NBA Trade Grades: Hawks acquiring Jeremy Lin from Nets

Brooklyn Nets

Brooklyn’s move here may seem curious on paper, since they’re basically shelling out a useful bench piece, a second-rounder and the right to swap second-rounders for a closer second-rounder.

However, in conjunction with another move with the Nuggets, it makes perfect sense. Once again, general manager Sean Marks is doing an excellent job putting his team in position to be players in the near future.

By getting rid of Lin’s contract and waiting to officially re-sign Joe Harris (thus giving the Nets his $1.5 million cap hold to work with, rather than his full $8 million salary), Marks had the space to absorb the contracts of Faried and Arthur from Denver.

This means next summer, the Nets will have $21.2 million in expiring contracts coming off the books, allowing them to be players in free agency.

Whether they actually attract star players in a market that will feature more teams with max cap space remains to be seen, but Marks has done an excellent job restocking a bare cupboard with future assets.

As for Lin himself, it’s unfortunate to see his tenure come to an end this way after signing an exciting three-year, $36 million deal in 2016. In the end, he was only able to suit up for 37 games in Brooklyn, including just one contest last year after rupturing his patellar tendon in the first game of the 2017-18 campaign.

In his time with the Nets, Lin averaged 14.6 points, 5.1 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game, shooting 43.7 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from 3-point range. His departure clears out Brooklyn’s backcourt logjam, making it easier for head coach Kenny Atkinson to provide plenty of minutes for D’Angelo Russell, Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris LeVert moving forward.

Grade: B+