends to play out next season.”</p><h2><b>Heat’s Pat Riley non-committal in giving Jimmy Butler contract extension</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Jimmy-Butler-on-April-17-2024.-1.jpg"><figcaption>Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/heat-news-jimmy-butler-contract-extension-trade-rumors-key-pat-riley-update">Miami Heat president Pat Riley was non-commital</a> in his end of season press conference in May about the team giving Butler a contract extension. Riley would <a href="https://x.com/ZachWeinberger/status/1787546558617330077" rel="noopener">cite player availability as a risk</a> where besides being highly successful in this stint, Butler hasn’t played more than 64 games in a season for Miami (played in 60 last season).</p><p>“Well, you know, we don’t have to do that for a year and so we have not discussed that internally right now but we have to look at that and then making that kind of commitment,” Riley said. “We don’t have to do it until 25 actually, but we’ll see. We haven’t made a decision on it. And we really haven’t really in earnest. discussed it. So we’ll see what happens.”</p><p>“Well, I mean, if you request we can either accept or we can say we’re going to think about it,” Riley continued. “We’ve not made a decision on it and I think you can make too much out of this. You still got two years left on the contract…I don’t want to go through the litany of factors right now because they all go up into different hypotheticals, but yeah, that’s a big decision on our part to commit those kinds of resources unless you’re somebody who’s really going to be there and available every single night, that’s the truth.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Pat Riley on if he will be giving Jimmy Butler a contract extension this summer.</p><p>“Well, we don’t have to that for a year, so we have not discussed that internally…” <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HeatCulture?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HeatCulture</a> <a href="https://t.co/JnJwCuKfbS">pic.twitter.com/JnJwCuKfbS</a></p><p>— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZachWeinberger/status/1787546558617330077?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 6, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><p>It remains to be seen what will happen with the Nets and Butler, but the team will focus on the season ahead of them.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets named as potential Jimmy Butler destination in 2025

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-mavericks-nets-kyrie-irving-jalen-brunson-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: The Mavericks-Nets Kyrie Irving, Jalen Brunson trade that never happened');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/0The-Mavericks-Nets-Jalen-Brunson-Kyrie-Irving-trade-that-never-happened0.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: The Mavericks-Nets Kyrie Irving, Jalen Brunson trade that never happened</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-08-16T07:59:38-07:00">August 16th, 7:59am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-08-16T08:11:56-07:00">August 16th, 8:11am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/joey.mistretta/" rel="facebook">Joey Mistretta</a>Joey Mistretta is a Dallas Mavericks beat reporter, Dallas Wings beat reporter and lead MLB editor for ClutchPoints. He is originally from Lake Arrowhead, California. Mistretta graduated from Biola University with a degree in broadcast journalism.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Was Kyrie Irving always destined to end up with the Dallas Mavericks? During a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnYh7O6lKnA" rel="noopener">recent appearance</a> on The Knicks Film School Podcast, Tim MacMahon of ESPN said that if Jalen Brunson had re-signed with the Mavs following the 2021-22 season, <a href="https://x.com/KnickFilmSkool/status/1824439138512150745" rel="noopener">he may have been involved</a> in a trade to the Brooklyn Nets for Irving, via Knicks Film School on X, formerly Twitter.</p><p>“If Brunson signs that extension with Dallas, I think there is a high likelihood that he would be with the Brooklyn Nets right now,” MacMahon said. “Because listen, Mark Cuban has always been about chasing stars… Kyrie was going to become available the next season as he did. At the time the Mavericks did because they needed a star to replace Brunson, but I think they would have looked at that as an upgrade.”</p><p>Of course, Brunson ultimately signed with the Knicks in free agency that offseason. He has found success in New York, even recently <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-earns-captain-honor-2024-25-season">being named the captain of the Knicks</a>.</p><p>Irving, meanwhile, was traded to Dallas during the 2022-23 season. The Mavs underperformed and missed the postseason altogether during Irving’s first half-season with the team. However, they turned a corner in 2023-24 and reached the NBA Finals. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mavericks-news-kyrie-irving-drops-huge-hint-future-alongside-luka-doncic">Irving seems to enjoy playing for the Mavs</a> and his future is bright in Dallas.</p><h2><b>Mavericks-Nets trade scenario?</b></h2><p>In this Brunson-Irving potential trade scenario, however, how would the trade have looked different compared to the real one that came to fruition?</p><p>“They probably keep Dorian Finney-Smith in that case,” MacMahon continued. “Maybe they don’t have to give up a first round pick… But I think there’s a pretty decent chance that Jalen Brunson would have been moved to Brooklyn with Kyrie Irving still ending up in Dallas. It’s one of those things where we will never know.”</p><p>Brunson, again, is playing well with the Knicks. He even emerged as an MVP candidate with the team. It has been a good situation for him.</p><p>Had he ended up in Brooklyn, there are no guarantees as to what may have occurred. The Nets are struggling and have been forced into a rebuild after dealing stars such as Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant away. Brunson may still have played well in Brooklyn, but the Nets’ underperformance would have been far from ideal for him.</p><p>MacMahon says that Brunson ending up with the Knicks is a “much better situation” for the Mavs former guard.</p><p>“But, you know, Brunson obviously landed in a much better situation for himself from a basketball, life, all sorts of different perspectives.”</p><h2><b>Kyrie Irving in Dallas</b></h2><p>Irving silenced his critics with his strong 2023-24 campaign. He dealt with some injury trouble, but overall it was a successful season.</p><p>The Mavericks fell short in the NBA Finals. Irving did not play up to his lofty expectations in the Finals either. Nevertheless, Irving played a pivotal role in Dallas’ regular and postseason success. He has developed impressive chemistry with Luka Doncic and Dallas projects to be a championship contender for years to come with both stars leading the way.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: The Mavericks-Nets Kyrie Irving, Jalen Brunson trade that never happened

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-warriors-linked-to-nets-cam-johnson-as-dark-horse-suitors');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Warriors linked to Nets’ Cam Johnson as ‘dark horse’ suitors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NBA-rumors-Warriors-linked-to-Nets-Cam-Johnson-as-dark-horse-suitors.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Warriors linked to Nets’ Cam Johnson as ‘dark horse’ suitors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-07-24T22:42:37-07:00">July 24th, 10:42pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-07-24T22:42:37-07:00">July 24th, 10:42pm</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Jedd Pagaduan is a certified Clippers and Gunners fan, which means he's a very sports-traumatized individual. He now writes about sports instead as a form of therapy.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Brooklyn Nets are ripe for a fire sale now that they’re embracing a rebuild in the aftermath of trading Mikal Bridges away. The next player that’s most likely to depart the team via trade is Cam Johnson, a versatile 6’8 forward whose primary calling card is his top-tier ability to space the floor. Johnson, even though he’s set to make around $68 million over the next three years, should <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/best-cam-johnson-trade-destinations-if-nets-continue-roster-blowup">draw plenty of interest</a> on the market, with the Golden State Warriors being one of the teams interested in the Nets forward, per Brian Lewis of the New York Post.</p><p>The Warriors, however, aren’t among Johnson’s main suitors, with Lewis <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/07/22/sports/cam-johnson-could-be-nets-most-valuable-trade-piece-left/" rel="noopener">calling them a “dark horse”</a> contender to trade for his services along with the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors. However, those three aren’t the only ones vying for the Nets forward’s services, with the Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, and Orlando Magic <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-still-among-teams-linked-cam-johnson-trade">reportedly being “interested”</a> as well.</p><p>Cam Johnson endured a bit of a down 2023-24 season amid the Nets’ disappointing 32-win campaign. He averaged just 13.4 points per game on 44.6 percent shooting from the field, worse numbers than the ones he put up following his arrival in Brooklyn via the Kevin Durant trade. But Johnson remained a high-level marksman from deep, making 2.4 triples a night last season on a 39.1 percent clip, rescuing his overall scoring efficiency with a 58.2 true shooting percentage.</p><p>Any team that will be trading for Johnson (potentially the Warriors) should be wary of his injury history, however. Johnson dealt with a few nagging injuries last season that limited him to just 58 games, and his hip injury history was what gave teams some pause during the 2019 NBA Draft.</p><h2>Will the Warriors make a move for Cam Johnson?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Warriors-guard-Stephen-Curry-30-against-Phoenix-Suns-forward-Cameron-Johnson-23.jpg"></figure><p>It must be said that the Golden State Warriors won’t be making any other moves this offseason until the Lauri Markkanen situation gets resolved. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-warriors-trade-jonathan-kuminga-brandin-podziemski-lauri-markkanen">Warriors continue to be</a> in hot pursuit of the Utah Jazz star, although the Jazz have remained steadfast in their asking price, which has caused a standstill in trade negotiations.</p><p>If the Dubs end up not getting Markkanen, then perhaps they could look into acquiring Cam Johnson from the Nets. Andrew Wiggins has been on a downturn over the past two seasons, and perhaps the Warriors view Johnson’s shooting and off-ball impact as something more useful than anything the current version of Wiggins can give.</p><p>Nonetheless, with the Warriors signing Buddy Hield, De’Anthony Melton, and Kyle Anderson, it’s not like they’re in dire need of what Johnson brings to the table. Johnson’s combination of size and shooting is impressive, but is he worth giving up the 3-and-D upside of Wiggins for, especially after how well Wiggins played during the Dubs’ 2022 championship run? Wiggins is only 29 years of age, so it’s not like he’s way past his prime.</p><p>Among Johnson’s reported suitors, the Lakers, Kings, and Magic <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-cam-johnson-lakers-trade-interest">make the most sense</a> as a potential destination for the Nets sharpshooter. LeBron James-led teams always benefit from high-level floor-spacing, the Kings are in need of a three-and-D wing with the departure of Harrison Barnes, while the Magic’s greatest kryptonite continues to be outside shooting, which Johnson can help with in spades.</p><p>If anything, the Magic should make a move, as this could also help them consolidate talent amid a few positional logjams. But with the injury-prone Jonathan Isaac already on the roster, the idea of acquiring Johnson may give them some pause.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Warriors linked to Nets’ Cam Johnson as ‘dark horse’ suitors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-ben-simmons-trade-nba');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Ben Simmons trade interest around NBA is ‘zero’');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/nets-news-ben-simmons-expected-return-date-after-three-month-absence.webp"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Ben Simmons trade interest around NBA is ‘zero’</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-07-22T11:58:19-07:00">July 22nd, 11:58am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-07-22T11:58:19-07:00">July 22nd, 11:58am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/joey.mistretta/" rel="facebook">Joey Mistretta</a>Joey Mistretta is a Dallas Mavericks beat reporter, Dallas Wings beat reporter and lead MLB editor for ClutchPoints. He is originally from Lake Arrowhead, California. Mistretta graduated from Biola University with a degree in broadcast journalism.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Brooklyn Nets <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grading-blockbuster-mikal-bridges-trade-involving-nets-knicks-rockets">traded Mikal Bridges</a> to the New York Knicks earlier in the offseason. They traded Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant away ahead of the 2022-23 NBA trade deadline. Ben Simmons, however, is proving to be quite difficult to move amid the Nets’ evident rebuild.</p><p>Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reports that league sources said <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lauri-markkanen-trade-talks-reed-sheppard-dominance-nba-summer-league">Simmons holds “zero” trade interest</a> around the NBA. Simmons will be on an expiring contract during the 2024-25 season. However, he is set to make just over $43 million.</p><p>Most teams do not want to acquire a player who is set to make well over $40 million and has not played in more than 58 games since the 2018-19 season. Simmons’ production his dwindled even while on the floor. He made three consecutive All-Star teams with the Philadelphia 76ers but has not found anywhere near the same level of success in Brooklyn.</p><h2><b>Ben Simmons’ unfortunate injury concerns</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Ben-Simmons-sits-on-bench-during-Hawks-Nets-game.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>It needs to be remembered that finding success on the floor is challenging when you are unable to consistently play. Simmons has not appeared in more than 42 games in any season with the Nets so far.</p><p>When he did play 42 games (in 2022-23), though, Simmons failed to replicate his previous All-Star results. He recorded only 6.9 points per game on 56.6 percent field goal shooting. Simmons added 6.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game. Additionally, he had 1.3 steals per outing.</p><p>Ben Simmons was never a dominant scorer in the NBA. His career-high points per game average during a single-season in the league is 16.9, which came in 2018-19. Still, he emerged as one of the best playmakers and defenders in the entire NBA. Simmons was also a capable scorer inside the three-point line.</p><p>Now when Simmons plays he simply does not appear all that confident. It is unfortunate because there was a time when he was regarded as one of the better players in the league.</p><h2><b>Does Ben Simmons still hold value in the NBA?</b></h2><p>In all reality, there are probably a number of teams who would like to have Simmons on their roster. Although it is becoming somewhat more common, it is still challenging to find a 6’10 player with elite point guard-like skills. There are not many players Simmons’ size who can guard the perimeter as well as he can either.</p><p>But between Simmons’ injuries and loaded contract, there does not appear to be a realistic landing destination for him at the moment. Nothing is completely out of the question and perhaps the Nets will find a trade partner before the season or at the trade deadline. It would not be surprising to see Simmons spend the entire 2024-25 campaign in Brooklyn, though.</p><p>Simmons will likely attract interest in free agency next offseason. It will present him with an opportunity to reestablish himself in the NBA.</p><p>It is easy to forget that Ben Simmons is only 28 years old. He can still add value to an organization. Will he play like an All-Star ever again? He has the talent do so, but it comes down to re-finding his confidence and staying healthy.</p><p>Simmons still holds value in the NBA, but teams are clearly unwilling to acquire him right now given his immense salary.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Ben Simmons trade interest around NBA is ‘zero’

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-lakers-among-teams-could-profit-nets-fire-sale');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA Rumors: Lakers among teams who could profit from Nets fire sale');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NBA-Rumors-Lakers-among-teams-who-could-profit-from-Nets-fire-sale.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA Rumors: Lakers among teams who could profit from Nets fire sale</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-07-03T08:11:45-07:00">July 3rd, 8:11am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-07-03T08:34:32-07:00">July 3rd, 8:34am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The NBA trade market is heating up, and the Brooklyn Nets are at the center of the rumor mill. After embracing a full rebuild by <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grading-blockbuster-mikal-bridges-trade-involving-nets-knicks-rockets">sending Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks</a>, the Nets have several veterans who <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-next-moves-stunning-mikal-bridges-knicks-trade">could be on the move</a>, namely Cam Johnson and Dorian Finney-Smith. The Los Angeles Lakers are among the teams who could benefit from Brooklyn’s impending fire sale.</p><p>Los Angeles has been <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nba-rumors-lauri-markkanen-trade-talks-demar-derozan-kyle-kuzma-lakers-knicks-76ers/" rel="noopener">discussing deals</a> with Brooklyn in the past few days, according to the Athletic’s Jovan Buha. After striking out in the Klay Thompson sweepstakes, general manager Rob Pelinka is running out of options to upgrade the roster around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. With James entering his age 40 season, the GM has signaled a willingness to part with one or both of his tradable first-round picks (2029, 2031).</p><p>“If the right deal comes and we have to put in draft picks, we will,” Pelinka said. “We’ll continue to pursue upgrades to our roster.”</p><h2>Is Cam Johnson a fit for the Lakers?</h2><p>While Johnson underwhelmed last season while battling injuries, his blend of size and shooting fills a need for a Lakers team that ranked 24th in made threes in 2023-24. The 6-foot-8 forward has shot 41 percent from distance on six attempts per game over his last three seasons. Those numbers are consistent across 38 playoff appearances, with Johnson shooting 41.6 percent on 4.2 attempts per game.</p><p>The 28-year-old’s three-and-D services are expected to garner interest from several teams outside the Lakers, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, and Orlando Magic. Although Johnson is owed $68.8 million over the next three seasons, his contract is descending. With the salary cap set to rise due to a new media rights deal, his cap hit will be just over 13 percent in the final two years, a reasonable number for a starting-caliber player.</p><h2>Will the Nets finally trade Dorian Finney-Smith?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Dorian-Finney-Smith.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Finney-Smith is another option for teams seeking wing upgrades, and he may be the most likely Net to be traded in the coming weeks. The 30-year-old has a $15.4 million player option in 2025-26, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent and seek a long-term deal next summer. After rejecting offers for the forward at the last two trade deadlines, Brooklyn is running out of time to cash in on his value.</p><p>While Finney-Smith is not the same caliber shooter as Johnson, his defensive versatility is a weapon in any scheme. At 6-foot-7, 220 lbs, the eight-year veteran can switch on the perimeter or bang down low against centers. Like Johnson, he has plenty of playoff experience, starting 35 games with the Mavericks. He’s posted his best offensive numbers in the postseason, shooting 41.7 percent from three on 5.7 attempts per game.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-nets-clippers-playoffs">Lakers have shown interest</a> in Finney-Smith dating back to the 2023 trade deadline. After pairing Paul George with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, the Philadelphia 76ers <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nba-rumors-lauri-markkanen-trade-talks-demar-derozan-kyle-kuzma-lakers-knicks-76ers/" rel="noopener">are also interested</a> in the veteran, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. Philadelphia has a 2028 first-round pick and a 2029 first-round pick swap from the Clippers to dangle in negotiations.</p><p>General manager Daryl Morey has other options if he wants to retain those picks to use in different deals. He could amend the top-eight protection on the 76ers’ 2027 first-round pick owed to Brooklyn as part of the James Harden-Ben Simmons trade.</p><p>The Nets’ fire sale may not stop at Johnson and Finney-Smith. Bojan Bogdanovic and Dennis Schroder are veterans on expiring contracts who could help a playoff team. Expect plenty of action from Brooklyn this summer as the team looks to accumulate assets and maximize its chances of landing the top selection in next year’s draft.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA Rumors: Lakers among teams who could profit from Nets fire sale

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-76ers-exploring-dorian-finney-smith-trade-nets');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: 76ers exploring Dorian Finney-Smith trade with Nets');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NBA-rumors-76ers-exploring-Dorian-Finney-Smith-trade-with-Nets.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: 76ers exploring Dorian Finney-Smith trade with Nets</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-07-02T12:40:16-07:00">July 2nd, 12:40pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-07-02T12:40:16-07:00">July 2nd, 12:40pm</time><address><a>Peter Sampson</a>Peter Sampson is ClutchPoints' Portland Trail Blazers reporter and also serves as an Associate Editor. He has been covering all things sports (with a focus on the Blazers) for more than a decade, most recently hosting "The Pulse with Peter Sampson" in Afternoon Drive for 750 The Game. Prior to that, he hosted an NBA wrap-up show that aired immediately at the conclusion of every Trail Blazers game. Peter had previous stops at Blazer's Edge and XRAY.FM - where his show "Blazer's Edge Radio" was named "Portland's Best Sports Radio" in the 2017 Willamette Week reader's poll. When he's not telling the stories of your favorite sports team, Peter can be found recording the next garage rock classic in his basement studio, whipping up an authentic Italian meal in the kitchen, or trying to figure out the appeal of Minecraft with his 9-year-old son in the living room.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Philadelphia 76ers have had a busy free agency period, having already agreed to terms with Paul George, Kelly Oubre, Andre Drummond, and Eric Gordon – as well as extending star Tyrese Maxey.</p><p>But the 76ers are still hunting for deals and <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nba-rumors-lauri-markkanen-trade-talks-demar-derozan-kyle-kuzma-lakers-knicks-76ers/" rel="noopener">have interest</a> in prying Dorian Finney-Smith away from the Brooklyn Nets, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype:</p><p>“Philadelphia is scouring the free agent market and potential trade options to land another forward, with Paul Reed expected to be waived or used in a trade, league sources told HoopsHype.</p><p>The 76ers have exploratory interest in trading for Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith, league sources told HoopsHype, but nothing is considered imminent there.”</p><p>Finney-Smith <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/early-76ers-trade-targets-2024-nba-offseason">theoretically slides in nicely</a> as a 3-and-D option for the 76ers. He would give them the size and physicality they need at the four next to Embiid. At 6-foot-7 with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, he’s a versatile defender who always fights to stick with the play and can disrupt shots.</p><p>One major question with Finney-Smith is whether his shooting from deep will come back around. He was a 40-percent 3-point shooter next to Luka Doncic but wasn’t nearly as efficient with the creator-starved Nets. With Embiid Maxey, and Paul George commanding so much attention, the 76ers seem like a situation that could help Finney-Smith get his percentages back up. He shoots from all over the arc and has also been a solid offensive rebounder in the past.</p><h2><b>76ers are Eastern Conference contenders with Paul George</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Paul-George-Joel-Embiid.jpg"><figcaption>© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>After months rumors and speculation, Paul George signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.</p><p>Will the pairing of George, Joel Embiid, and Tyrese Maxey ultimately work? Only time will tell, but considering just how much talent is on the roster right now and how much optionality Morey still has to prove the product, it’s safe to say, this has the potential to be an incredibly successful season in Philadelphia.</p><p>There are some questions about what George’s optimal role is in 2024 and how he could “age well” over the course of his four-year contract.</p><p>After initially beginning his career as a true first option – leading an Indiana Pacers team to punch well above their weight class against LeBron James and company – Paul has never been more than a 1B since taking his talents to Oklahoma City, splitting time on-ball and off, depending on who his teammates were at the time.</p><p>In Los Angeles, George was very active on-ball, routinely hitting usage ratings above 30 and ranking either first or second on the team in terms of points scored. When Kawhi Leonard was out, George would pick up the slack, and when PG-13 needed help, he could routinely turn to Leonard for a bucket or two. While that strategy didn’t lead to a championship, it did keep the team competitive – even if they were seemingly always searching for an upgrade at point guard.</p><p>In Philadelphia, George doesn’t need to be the first option, a 1b, or even a two in order to have a fantastic, All-Star-caliber season. All he needs to do is average a little over 20 points per game on good efficiency numbers, and success will naturally follow.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: 76ers exploring Dorian Finney-Smith trade with Nets

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-dangelo-russell-lakers-trade-buzz');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets open to bringing back D’Angelo Russell amid Lakers trade buzz');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Nets-open-to-bringing-back-DAngelo-Russell-amid-Lakers-trade-buzz.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets open to bringing back D’Angelo Russell amid Lakers trade buzz</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-07-01T17:33:45-07:00">July 1st, 5:33pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-07-01T19:46:07-07:00">July 1st, 7:46pm</time><address><a>Peter Sampson</a>Peter Sampson is ClutchPoints' Portland Trail Blazers reporter and also serves as an Associate Editor. He has been covering all things sports (with a focus on the Blazers) for more than a decade, most recently hosting "The Pulse with Peter Sampson" in Afternoon Drive for 750 The Game. Prior to that, he hosted an NBA wrap-up show that aired immediately at the conclusion of every Trail Blazers game. Peter had previous stops at Blazer's Edge and XRAY.FM - where his show "Blazer's Edge Radio" was named "Portland's Best Sports Radio" in the 2017 Willamette Week reader's poll. When he's not telling the stories of your favorite sports team, Peter can be found recording the next garage rock classic in his basement studio, whipping up an authentic Italian meal in the kitchen, or trying to figure out the appeal of Minecraft with his 9-year-old son in the living room.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Los Angeles Lakers have been shut out so far in the efforts to upgrade the roster around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. But could a potential Brooklyn Nets/D’Angelo Russell reunion be the key for Los Angeles adding some help?</p><p>After <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-believe-mavericks-klay-thompson-favorite">failing to land Klay Thompson</a>, the Lakers have turned their attention to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-demar-derozan-lakers-wish-list">Chicago Bulls guard DeMar DeRozan</a>. LeBron has indicated he’s willing to take less money to upgrade the roster, but time may be running out, per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports:</p><p>“While LeBron James has indicated a willingness to take less salary, sources said, in order to help Los Angeles add more talent to a roster that fell in the first round of the playoffs, time seems to be running out for how long James is willing to wait before securing his next deal. For the Lakers to bring on DeRozan, Los Angeles may have to work with a third team to offload some salary, such as D’Angelo Russell or Gabe Vincent, sources said. The Nets <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-free-agency-2024-the-market-impact-of-klay-thompsons-move-to-dallas-211356528.html" rel="noopener">have been open</a> to welcoming Russell back to Barclays Center since this past trade deadline, sources said.”</p><p>In the 2017 offseason, Russell and Timofey Mozgov were traded by the Lakers to the Nets for Brook Lopez and Kyle Kuzma.</p><p>Russell played two seasons with the Nets, where he averaged 19 points and 6.3 assists per game. He was dealt to the Golden State Warriors in 2019 as part of the Kevin Durant deal.</p><p>The Nets would likely seek draft compensation from the Lakers in exchange for taking on Russell’s salary. The exact framework of what would be a three-team deal, however, isn’t clear at this point.</p><h2><b>Nets rebuilding after dealing Mikal Bridges</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mikal-Bridges-1.jpg"><figcaption>© Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>In a shocking twist less than 24 hours before last week’s 2024 NBA Draft, the Nets traded rising star Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks in exchange for numerous draft picks and veteran forward Bojan Bogdanovic. Brooklyn is set to receive four unprotected first-round picks from the Knicks in 2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031, as well as a 2025 first-round pick from the Bucks that is top-four protected. New York is also sending a 2028 unprotected pick swap and a 2025 second-round pick, along with Bogdanovic, to Brooklyn for Bridges.</p><p>In addition to this trade with the Knicks, the Nets are finalizing another trade that involves numerous draft assets with the Houston Rockets. This massive deal includes several picks that were initially traded away by Brooklyn when they acquired James Harden from Houston in 2021. Not only are the Nets sending the Phoenix Suns’ 2027 first-round picks to the Rockets to get their own 2026 first-round pick back, but Houston also acquires the 2025 rights to swap their own or the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 2025 first-round pick for the Suns’ 2025 first-round pick via Brooklyn.</p><p>Ever since the Nets gave up their hopes of contending for a championship with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden, they have been stuck as a very average team in the Eastern Conference. As good as Bridges has been, the Nets were unable to make the necessary moves to build around him, leading to Tuesday night’s blockbuster trade that sends Bridges to the Knicks.</p><p>The rebuild has begun in Brooklyn, as the Nets target youthful options to lead them into the future, starting with the 2025 NBA Draft next year.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets open to bringing back D’Angelo Russell amid Lakers trade buzz

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-cam-johnson-lakers-trade-interest');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets’ Cam Johnson drawing Lakers trade interest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Nets-Cam-Johnson-drawing-Lakers-trade-interest.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets’ Cam Johnson drawing Lakers trade interest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-27T11:54:42-07:00">June 27th, 11:54am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-27T11:54:42-07:00">June 27th, 11:54am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Wednesday evening, the Los Angeles Lakers made a boost to their overall shooting profile by adding Dalton Knecht out of the University of Tennessee with the seventeenth pick in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. At the age of 23, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-rob-pelinkas-shocked-reaction-to-dalton-knecht-nba-draft-pick">Knecht figures to</a> be one of the more NBA-ready prospects in this year’s draft class and will provide some floor spacing for <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-lakers-target-former-head-coaches-jj-redick-staff">a Lakers team</a> that didn’t have a ton of that in their series vs the Denver Nuggets.</p><p>Still, Rob Pelinka and company’s work in reshaping this flawed roster is far from complete, as Los Angeles will now turn their attention to free agency and <a href="https://www.actionnetwork.com/nba/nba-free-agency-trade-rumors-outlook-30-teams?utm_content=buffer8bd02&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer" rel="noopener">the trade market</a> to try to continue to add depth around LeBron James and Anthony Davis.</p><p>Recently, the Brooklyn Nets presumably began a rebuild of their team by sending Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks, which opened up speculation that the team could also be parting ways with some of their other key pieces. If the latest reports are any indication, the Lakers could want to get in on the action.</p><p>“That third star they talked about pursuing with the three first-round picks at their disposal no longer seems as likely with Mitchell back with the Cavs and Jimmy Butler likely to remain in Miami. Then again, never say never when it comes to stars wanting to play for the purple and gold. The Lakers are among the teams expected to be interested in (Cam) Johnson from Brooklyn,” reported Matt Moore of Action Network.</p><h2><b>What would Cam Johnson add to the Lakers?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Johnson-passes-the-ball.jpg"><figcaption>Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Cam Johnson is one of the best pure jump shooters in the NBA, having honed his craft from his college days across multiple ACC schools and bringing it with him to become a key contributor on some very good Phoenix Suns teams, and now with the Nets.</p><p>While he isn’t the most versatile or elite athlete, Johnson still possesses the height and wingspan to at least be a serviceable team defender and fits the archetype of floor spacing wing players that virtually every NBA team is looking to stockpile at the present moment.</p><p>In theory, Johnson would be a hand in glove fit with pretty much any team around the league, including the Lakers, who had a good shooting season from the perimeter during the regular year but saw that production dip dramatically in their playoff loss vs the Denver Nuggets, as D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, and Austin Reaves all seemed to go cold at the worst time en route to the five game series loss.</p><p>Johnson would immediately provide a degree of floor spacing around LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and also add some more depth for the somewhat likely scenario that those two don’t play as many games as they did this past season.</p><p>As for what the Lakers would have to give up, it certainly helps that basically the whole NBA knows that the Nets are currently embracing a rebuild, meaning their leverage might be a bit lower than normal.</p><p>In any case, with the Finals now concluded, the Lakers are free to make trades and explore the market.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets’ Cam Johnson drawing Lakers trade interest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-nba-draft-trade-talks-active-update');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets’ NBA Draft trade talks get ‘active’ update');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Nets-NBA-Draft-trade-talks-get-active-update.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets’ NBA Draft trade talks get ‘active’ update</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-25T09:11:44-07:00">June 25th, 9:11am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-25T09:11:44-07:00">June 25th, 9:11am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/predicting-which-nets-free-agents-re-sign-2024-offseason">Brooklyn Nets do not own</a> a pick in this week’s draft, but they’re hoping to change that with the first selection one day away. With both of their selections (No. 3 to Houston and No. 39 to Memphis) out the door as part of the 2021 James Harden trade, Brooklyn <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/2024-nba-draft-notes-nets-optimism-acquiring-pick-knicks-working-out-top-risers" rel="noopener">has been active</a> in discussions to <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/with-new-coach-jj-redick-at-the-helm-the-lakers-draft-strategy-beginning-to-take-shape-232824674.html" rel="noopener">acquire a pick</a>, according to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer and SNY’s Ian Begley.</p><p>General Manager Sean Marks hinted in April that the Nets would pursue opportunities to trade into the draft.</p><p>“I think we look at the draft the same way every year. It’s take the best available,” Marks said at his exit interview. “If there’s somebody in there that, wow, they’re slipping, can we get in there at that particular pick?… Those conversations will be happening relatively soon and they’ll be happening all the way up until on the clock… I would not rule out acquiring anything. If there’s a guy there that you like, you’ve gotta have the conviction to go after it and and go after them.”</p><p>Marks has historically been very active in the days leading up to the draft, executing several trades in that window during his Brooklyn tenure. In 2019, he traded the No. 27 pick to the Los Angeles Clippers for a 2020 first. The next year, he traded that first – which ended up being No. 19 – and Dzanan Masa for Landry Shamet and Reggie Perry in a three-team deal with the Clippers and Detroit Pistons. In 2021, he flipped Shamet to the Phoenix Suns for Jevon Carter and the No. 29 pick, where he selected Day’Ron Sharpe.</p><h2><b>What can the Nets use to trade into the draft?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Dorian-Finney-Smith.jpg"><figcaption>Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>With this draft being viewed as one of the weakest of the last decade, the cost of trading in should be considerably lower than year’s past. Several teams have been shopping their picks in search of win-now players, and Brooklyn has several to offer.</p><p>Dorian Finney-Smith and Day’Ron Sharpe are the first names that come to mind. Finney-Smith is under contract for $14.4 million next season before a $15.4 million player option in 2025-26. At 30-years-old, he doesn’t match Brooklyn’s timeline and would be a seamless fit on most contenders.</p><p>Sharpe was productive last season after cracking the rotation for the first time in his career. However, the 22-year-old is entering the final year of his contract in 2024-25. With the Nets expected to sign Nic Claxton to a lucrative extension and rookie Noah Clowney impressing late in the year, it’s unclear whether they’ll eat into their 2025 cap space to extend Sharpe. The Grizzlies, who own the No. 9 and No. 39 picks, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/dayron-sharpe-rising-nets-trade-candidate-amid-rumored-grizzlies-interest">have shown interest in</a> the fourth-year center.</p><p>Brooklyn also has seven second-round picks it can package in negotiations for a pick in this year’s draft.</p><h2><b>Who could the Nets be targeting?</b></h2><p>The Nets have called front offices with selections as early as the 20s, according to Fischer. They’ve worked out several players who should be available in that range. The most notable of those names is 18-year-old French prospect Pacome Dadiet, a 6-foot-8 three-and-D wing who was mocked at No. 30 in <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/40403204/2024-nba-mock-draft-latest-first-second-round-predictions-all-58-picks" rel="noopener">ESPN’s latest projection</a>.</p><p>Brooklyn could <a href="https://www.nbadraft.net/2024-nba-extended-mock-draft-4-0/" rel="noopener">also have interest in</a> the G-League Ignite’s Tyler Smith, according to NBADraft.Net. Smith, another three-and-D wing at 6-foot-9, was the No. 8 player in ESPN’s 2023 high school rankings before joining Overtime Elite and later moving to the G-League. He was mocked at No. 36 in ESPN’s projection.</p><p>Expect rumors of the Nets’ activity to continue as teams weigh moving their picks ahead of Wednesday’s 8PM start.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets’ NBA Draft trade talks get ‘active’ update

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-jazz-join-list-of-mikal-bridges-trade-suitors');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Jazz join list of Mikal Bridges trade suitors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Jazz-join-list-of-Mikal-Bridges-trade-suitors.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Jazz join list of Mikal Bridges trade suitors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-25T09:05:14-07:00">June 25th, 9:05am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-25T09:05:14-07:00">June 25th, 9:05am</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Jedd Pagaduan is a certified Clippers and Gunners fan, which means he's a very sports-traumatized individual. He now writes about sports instead as a form of therapy.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Mikal Bridges continues to draw plenty of interest on the trade market even though reports have come out stating that the Brooklyn Nets see him as a foundational star. Teams continue to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-rockets-still-holding-out-hope-mikal-bridges-trade">call the Nets’ bluff</a> as they try to entice them into giving Bridges up so that they could recoup some assets following a terrible year in which they gave up the third overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft to the Houston Rockets courtesy of the James Harden trade. But in a bit of a twist, the Utah Jazz could potentially emerge as a landing spot for the Nets forward.</p><p>The Jazz, as Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports pointed out, could be on the prowl for a big swing that takes the team’s rebuild to the next level. Even though the Jazz aren’t yet the closest team to playoff contention, Fischer pointed out that they contemplated a push for Damian Lillard or Jrue Holiday last year. For this offseason, Bridges has become the <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/with-new-coach-jj-redick-at-the-helm-the-lakers-draft-strategy-beginning-to-take-shape-232824674.html" rel="noopener">“player to monitor</a> among Utah’s aggressive aspirations”.</p><p>There will be a few teams, however, vying for Mikal Bridges’ services other than the Jazz. The Houston Rockets’ interest in the Nets forward has been well-documented, while the New York Knicks, thanks to the Villanova connection with Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo, could also make a play for the 27-year old wing.</p><p>Bridges still has <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/player/_/id/26976/mikal-bridges" rel="noopener">two years left</a> on his deal, and the Nets hold him in very high regard, as evidenced by the reported trade package that they refused from the Rockets, so pulling off a trade for him will not be easy whatsoever. Nonetheless, the Jazz should have the assets to swing a blockbuster trade of such magnitude. But will it be worth it for them, especially when they’re not a piece of Bridges’ caliber away from contending?</p><h2>Assessing the Jazz’s options</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Jazz-forward-Lauri-Markkanen-23-reacts-to-a-play.jpg"></figure><p>The Jazz are entering the third year of their rebuild after they traded away the foundational pieces of the previous contending iterations of the team. The 2023-24 season was a bit of a step back for Utah, as they finished with a 31-51 record — six games worse than the prior campaign.</p><p>There is reason to be excited if one is a fan of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-jazz-active-trade-talks-2024-draft">Jazz franchise</a>. Lauri Markkanen continues to be one of the best and most efficient scorers in the league, Collin Sexton appears to be all the way back from the torn meniscus he suffered in 2021, while Keyonte George appears to be a long-term keeper for the team. Brice Sensabaugh and Taylor Hendricks, two of their picks from the 2023 NBA Draft, flashed their solid potential as well.</p><p>But there remains a lack of a foundational star for the Jazz; Markkanen, for as good as he is, is at his best when doing his damage off the ball and off screens. He is not much of a playmaker and a creator off the bounce, projecting to be an elite-level complementary player instead. But will this be the offseason when this changes for the Jazz?</p><p>Whatever the case may be, the Jazz should have the assets to swing a trade; in addition to having the 10th, 29th, and 32nd picks of this year’s draft, they still have the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/player-jazz-must-trade-2024-nba-offseason">tradeable contracts</a> of John Collins and Jordan Clarkson to use in any prospective trade. Walker Kessler, who appears to have fallen out of favor in his sophomore season (he started in fewer games and put up worse per-36 numbers than his rookie campaign), could be a trade candidate as well in a more aggressive win-now deal.</p><h2><b>Mikal Bridges: an elite support player, a so-so top guy</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Mikal-Bridges-against-thunder.jpeg"></figure><p>Mikal Bridges turned heads around the league when he put up 26 points per game on 47/38/89 shooting splits after the Nets acquired him as one of the centerpieces in the Kevin Durant trade. Bridges looked like he had arrived as a solid, high-floor number one guy and an overqualified number two on a contending team. Alas, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-mikal-bridges-drops-eye-opening-admission-on-what-hurt-him-in-2023-24-season">Bridges was not able</a> to sustain this pace for an entire season, with his numbers falling off during the 2023-24 campaign.</p><p>With the increased defensive attention surrounding him, Bridges put up his worst true shooting since his rookie campaign. From averaging 26 points, he averaged 19.6 — numbers that are more in line with the Phoenix Suns version of himself but without the impressive efficiency.</p><p>It has become very apparent that Mikal Bridges is not meant to be a number-one option, even on a bad team like the Nets were during the 2023-24 season. Any team that will be acquiring him via trade should adjust their expectations accordingly.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Jazz join list of Mikal Bridges trade suitors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/dayron-sharpe-rising-nets-trade-candidate-amid-rumored-grizzlies-interest');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why Day’Ron Sharpe is rising Nets trade candidate amid rumored Grizzlies interest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Why-DayRon-Sharpe-is-rising-Nets-trade-candidate-amid-rumored-Grizzlies-interest.jpg"></figure><h1>Why Day’Ron Sharpe is rising Nets trade candidate amid rumored Grizzlies interest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-24T13:12:34-07:00">June 24th, 1:12pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-24T15:28:58-07:00">June 24th, 3:28pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The NBA trade rumor mill is picking up with the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/2024-nba-mock-draft-4-0-hawks-donovan-clingan-zaccharie-risacher">2024 draft</a> two days away. Several Brooklyn Nets could be on the move, including fourth-year center Day’Ron Sharpe.</p><p>The Memphis Grizzlies expressed exploratory interest in Sharpe at last season’s trade deadline and have now <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/aggregate-2024-nba-mock-draft-paul-george-tyrese-maxey-free-agency-zach-lavine-trade-talks/" rel="noopener">circled back around</a>, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. The report comes after Action Network’s Matt Moore mentioned Sharpe as a <a href="https://www.actionnetwork.com/nba/nba-free-agency-rumors-intel-latest-news-after-nba-finals" rel="noopener">name to watch</a> for Memphis, floating a package centered on a bench wing and second round picks.</p><p>Sharpe made an impact last season after cracking Brooklyn’s rotation for the first time in his career. The 22-year-old averaged 6.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 0.7 blocks in 15.1 minutes per game.</p><p>He continued to dominate the boards, posting the NBA’s second-highest rebounding percentage, behind only Andre Drummond. Sharpe also showed improvement as a short-roll playmaker, posting a 13.4 assist percentage (<a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/player/4892#tab-offensive_overview" rel="noopener">75th percentile among NBA big men</a>), per Cleaning the Glass. The same can be said for his finishing, as he shot a <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sharpda01.html" rel="noopener">career-high 69 percent at the rim</a>, per Basketball Reference.</p><h2><b>Nets’ center situation could lead to Day’Ron Sharpe trade</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Nets-DayRon-Sharpe-grabbing-a-rebound.jpg"><figcaption>Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Yet, Sharpe missed extended time due to a knee injury midway through the year and saw his minutes dip late in the season. With the former first-round pick entering the final year of his rookie contract and eligible for an extension, Brooklyn has a decision to make on his future. Several factors make Sharpe a logical trade candidate this summer.</p><p>First, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-prioritizing-re-signing-nic-claxton-in-free-agency">Nets are expected</a> to offer Nic Claxton a four-year contract in the $80-$100 million range. They also just selected a promising young big man in Noah Clowney, who ate into Sharpe’s minutes in the final weeks of the season.</p><p>The Nets have been preparing themselves for the 2025 offseason, when they can open over $70 million in cap space after Ben Simmons’ contract expires. With Claxton expected to re-sign and Clowney looking like a long-term frontcourt piece, it’s unclear whether they would use a portion of that cap space to re-sign Sharpe.</p><p>General manager Sean Marks may prefer to cash in on whatever value the big man has this summer. The Nets could trade Sharpe for an expiring contract and draft capital to preserve their 2025 cap space. They could also flip him for a ball handler or wing who offers a better fit alongside Claxton and Clowney.</p><p>Memphis has also previously expressed interest in Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith, according to Scotto. If the two teams were to discuss a framework centered on Sharpe and/or Finney-Smith, the Grizzlies have several young players they could dangle in negotiations, including Santi Aldama, Ziaire Williams, Vince Williams, and Jake LaRavia.</p><p>They also have Luke Kennard on a $14.8 million team option for 2024-25, which matches Finney-Smith’s salary. The Brooklyn forward has a $15.4 million player option for 2025-26. A trade swapping him for Kennard would allow the Nets to add that number to their 2025 cap space. Memphis would likely also have to add draft compensation.</p><p>Marks has historically been very active in trade discussions in the days leading up to the draft. This year should be no different as the Nets evaluate the futures of several rotation pieces from last season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why Day’Ron Sharpe is rising Nets trade candidate amid rumored Grizzlies interest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nets-news-dennis-schroder-shines-light-roster-uncertainty-amid-star-trade-rumors');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nets’ Dennis Schroder shines light on roster uncertainty amid star trade rumors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Nets_news_Dennis_Schroder_s_bold_promise_to_Brooklyn_after_Celtics__a_whooping__copy.webp"></figure><h1>Nets’ Dennis Schroder shines light on roster uncertainty amid star trade rumors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-10T21:51:35-07:00">June 10th, 9:51pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-11T06:15:07-07:00">June 11th, 6:15am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The NBA is built around superstars. Teams that have one face immediate pressure to craft a championship roster that will convince said player to stick around. Teams that don’t spend their days plotting how they will acquire one to inch closer to the championship conversation. The Brooklyn Nets fall into the latter group.</p><p>After trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving at the 2023 deadline, Brooklyn was left with several high-level role players and a treasure trove of draft picks. However, with no star to lead the way, the new-look team has yet to find an identity. Following a 32-50 campaign this season, the franchise’s worst since 2017-18, general manager Sean Marks faces pressure to land a marquee name.</p><p>The looming star pursuit has cast doubt over the future of nearly every Net outside of Mikal Bridges. Dennis Schroder, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/dennis-schroder-reveals-why-he-wants-remain-with-nets-long-term">who joined Brooklyn</a> at this year’s trade deadline, <a href="https://www.braunschweiger-zeitung.de/sport/loewen/article406497801/weiter-in-brooklyn-dennis-schroeder-spricht-ueber-seine-zukunft.html" rel="noopener">spoke about the team’s roster uncertainty</a> in an interview with German newspaper Braunschweiger Zeitung.</p><p>“Brooklyn is a really cool, great organization, quite family-oriented. I’d definitely like to stick around for the long haul,” Schroder said. “My agent and I feel like the Nets liked how I contributed. I’ve brought in more defense, teamwork and displayed leadership, but if someone as exceptional as Giannis Antetokounmpo or another superstar wants to join Brooklyn, the Nets could make deals to acquire that player … and that’s why nothing is certain in the NBA.”</p><h2>Which Nets veterans could be on the trade block amid star rumors?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Donovan-Mitchell-of-the-Cavs.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Dennis Schroder averaged 14.6 points and 6.0 assists on 42/41/80 shooting splits in 29 appearances with Brooklyn last season. If the Nets pursue a star this summer, the veteran floor general would be a prime candidate to be used as a salary filler in a trade. Cam Johnson and Dorian Finney-Smith fall into the same category. Schroder is entering the final year of his contract at $13 million in 2024-25, while Johnson and Finney-Smith will make $23.6 million and $14.9 million, respectively.</p><p>Cam Thomas’ name has also been floated in trade rumors following his breakout season. The third-year guard led the Nets in scoring after cracking the rotation, averaging 22.5 points per game on 44/36/86 shooting splits. Brooklyn can package an assortment of these players with up to seven tradable first-round picks.</p><h2>What stars could become available?</h2><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-lakers-offer-ready-donovan-mitchell-cavs">Nets are expected</a> to be at the front of the line of trade suitors this summer if Donovan Mitchell declines to sign an extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers.</p><p>Schroder’s mention of Antetokounmpo comes amid uncertainty surrounding the two-time MVP’s future with the Milwaukee Bucks. While Antetokounmpo signed an extension, Milwaukee severely underwhelmed this season, losing in the first round for the second straight year. The Bucks blew most of their remaining assets last summer, trading Jrue Holiday, Grayson Allen, a 2029 first-round pick, and two first-round pick swaps (2028, 2030) for Damian Lillard.</p><p>The move backfired. Lillard saw a drastic dip in production compared to 2022-23, averaging 24.3 points on 42.4 percent shooting from the field and 35.4 percent from three. So did Milwaukee’s defense, which dropped from fourth last season to 19th this year. Meanwhile, the Boston Celtics are on the verge of winning a championship after acquiring Holiday from the Trail Blazers.</p><p>Milwaukee owes Lillard, who will turn 34 next month, $162 million over the next three years. Meanwhile, Khris Middleton will be 33 next season, and Brook Lopez will turn 37. Come draft night, the Bucks will have the 23rd and 33rd picks in this year’s draft, as well as their 2031 first-round pick, to use in trades. However, they don’t have many young prospects to offer as they seek win-now help.</p><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-10-at-5.16.48-PM.png"></figure><h2><b>Sean Marks is confident in his ability to lure stars to Brooklyn</b></h2><p>The Nets could make an enticing pitch if a star becomes available via trade this summer or next. Mikal Bridges is on a value contract at $24 million annually for the next two seasons. On top of their stockpile of draft picks, they can open nearly <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/how-nbas-76-billion-tv-deal-play-huge-factor-nets-plan-2025">$80 million in cap space</a> next offseason, depending on roster decisions.</p><p>Marks pointed to those assets and the allure of the New York market when asked earlier this season about his ability to attract stars.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Sean Marks on whether attracting stars was a main factor in making a coaching change:</p><p>"We’ve gotta show them there’s a pathway to win here. I think there’s a very clear pathway from draft assets, cap room, and everything else we’ve got… And I think this city speaks for itself.… <a href="https://t.co/e54Wd96FaU">pic.twitter.com/e54Wd96FaU</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1760084415953121572?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>There’s a real possibility that the Nets will run it back in 2024-25 with a similar roster to last season. However, with assets at their disposal and management motivated to make a splash, Schroder and several other veterans are bracing for the possibility they could be on the move.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nets’ Dennis Schroder shines light on roster uncertainty amid star trade rumors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-prioritizing-re-signing-nic-claxton-in-free-agency');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets prioritizing re-signing Nic Claxton in free agency');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/NBA-rumors-Nets-prioritizing-re-signing-Nic-Claxton-in-free-agency.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets prioritizing re-signing Nic Claxton in free agency</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-06-01T19:35:27-07:00">June 1st, 7:35pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-06-01T19:37:42-07:00">June 1st, 7:37pm</time><address><a>Rexwell Villas</a>Rexwell Villas is an experienced sports writer covering a variety of sports, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and college football. He's a Communications Arts graduate from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, and he claims to have JR Smith's conscience with his shot selection. He has won a basketball, a baseball, and a football championship in fantasy all within a year.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Brooklyn Nets have an intriguing summer ahead of them, but they could take care of one apparent priority sooner rather than later. Brooklyn big man Nic Claxton is a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-nic-claxton-expected-command-100-million-free-agency">pending unrestricted free agent</a>, making his signature on an extension deal a <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/06/01/sports/nets-could-keep-nic-claxton-from-hitting-open-free-agent-market/" rel="noopener">chief and urgent priority</a> for his team, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post.</p><p><i>“It was always a foregone conclusion that Nic Claxton would become an unrestricted free agent. But it’s no sure thing he will leave Brooklyn. He might not ever even hit the open market. More and more the perception around the NBA is that Claxton is likely to re-sign with the Nets. That conceivably could happen before anybody else gets a chance to officially bid, with Brooklyn having an exclusive negotiating window with their center that starts the day after the NBA Finals ends.”</i></p><p>It’s not a stretch to think many other teams already have plans to go after Claxton in the upcoming free agency period. The Nets have an exclusive window of time to be the only team to talk about a new contract with Claxton but after 6 p.m. on June 30, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/3-early-thunder-nba-free-agency-targets-in-2024-offseason">other clubs</a> can reach out and discuss business with the former Georgia Bulldogs star.</p><h2><b>Nic Claxton’s has been huge for the Nets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Nic-Claxton-of-the-Nets-in-action.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Claxton was a bright spot in the Nets’ disappointing 2023-24 NBA season. He averaged 11.8 points on 62.9 percent shooting from the field, 9.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 2.1 blocks through 71 games. Although Claxton was just sixth this season in average points among Nets players, he led the team with a 124 offensive rating. He also finished with a 111 defensive rating — the best among Brooklyn players with regular minutes. In addition to all of that, Claxton has been the Nets’ leader in win shares in each of the last two seasons; he posted 9.2 win shares in the 2022-23 NBA season and 6.7 in the 2023-24 campaign.</p><p>With his body of work in the NBA, particularly during the last couple of seasons, Claxton is viewed as someone ripe for a huge salary increase by way of a new contract. After being taken off the board by the Nets in the second round (31st overall) in the 2019 NBA Draft, Claxton got signed by Brooklyn to just a three-year $4.2 million. In 2022, Claxton inked a two-year $17.25 million with the Nets. So far in his NBA career, Claxton has earned a total of $22.24 million.</p><p>This time around, some in the league believe he could secure a contract with an annual value greater than his total salary earnings up to date.</p><p><i>“The Post spoke with multiple league executives about how much Claxton could command, with one suggesting he will get $20 million annually and another pointing toward a Jakob Poetl contract (four years, $78 million) as an absolute minimum.”</i></p><p>As one of the best big men on the free agent market, Claxton can be expected to score a big win on the negotiation table, regardless of whether he ends up staying with the Nets or starting a new chapter of his NBA career somewhere else.</p><p><i>“It’s exciting, for me, at least. I know everybody’s situation is different, but for me personally, it’s fun, it’s exciting, the unknown of everything,” Claxton said. “I’m appreciative of Brooklyn for just giving me the opportunity to be here and support me. And like I said, we’ll see what happens.</i></p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets prioritizing re-signing Nic Claxton in free agency

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets’ Nic Claxton expected to command up to $100 million in free agency');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <p>After making the playoffs a year ago, the Brooklyn Nets had a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-offseason-preview-nic-claxtons-free-agency-mikal-bridges-future">disappointing 2023-24 NBA season</a> as they failed to qualify for the postseason. In 2023, the Nets seemed to be on the verge of becoming an exciting young team highlighted by the acquisitions of Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson. But now the Nets are at a bit of a crossroads as NBA free agency rolls around as they <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jordi-fernandezs-nic-claxton-dpoy-take-reveals-nets-free-agency-plans">must decide</a> what to do with Nic Claxton.</p><p>Claxton is set to hit unrestricted free agency this offseason. With top of the line centers scarce in this free agent crop, Claxton is among the top options along with New York Knicks big man Isaiah Hartenstein. Hartenstein <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/why-isaiah-hartenstein-could-be-the-best-big-man-available-on-the-market-134657059.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could command</a> up to $100 million in free agency as per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Fischer also reports that Claxton could also reach a similar amount.</p><p>&#8220;For a team that&#8217;s looking to upgrade at center, the market isn&#8217;t exactly flush with strong starting options,&#8221; Fischer reports. &#8220;Nic Claxton will likely command a similar dollar figure to Hartenstein&#8217;s expected range, sources said, although NBA personnel have long prepared for the Nets&#8217; switchable center to remain with Brooklyn.&#8221;</p><p>As part of the NBA&#8217;s new collective bargaining agreement, the Nets can actually begin free agent negotiations with Nic Claxton immediately after the NBA Finals end. This new report is good news for Nets fans as there are extremely limited options to replace Claxton in free agency.</p><h2><strong>Nic Claxton has become one of the NBA&#8217;s best centers<br /></strong></h2><figure id="attachment_2871175" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-2871175" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-2871175" src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot.jpg" alt="Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) drives for a shot during the first half against New York Knicks center Jericho Sims (45) at Madison Square Garden." width="1200" height="800" srcset="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot.jpg 1200w, https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Nic-Claxton-goes-up-for-a-shot-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-2871175" class="wp-caption-text">Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>In a league that&#8217;s seemingly devoid of big man and with a game that&#8217;s continually shifting towards positionless basketball with am emphasis on three-point shooting, Nic Claxton is the man in the middle for the Nets.</p><p>After the Nets selected Claxton with the No. 31 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, he&#8217;s exceeded any expectations that come with being a second round pick. Now entering his sixth season in the NBA, Claxton&#8217;s game still has room to grow.</p><p>While rival teams would certainly have interest in a developing young big man like Claxton, the Nets have made it clear that they intend to re-sign him in free agency. That point was emphasized during new head coach Jordi Fernandez&#8217;s opening press conference when he singled out Claxton as a player that fits perfectly with his vision and someone the team is making a priority to keep.</p><p>This past season, Claxton appeared in 71 games for the Nets at a little over 29 minutes per game. He averaged 11.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.1 blocked shots with splits of 62.9 percent shooting from the field and 55.1 percent shooting from the free-throw line.</p><p>The season before, Claxton averaged a career high 12.6 points. He led the league in shooting that season at 70.5 percent which was also a career high for him. Claxton has emerged as one of the top defensive players in the league as well able to guard multiple positions.</p><p>The Nets are still going to have to identify what direction they want to go in and how they want to build their team. But re-signing Nic Claxton in free agency is a no-brainer.</p>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets’ Nic Claxton expected to command up to $100 million in free agency

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-nets-lakers-offer-ready-donovan-mitchell-cavs');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets, Lakers have ‘their offer ready’ if Donovan Mitchell leaves Cavs');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/NBA-rumors-Nets-Lakers-have-their-offer-ready-if-Donovan-Mitchell-leaves-Cavs.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets, Lakers have ‘their offer ready’ if Donovan Mitchell leaves Cavs</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-05-15T14:34:10-07:00">May 15th, 2:34pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-05-15T14:34:10-07:00">May 15th, 2:34pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Donovan Mitchell’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-heat-are-prime-team-to-watch-for-donovan-mitchell-trade-pursuit-despite-cavs-stance">uncertain future</a> has remained a constant storyline throughout the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2023-24 campaign. With one year left on his contract after this season, the five-time All-Star has yet to commit to an extension, leading to speculation that he could be traded this summer.</p><p>Those rumors are picking up steam with Cleveland one game away from elimination, and the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers are among the teams <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1790747814529568990">preparing to make a run</a> at the star guard, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.</p><p>“The NBA, especially beginning with what Donovan says at the end of the season, is paying very close attention because multiple teams would love to make a huge offer to the Cavs if Donovan does not choose to extend his contract,” Windhorst said Wednesday. “There are a number of teams that have their offers ready.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">.<a href="https://twitter.com/WindhorstESPN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WindhorstESPN</a> on Donovan Mitchell:</p><p>"Multiple teams would love to make a huge offer to the Cavs if he doesn't extend… Teams that have their offers ready."</p><p>When asked about the Knicks:</p><p>"They're trying to win this playoff series, but certainly across the river in Brooklyn." <a href="https://t.co/feHD3TAi2V">pic.twitter.com/feHD3TAi2V</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1790747814529568990?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 15, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Three teams expected to lead Donovan Mitchell sweepstakes</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Mitchell-Nets.jpg"><figcaption>David Richard-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Windhorst said three teams would be “at the top of the list” of Mitchell trade suitors if he doesn’t extend in Cleveland: the Lakers, Nets and Miami Heat. He dismissed the New York Knicks as a potential destination.</p><p>“The Knicks are trying to win this Eastern Conference series, but certainly across the river there in Brooklyn,” he said. “The Nets don’t control their drafts. Their future drafts are all controlled by the Houston Rockets. They are not in a rebuild mode. They want to build back up. They have the Suns’ draft assets, and the Suns’ draft assets could potentially be very valuable three or four years from now.”</p><p>“They also have some good young players, and it’s in the Eastern Conference, and Donovan Mithcell is from the New York area.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Three teams will be "at the top of the list" of Donovan Mitchell trade suitors if he doesn’t extend in Cleveland, per <a href="https://twitter.com/WindhorstESPN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WindhorstESPN</a>:</p><p>Lakers<br>Heat<br>Nets</p><p>Windhorst notes that Mitchell will be able to somewhat direct a trade with one year left on his contract. <a href="https://t.co/3L1lxJcwir">pic.twitter.com/3L1lxJcwir</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1790803312952098941?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 15, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2>Can the Brooklyn Nets win a bidding war?</h2><p>If the report is accurate, it won’t be the first time Mitchell has expressed interest in playing for Brooklyn. The five-time All-Star had the Knicks, Nets and Heat <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/3537235/2022/08/25/jazz-lakers-trade-donovan-mitchell-knicks/?source=nbatw&amp;redirected=1">as his preferred destinations</a> in 2022 before the Utah Jazz traded him to Cleveland, according to The Athletic’s Tony Jones.</p><p>With seven tradable first-round picks – including unprotected firsts from Phoenix in 2027, 2028 and 2029 – the Nets <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/donovan-mitchell-nets-most-realistic-superstar-trade-target-ahead-of-deadline">have the assets to outbid</a> the Lakers and Heat. Los Angeles will have three first-round picks available to trade come draft night, while Miami will have two.</p><p>However, with one year left on his contract, Mitchell will have leverage to direct a trade if he chooses. Whether he would put on an all-out campaign to force himself to one team remains to be seen.</p><p>Despite the rampant trade speculation, the Cavaliers reportedly remain confident in their ability to re-sign Mitchell. Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert voiced that optimism in March during an interview with the Associated Press. However, when asked about Gilbert’s comments, Mitchell <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/donovan-mitchell-remains-noncommittal-on-cavs-extension-amid-nets-knicks-rumors">remained non-committal</a> about signing an extension.</p><p>“I got a lot of things to focus on outside of that right now,” he said. “I’ve got to focus on myself, getting back for this group, focus on us getting over this stretch, continuing to be ready when it comes time… So, I’ll handle that when it comes, and I understand you gotta ask that question, and I’m gonna give you the same answer.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Donovan Mitchell remained non-committal on signing an extension with the Cavs after Dan Gilbert's comments:</p><p>"I got a lot of things to focus on outside of that right now… So, I’ll handle that when it comes… I'm gonna give you the same answer."</p><p>(Video via <a href="https://twitter.com/CavsInsider_FN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CavsInsider_FN</a>) <a href="https://t.co/pDbU5PpzAJ">pic.twitter.com/pDbU5PpzAJ</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1774079923444932825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>While many within league circles expected Mitchell would move on from Utah once his contract expired, he never explicitly asked for a trade from the Jazz. He’s taken a similar approach in Cleveland, brushing aside questions about his future and focusing on the current season.</p><p>If Mitchell continues to turn down an extension, the question becomes: will Cleveland hold onto him next year and risk him walking in free agency? It’s a question that has massive implications for the Nets, who project to have over $50 million in cap space in 2025. Mitchell hitting free agency and giving Brooklyn a chance to sign him without giving up any assets would be the team’s dream scenario.</p><p>All of these hypotheticals remain in question until Cleveland’s season is over. That shouldn’t be long, with Mitchell ruled out for Wednesday’s Game 5 matchup with the Boston Celtics.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets, Lakers have ‘their offer ready’ if Donovan Mitchell leaves Cavs

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-rumors-sean-marks-return-nets-gm-lead-coaching-search-despite-letdown-season');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Sean Marks to return as Nets GM, lead coaching search despite letdown season');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/7291279187.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Sean Marks to return as Nets GM, lead coaching search despite letdown season</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-04-13T10:39:32-07:00">April 13th, 10:39am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-04-13T11:24:38-07:00">April 13th, 11:24am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Despite a disappointing season during which his team posted the NBA’s ninth-worst record, Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks is not going anywhere. The eighth-year GM is <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/04/12/sports/nets-sean-marks-returning-as-gm-for-next-season/?utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=nypost_sitebuttons" rel="noopener">set to return next season</a> and hire the team’s next head coach, according to a report from the New York Post.</p><p>After firing Jacque Vaughn and promoting Kevin Ollie to interim head coach at the All-Star break, Marks <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-sean-marks-drops-blunt-take-hot-seat-rumors-after-jacque-vaughn-firing">insisted</a> he and owner Joe Tsai remain in lockstep.</p><p>“Joe [Tsai] and I have always been in complete partnership,” he said. “Joe and I will make the decision [of hiring the next head coach] and he has given me no reason to believe that I won’t be able to make that decision. We’ll take a lot of factors into account as we make this. We’ve got time, we’re not gonna be in a rush, there’s gonna be a robust search, and by the end of this I have no doubt that we’ll find the best person fit for this job.”</p><p>The partnership remains intact entering the offseason despite a dissapointing finish to the 2023-24 campaign. Marks <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-kevin-ollie-brutally-honest-brooklyns-goal-replacing-jacque-vaughn">said he wanted to see “movement”</a> toward a playoff berth after the midseason coaching change. That never came to fruition, though, with Brooklyn posting an 11-16 record while ranking 24th in offense and 15th in defense under Ollie.</p><h2><b>Sean Marks’ track record with the Nets</b></h2><p>With no draft capital or premium talent upon taking over the Nets, Marks earned league-wide praise for building a playoff team in less than three years. His scrappy 2018-19 squad attracted Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, who he signed during the ensuing offseason with two max slots he opened by manipulating the salary cap. Marks parlayed his young players and future draft picks into a trade for James Harden, creating what many considered the most talented big three in NBA history.</p><p>However, injuries derailed a 2021 playoff run, and Irving’s refusal to comply with New York’s workplace COVID-19 mandate derailed the following season. With Irving ineligible to play in home games and Durant injured, Harden asked for a trade at the 2022 deadline. Durant and Irving followed suit over the next year, leaving the Nets with Ben Simmons’ monstrosity of a contract and a cohort of veteran wings.</p><p>Despite his star trio asking for trades within a year, Marks has spoken confidently about his ability to attract marquee names again.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“They feel they can recruit players. That 100% is their belief… They believe that guys will want to play in New York… Between talking with agents and players, they have a feeling they can attract players.”</p><p>–<a href="https://twitter.com/NYPost_Lewis?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYPost_Lewis</a> on Nets' plans</p><p>Full pod here: <a href="https://t.co/Ky6TJpzOki">https://t.co/Ky6TJpzOki</a> <a href="https://t.co/nJBjM2uKor">pic.twitter.com/nJBjM2uKor</a></p><p>— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) <a href="https://twitter.com/erikslater_/status/1771269095306010640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 22, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Sean Marks preparing for fourth coaching search with the Nets</b></h2><p>Marks has a proven track record as an elite drafter, finding Caris LeVert (20th), Jarrett Allen (22nd), Nic Claxton (31st) and Cam Thomas (27th) with late first-round selections. He’s produced similar results with free-agent signings, plucking Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris from the G-League, who both turned into starting-caliber players..</p><p>However, Marks has had less success identifying the coach to lead his team, one of the most critical tasks of a GM. His most exhaustive coaching search produced his first and best hire: Kenny Atkinson. However, after signing Durant and Irving, he fired Atkinson in 2019, a decision many believe his star duo played a significant role in.</p><p>Marks then hired Steve Nash, who underwhelmed in his first coaching gig. After reports that Brooklyn <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-ime-udoka-to-replace-steve-nash-as-brooklyn-head-coach">intended to hire</a> Ime Udoka following his controversial exit from the Boston Celtics, he backtracked and elevated Vaughn to replace Nash.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">The Brooklyn Nets plan to hire Ime Udoka as their new head coach, sources tell <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthletic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthletic</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Stadium?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Stadium</a>. Boston granted the Nets permission to speak to Udoka and will allow him to leave freely, sources said. <a href="https://t.co/lFeHY8hUiS">https://t.co/lFeHY8hUiS</a></p><p>— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1587508054815571968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 1, 2022</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>With Vaughn out the door, Marks will now hire his fourth head coach, a rarity for a GM with such little playoff success.</p><p>While the Nets have severely underwhelmed this season, they’re positioned with a treasure trove of draft assets from the Durant and Irving deals. Brooklyn has seven tradable first-round picks, including three distant unprotected firsts from the Phoenix Suns (2027, 2029) and Dallas Mavericks (2029). They also project to have over $40 million in cap space after Ben Simmons’ contract expires next season.</p><p>With known aspirations to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-sean-marks-eye-opening-claim-brooklyn-competitive-timetable-trade-deadline">lure another star</a> to the Nets, those avenues to improve the team will be at the center of the Marks’ pitch to prospective coaches. After a season that drew calls for his firing from a loud segment of the fanbase, a failure in either pursuit will represent the end of the GM’s time in Brooklyn.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Sean Marks to return as Nets GM, lead coaching search despite letdown season

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nets-should-stay-away-trae-young-dejounte-murray-star-trade-rumors');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why Nets should stay away from Trae Young, Dejounte Murray amid star trade rumors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Why-Nets-should-stay-away-from-Trae-Young-Dejounte-Murray-amid-star-trade-rumors.jpeg"></figure><h1>Why Nets should stay away from Trae Young, Dejounte Murray amid star trade rumors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-04-09T13:06:29-07:00">April 9th, 1:06pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-04-09T13:06:29-07:00">April 9th, 1:06pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After a disappointing 2023-24 campaign, the Brooklyn Nets are expected to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-sean-marks-drops-blunt-take-hot-seat-rumors-after-jacque-vaughn-firing">dive into the star trade market</a> in the coming year. With the NBA’s 23rd-ranked offense amid Mikal Bridges’ second-half struggles this season, the team has a glaring need for an offensive engine. Atlanta Hawks guards Trae Young and Dejounte Murray fit the description and could be available this summer.</p><p>A<a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/the-nbas-west-has-rebounded-and-is" rel="noopener"> new report</a> from Marc Stein confirmed what many have expected for months: The Hawks are leaning towards breaking up their backcourt duo ahead of next season.</p><p>“Only the Hawks know their preferred path for sure. The most likely scenario, according to one league source, continues to be that Atlanta trades one of its two star guards before next season,” Stein wrote.</p><p>The Nets have the ammunition to acquire either player. After moving Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving at last year’s deadline, Brooklyn has seven tradable first-round picks. That includes three distant unprotected firsts from Phoenix (2027, 2029) and Dallas (2029), which should be highly coveted.</p><p>However, after a season that has established how far the Nets are from contention, general manager Sean Marks would be wise to stay away from the Hawks duo.</p><h2>Why Nets should stay away from Trae Young and Dejounte Murray</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Atlanta-Hawks-guard-Dejounte-Murray-5-and-Atlanta-Hawks-guard-Trae-Young.jpeg"><figcaption>Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The prospect of landing a player like Young, who could vault Brooklyn’s often unwatchable offense into a more tolerable category, is enticing. Young had one of the best statistical seasons of his career this year, averaging 26.4 points and 10.8 assists on 43/37/86 shooting splits while earning his third All-Star selection. But if the Hawks are willing to move on from him, there are good reasons for it.</p><p>Many viewed Young as Steph Curry-lite when he entered the league: a player with unlimited shooting range who would fuel an offense with his gravity. However, the 25-year-old has never approached Curry’s level of marksmanship over his six NBA seasons, shooting 35.4 percent from three on 7.4 attempts per game. More importantly, at 6-foot-1, 164 pounds, his defensive shortcomings will always be difficult to hide come playoff time.</p><p>Atlanta has given Young an extended opportunity as their lead option. It hasn’t worked out. The Hawks have posted a 120-122 record over the last three seasons. They’ve hung their hat on a 2021 Eastern Conference Finals appearance, a run aided by a Ben Simmons second-round meltdown that was so epic it ended his Philadelphia 76ers career.</p><p>Young will make $43 million in 2024-25 and $46 million in 2025-26 before a $49 million player option in 2026-27. After trading three first-round picks and a swap for Murray, it’s safe to assume Atlanta would be asking at least that price for Young.</p><p>The Hawks are five and a half games better than the Nets this season. If they pull the plug on the Young experiment, can Brooklyn justifiably sign up to pay him nearly $140 million over the next three seasons while giving up a haul of draft picks? The answer should be a resounding no.</p><p>A more reasonable case could be made for the Nets to take a swing on Murray. With Young sidelined by a hand injury for the last three weeks, the 27-year-old has averaged 24.6 points and 9.0 assists on 45/37/72 shooting splits, leading Atlanta to a 12-10 record. He would cost half as much as Young salary-wise at $80.4 million over the next three seasons.</p><p>Murray and his camp also <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-nets-potential-trade-dejounte-murray-donovan-mitchell">view Brooklyn as a desirable landing spot</a>, according to a report from Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer. However, with the Hawks <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-hawks-dejounte-murray-trade-asking-price-comes-into-focus">seeking two first-round picks</a> for him at the trade deadline, the Nets declined to make an aggressive bid.</p><p>Marks has kept his powder dry in anticipation of a bigger name hitting the market in the near future. Many have pointed to Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell as the player Brooklyn has its eye on. With one year left on his contract, the New York native <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/donovan-mitchell-remains-noncommittal-on-cavs-extension-amid-nets-knicks-rumors">remained noncommittal on signing an extension</a> after Cavs owner Dan Gilbert said he expects him to stay in Cleveland long-term.</p><p>It remains to be seen whether Mitchell will be available this offseason. Regardless, the Nets should avoid making a deal for Young or Murray that would put them in the same position the Hawks are trying to get out of.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

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