NBA News: Nets summer fire sale? A bidding war for NBAs TV rights, more

Good morning, hoops heads! Let’s take a look at the latest NBA headlines.

NBA News: A Brooklyn Nets full teardown?

It wasn’t that long ago this season that the Brooklyn Nets were rolling and things were looking up after a series of controversies. Now, both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are gone after being traded, and Ben Simmons is the only remaining player from their “big three.” The Nets reportedly discussed trading him to the Raptors ahead of the trade deadline, but that deal fell through, leaving Brooklyn holding the bag.

Based on that, it comes as no surprise that they are expected to try and move him again this summer according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. At the moment, Simmons’ value is pretty low, and it probably won’t skyrocket playing without Irving and Durant. That said, after receiving five first-round picks for Irving and Durant, the Nets will probably look to rebuild and could be willing to take less to move on from Simmons.

Brooklyn was also reportedly offered two first-round picks for Dorian Finney Smith and four for Mikal Bridges according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, and they could potentially revisit those deals this summer. However, a Brooklyn rebuild starts with moving Simmons, and it seems likely that he will be on another team before the start of next season.

NBA News: A bidding war for the NBA’s TV rights

Many younger fans probably aren’t aware, but the NBA used to air games on NBC instead of ABC, but a brewing bidding war could change that. NBC is reportedly expected to aggressively pursue the NBA once its television contract expires in 2024, in addition to Amazon and Apple. Those three companies seeking to make a deal with the NBA all have something in common. They all have streaming services.

Peacock is owned by NBC, Prime Video is owned by Amazon, and Apple TV is owned by Apple. That could present the NBA with an interesting opportunity to increase its reach. They’ve already slashed the cost of NBA League Pass to increase the number of subscribers; however, if they partner with NBC, their games could be simulcast on broadcast TV and on Peacock, similar to the NFL.

That could dramatically increase the number of viewers for primetime games. The same could be said for Amazon Prime, which has 200 million subscribers, though not all of them use Prime Video or watch the NBA. Still, that is a massive potential audience. Also, similar to the NFL, the NBA could partner with both NBC and Amazon, giving them the best of both worlds and dramatically increasing their viewership as well as revenue.

In fact, the NBA is expecting its next TV contract to more than double its current $4.1 billion value. That, of course, would eventually cause the salary cap and player contracts to skyrocket. It could also cause the NBA to eventually expand to new markets such as Mexico City, Las Vegas, and Seattle to both increase its reach and curb rising player salaries. This is definitely something to keep an eye on going forward.

NBA News: The Wounded Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans have one of the deepest teams in the NBA, but injuries to their top players have slowed them down. Brandon Ingram recently returned from a two-month absence, but fellow star Zion Williamson will be out longer than expected.

Williamson was expected to return after the All-Star break, but an injury setback means he could miss the rest of the regular season.

That could be a huge blow to the Pelicans’ title chances, and their inability to stay healthy may ultimately cause them to have a low seed in a wide-open Western Conference. After all, they are currently 30-28 and 7th in the West, but they are the only playoff team in the NBA this season to have lost 10 straight games. That shows the impact injuries have had on this team’s success.

NBA News: The flailing San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs currently have the second-worst record in the NBA and are in a tailspin as they head into the all-star break. The Spurs have lost 14 straight games, the longest losing streak in the NBA this season, but ironically, this is only the Spurs’ second double-digit losing streak of the season.

Fortunately, these ugly losing streaks do have a silver lining. The team, barring snapping out of their free fall and going on a two- or three-game win streak, appears likely to finish with one of the three worst records in the NBA.

That would give them about a 27% chance of landing the first or second overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and selecting either Victor Wembanyama, Scoot Henderson, or perhaps another player.

Considering the Spurs haven’t had a bona fide superstar since Kawhi Leonard demanded to be traded in 2018, all of the losses could ultimately be worth it.

That’s all for now, hoops heads!