The Brooklyn Nets have been ripe with intrigue, drama and disappointment over the last two years. There have been trades, firings, interim coaches, new teammates, a chronically bad back and social media bruhahas.
And don't forget about reports of Joe and Clara Tsai set to sell a 10% minority stake of the team to Julia Koch, part of the wealthy and politically-conservative Koch family.
But amidst all the change, the only constant for the Nets has been bad play, bad decisions and a negative balance sheet. It's all reversible starting in the summer of 2024, but it likely won't be a quick turnaround.
It will require patience and not swinging for the fences like assemblying another super team, because whenever Nets management tries to assemble the Avengers, we end up with The Boys.
First, it was the historically bad Boston Celtics trade in the 2013-2014 season, where Brooklyn got fleeced out of first round picks in a trade for over-the-hill players Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. The Celtics used those Nets draft picks to select Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, while the Nets fell short of a championship as Garnett and Pierce were old and ineffective.
The Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden pairing was also a colossal failure, with the three superstars playing just sixteen games together over a two-season span from 2020 to 2022. All three players have since moved on, costing the Nets unprotected first round picks in 2024 and 2026. The Nets received a broken building block in Ben Simmons who arrived from the Philadelphia 76ers for James Harden.
Simmons was ruled out for the rest of the season on Tursday because of a lower back nerve impingement, which makes the third straight year that Simmons' season has ended with back issues. Surgical and non-surgical remedies haven't solved Simmons' problems, as he's only played in 57 games for the Nets in the last two seasons.
Currently in 11th place in the Eastern Conference and four games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the final Play-In spot, the Nets are a messy team.
They've stumbled through an easy schedule since the All-Star break, and just lost to the Detroit Pistons who set the NBA losing-streak record this season. Barclays Center doesn't feel like home for the Nets and more like an Airbnb, as visiting fans pull up to the arena in force, making the most noise.
The Nets aren't even a middle-of-the-road team. They need to improve dramatically to become a contender, but need to, at the very least, elevate to be a pretender.
Draft, trades, free agency, and current player improvement are key roads the team could take to improve, and yet two of those options are already closed.
Considering the low grade given to the 2024 draft class, the Nets' won’t experience FOMO from not having a first round draft pick, even though the NBA draft will be at Barclays Center.
Nets Forward Mikal Bridges is currently the most talented player on the Nets, and his two-way play is attractive to superstars and a selling point for the team as General Manager Sean Marks looks to add star talent to the roster via trade.
Building on the foundational core of center Nic Claxton (who the Nets must resign), forward Cam Johnson and Bridges, the team could be a superstar away from becoming a contender.
The $40.2 million expiring contract of guard Ben Simmons is a nice chip to use as trade bait, so if a superstar does become available next season, the team has the flexibility to pounce.
Marks needs to work his magic with the cap space and first round draft pick to get back on track for 2025-2026 season. One can hope he makes strategic transactions that move the needle just enough to get the Nets into a top-eight spot for 2024-2025 season. Brooklyn deserves as much.
