With just 10 days before the start of the 2017 NBA Draft, the Brooklyn Nets wind down their pre-draft workouts and begin finalizing a pivotal strategy entering the offseason.
After the Golden State Warriors lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy Monday night at Oracle Arena, NBA teams around the league begin to wind down scouting trips, pre-draft workouts, and internal mock drafts. The NBA offseason is in full swing.
For the NBA-worst 20-62 Brooklyn Nets, the process began a bit earlier than the juggernaut Cleveland Cavaliers and Warriors.
So where do the Nets stand just a mere 10 days before the 2017 NBA Draft?
For starters, 2017 marks the first time since 2008 the Nets will go into the draft with three draft picks (two first round picks at No. 22 overall and 27 overall, and one second round draft picks at 57 overall).
Who did the Nets select in 2008?, you might ask: Brook Lopez (10th overall), Ryan Anderson (21st overall) and Chris Douglas-Roberts (40th overall).
Despite a solid group of players, and even one that remains a pivotal and most “up in the air” piece on the team right now in Brook Lopez, the Nets may not be selecting at the current 22, 27 and 57th overall selections on draft night.
One thing the Nets are sure to be on draft night is aggressive. The team enters the offseason with roughly $30 million in cap space, the third-most of any team in the league. The Nets have continued to express a willingness to take on unwanted long-term contracts if it means a draft pick or young asset would be attached.
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The Nets have been rumored to be interested in acquiring one of Portland’s three first round picks in this year’s NBA Draft as a facilitator of shedding some unwanted salary, but to what extent Portland will pony up a valued asset is unknown.
The Nets have certainly done their fair share of inquiries over the past few weeks, and will expect that to ramp up as we get closer to June 22. However, it’s hard to decipher what the Nets are thinking with some of their pre-draft workout invitees.
We’ve heard plenty of names over the past few weeks, including notable point guards Frank Mason III, Derrick White and Juwan Evans, swingmen Terrance Ferguson, Dillon Brooks and Josh Hart, and big men Caleb Swanigan, Kennedy Meeks and Tyler Lydon.
Lots of these prospects are expected to go anywhere from the late-20s to mid-30s, and even some in the mid-40s to early-50s. There’s no doubt with that range, the Nets are looking find to find a guy that can either fall into their lap or someone they’ll have to trade up to acquire.
The Nets aren’t shy about ponying up some cash to acquire second round picks, but the added value of two-way D-League/NBA contracts may make that a tad more difficult this go-around.
One thing is for sure, the Nets will certainly surprise us all with an array of moves on draft night. General manager Sean Marks has certainly set himself up for flexibility on draft night, and it won’t be surprising if a desperate team calls the Nets looking for them to be a landing spot for some horrid contracts in a trade.
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Either way, Marks will have his options. The real factor is nailing the right combination of moves as the team will then transition into free agency come July 1.