Brooklyn Nets: Pre-free agency roundtable
4. The Nets, as we stand here today on July 28, have the third-most cap space of any team in the league. That allows for the possibility of acquiring another “salary dump” in a way to acquire more young assets like D’Angelo Russell. What teams do you think would be interested in bringing in the Nets for a deal, and how do you see them utilizing that to their fullest advantage?
BR: With nearly $35 million in cap space this summer, the Nets should have plenty of options at their disposal. If they don’t find the free agent market as attractive as they hoped it might be, they could elect to absorb a salary dump in exchange for an asset(s). Around the league, many teams find themselves in financial purgatory.
Houston is trying to clear cap space to surround James Harden and newly acquired guard Chris Paul, and the Charlotte Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City and Toronto are at, or are approaching, the luxury tax. Players like Ryan Anderson, Trevor Ariza, Eric Gordon, Marvin Williams, Allen Crabbe, Meyers Leonard, Enes Kanter and DeMarre Carroll could interest Brooklyn.
More from Hoops Habit
- The 5 most dominant NBA players who never won a championship
- 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
JO: Up to a third of the league will be looking to shed salary for one reason or another, so the Nets should have options — they just won’t be as attractive as the recently completed trade for Russell and Mozgov. Grabbing Ryan Anderson from Houston makes the most sense to my eyes, but we don’t quite know what Marks and Atkinson are hoping to accomplish over the next two weeks.
Oklahoma City and Memphis are in absolute dire straits with the luxury tax, but they’re both short on assets. Detroit and Milwaukee also need some breathing room and may be willing to part with a future first-rounder to clear $10 million or so from their books.
JS: The Nets need to explore the money dump market. They have the most space to dump money into, given not only their cap space, but the fact that, unlike others with space, they have the luxury of knowing, in a rebuild, they will not attract quality free agents (thereby having more willingness and ability to use the money this way).
Unless you’re getting a needle-mover in free agency — a young free agent with upside — a salary dump beats a free agency splurge. Adding Mirza Teletovic by money dump, for example, beats simply signing Danilo Gallinari, because you get an asset with Mirza, and while Gallo is better, you’re losing anyway, so that means nothing.
DB: Some of these teams have a lot of big contracts that don’t leave a lot of flexibility for their future. Even though some of these teams are living the playoff dream, it doesn’t mean that continuing to underachieve is worth it. Some teams may look to the Nets to unload some direction changing contracts.