Brooklyn Nets: Grading the team’s transactions in the 2021 offseason
By Dylan Carter
3. Brooklyn Nets trade Landry Shamet to Phoenix for Jevon Carter and the 29th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft (Day’Ron Sharpe)
It seems like the idea of Landry Shamet always ends up being better than the actual product, which is why the 2018 draft pick has been on four teams so far. Shooting just under 40% from deep in his career, Shamet is a serviceable shooter who doesn’t offer a ton beyond his floor stretching capabilities.
The Brooklyn Nets managed to turn Shamet into a reliable point guard reserve in Jevon Carter from the Phoenix Suns.
Carter has provided exactly what you’d expect from him after a four-year college career. He’s an excellent on-ball defender who pokes at the ball and uses his stocky build to put opposing ball-handlers in uncomfortable positions. Though his usage isn’t very high, Carter is a solid facilitator who can initiate team sets comfortably without commanding much attention.
While Carter has improved considerably as a shooter, it’s his confidence that has grown the most through his first three years in the league. Brooklyn doesn’t need more score-first players around its big three, so adding a third-string point guard to play bruting defense and move the ball was a forward-thinking move by the front office staff.
Meanwhile, the Nets nabbed an extra draft pick, which they used on 6-foot-11 big man Day’Ron Sharpe from North Carolina. With a wide reach and noteworthy athletic ability, Sharpe is another dart throw at the end of the first round. His upside as a low-volume, high-efficiency interior scorer and active defender with great rebounding ability makes him a solid selection.
However, late-first round big men are a crapshoot. There’s really no telling who Sharpe will become later in his career, so there’s no reason to get hung up on the pick now. Brooklyn’s player development is excellent under this current regime, and there’s no reason to believe that will stop here.