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Brooklyn Nets: 2016 Offseason Grades

By Gerald Bourguet

Apr 8, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) goes up for a shot against Brooklyn Nets guard Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (24) during the first half at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 8, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) goes up for a shot against Brooklyn Nets guard Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (24) during the first half at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /
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Brooklyn Nets
Mar 8, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Brooklyn Nets forward Thaddeus Young (30) reaches for a rebound in the second half against Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Nets lost 104-99. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /

Thad Trade

The Nets were in a bind. Despite having oodles of cap space to blow this summer, almost every other team in the league enjoyed the same luxury by courtesy of the NBA’s salary cap skyrocketing from $70 million to $94 million.

With little hope of luring marquee free agents to a shoddy team and no prospect of a high draft pick in the near future to turn the team’s fortunes around, Brooklyn had the most hopeless outlook of any franchise in the NBA.

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    • Luckily, Marks was aggressive in getting the Nets back into the draft, trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers for their first round selection at No. 20. Trading Lopez, the team’s star, might have netted a higher return (depending on the buyer), but getting into the first round for a good but not great player is a solid return.

    Last season, Young quietly had a great year — even though he was playing for a terrible team — and averaged 15.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game on 51.4 percent shooting. He’s a stout defender, a solid slasher and has the versatility to play multiple positions.

    Unfortunately, the Nets aren’t competitive enough to need that kind of player, and at 28 years old, Young was not in Brooklyn’s future plans. By trading one of the the Nets’ few (read: two) assets, Marks was able to add Caris LeVert from Michigan to a young core that includes Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Chris McCullough.

    Like RHJ (his jumper) and McCullough (his ACL tear and overall rawness), LeVert brings his own Achilles heel to the table that could hold him back from reaching his full NBA potential. Like Achilles himself, LeVert’s biggest problem is keeping his feet intact, with a series of foot injuries ending his junior and senior seasons.

    With the Wolverines, LeVert’s potential was exceedingly clear. He averaged 16.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game as a senior, posting .506/.446/.794 shooting splits and showing the ability to guard multiple positions as a combo guard.

    If he can overcome his injuries, this high-upside pick has lottery-level talent and will help the Nets for the future. It’s a risky move to cash in on Young with an injury-prone, 21-year-old prospect, but if he can play, he’s the kind of do-it-all player that will help Brooklyn build toward a brighter future…even if the Nets got unmistakably worse for 2016-17 with this trade.

    Grade: A-

    Next: The Rest Of The Draft

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