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Brook Lopez: The Key To The Brooklyn Nets’ Future

By Greg Chin

Apr 1, 2015; New York, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) high fives small forward Joe Johnson (7) after hitting the go-ahead shot against the New York Knicks with two second left during the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden. The Nets defeated the Knicks 100-98. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 1, 2015; New York, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) high fives small forward Joe Johnson (7) after hitting the go-ahead shot against the New York Knicks with two second left during the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden. The Nets defeated the Knicks 100-98. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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In the 2013 offseason, the Brooklyn Nets changed the landscape of the Eastern Conference. They traded away three future first-round draft picks, options to swap picks, and a slew of role players for Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry.

The intent and the idea was to create a new superteam, teaming up three championship-winning veterans with their core of superstars in their prime in Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Brook Lopez.

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One second-round playoff exit later, and the Nets no longer have Garnett, Pierce, or Terry on their roster. They scrapped for their lives, and barely made this season’s playoffs. The team’s outlook is grim: they have no salary cap flexibility with $86.5 million in guaranteed salaries for next season, and do not own their own first-round pick until the 2019 NBA Draft.

Making the playoffs this season was done out of necessity. The Nets are being touted by many analysts as the worst team to have qualified for the playoffs, and it is almost a foregone conclusion that they will crash out to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round.

However, due to the fact that the Hawks have the option to swap picks with the Nets in the upcoming draft, it was important for the Nets to make the playoffs, in order not to give up a lottery pick.

The landscape for the Nets’ future is murky. With no upcoming draft picks and a capped out payroll, it will be very hard for them to improve their roster. Deron Williams hasn’t been the same since he left the Utah Jazz, with injuries hampering his performances. Joe Johnson has made a few clutch buckets for the Nets, but isn’t playing to his hefty $24 million price tag.

The only bright spot on the Nets’ roster is Brook Lopez – the very same player that was being dangled as trade bait to the Oklahoma City Thunder before the recent trade deadline. The Nets and the Thunder were rumored to be close to agreeing on a trade, before the Thunder decided to trade for the Jazz’s Enes Kanter instead.

Since the trade fell through, Lopez has been averaging 19.7 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks on 52.5 percent shooting. He’s been the Nets’ best player in their final surge to make the playoffs, and went 13-9 over the final 22 games that Lopez started.

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    • Lopez’s recent performances have given the Nets some hope. The Nets signed Lopez to a max-extension in July 2012, and he showed some promise before being cut down by injury in the 2013-14 season, playing just 17 games. He has seemed much healthier this season, and has had some encouraging performances.

    With seemingly no other way to improve the roster, the Nets will have to rely on the key pieces they already have. Johnson and Williams don’t seem like franchise players, and their time with the organization might be nearing an end once their contracts are up.

    The risk with Lopez is that there is a bad precedent in the league when it comes to big men and foot problems, and one healthy season from Lopez might not be an indicator of long-term health.

    However, the Nets have no other choice. They can’t afford to tear down the roster and start a rebuilding process due to their lack of future draft picks. Their only choice is to build around Lopez next season, and hope that the impending jump in the salary cap in the 2016 offseason allows them to add marquee names to their roster.

    By mortgaging their future for an opportunity to win the title, the Nets lost that gamble. Their future might now be in the hands of the longest-tenured active Net – Brook Lopez.

    Next: The 30 Best Centers of All-Time

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