Frenetic NBA post-season trading in full force
The Los Angeles Lakers, with the signing of Anthony Davis in a blockbuster trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, are busy trying to frame a Western Conference super team but the Brooklyn Nets have landed possibly the greatest free agency super stakes since Pat Riley signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh to play with Dwyane Wade in Miami.
After breaking their three-year play-off drought in the just concluded season (even though winning only one play-off game), the Nets have fully remade their roster in a most dramatic fashion.
They have crafted the acquisition of top-flight free agents Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant from the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors, respectively. Sadly, the true fruits of this situation may not be realised until the 2020-21 season since Durant will, more than likely, not be available next season due to his injured Achilles.
Durant declined his US$31.5 million player option with the Warriors in June, officially setting him up for unrestricted free agency at the end of the season. He was eligible to remain with Golden State on a five-year, US $221 million deal, or to sign a four-year, $164 million deal with another team — He chose the latter.
The Nets, and all the teams that were vying for his MVP-talents, knew they likely would be without his services for the entire 2019-20 season, but the long-term pay-off was hard to resist.
Durant, who turns 31 in September, finished the post season averaging 32.3 points per game on 51 per cent shooting from the field, 44 per cent shooting from three-point range and 90 per cent from the free throw line. He’s the first player in NBA history to average 30 points per game on 50-40-90 shooting in a single post-season (minimum five games).
There is some level of uncertainty as to what Durant will look like when next he takes the court. By the time he returns, he will be 32 years old, with some amount of miles on his body and a couple of major injuries. Will he still be a top-three player in the league at that point?
In the short term, Irving alone will be a sure upgrade over D’Angelo Russell and likely make the Nets a consistent play-off participant.
However, by himself, Irving doesn’t make the Nets a title contender. In fact, Brooklyn with Irving is probably still a slightly worse team than the Boston Celtics with Kemba Walker and Al Horford.
Based on their most recent performance, Brooklyn is expected to have a very good team next season, but they will need a healthy Durant to be a contender two years from now.
Speaking of D’Angelo Russell, he is coming off a breakout season with the Nets, one that saw him establish new career highs in scoring (21.1 average points), field-goal percentage (43.4), three-point percentage (36.9) and assists (7.0 average per game). That strong performance led to the 23-year-old’s first All-Star selection.
The Lakers had shown a special interest in his skills but, the Warriors, instead of letting Kevin Durant leave for nothing, orchestrated a complex move to try and profit from the deal.
They traded a future first-round pick to the Nets and shipped Andre Iguodala (along with a 2024 first-round pick) to the Memphis Grizzlies. In addition, based on the NBA rule governing payroll, Golden State had to part ways with DeMarcus Cousins, Quinn Cook, Shaun Livingston and Jordan Bell.
Time will reveal if the moves were worth it, but the Warriors needed a playmaker who could ‘substitute’ for Klay Thompson, who will miss at least the first couple months of next season with his ACL injury. Russell is eligible to be traded on December 15, roughly around the end of Thompson’s projected five- to seven-month recovery but the risks must have already been calculated and deemed worthwhile.
Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler is reportedly on his way to the Miami Heat in a sign and trade with the Philadelphia 76ers, Charlotte Hornets’ Kemba Walker is heading to the Boston Celtics and NBA Final’s MVP Kawhi Leonard is still in negotiations with the Toronto Raptors, LA Clippers and LA Lakers.
If Kawhi signs with the Lakers, a true super team will be created but, if not, LeBron will be left with Anthony Davis, Kyle Kuzma and a bunch of leftovers. In this three-horse race, the only person with the reins is Kawhi Leonard and he is obviously taking it to the wire.
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