How good was the NJ deal for us?

[Jon]

It's radically premature to make any proclamations.  And quite frankly, the only thing of value in the NJ deal was the picks.  People can talk about Humphries's expiring contract; but anything they can do with that (trading it or letting it expire), they could have done by holding onto Pierce another year.

And Wallace's contract actually muddles things up more than they would have been had we just held onto Pierce (with one year left had we picked up the option) and Garnett (2 years left, but the possibility he'd retire if Pierce wasn't brought back after one more). 

As for the rest (Bogans, Brooks, etc.), they are all role players at best and really hold no long term value. 

So really what it comes down to is a) how good will these picks be? and b) how might "tanking" this year positively affect our future?

But those are a lot of ifs.  Chances are we don't end up with a top pick and that the Nets' picks turn into mediocre players at best. 

And I also think people are overlooking the potential positives of letting guys like Sully and Olynyk further develop with KG and Pierce around to guide them. 

I'm not writing this trade off as bad yet.  But a lot of the perceived positives (expiring contracts) were available to us without making a trade and the chances of these picks working out is pretty low. 

[LooseCannon]

As for the draft picks, to me, they are meaningless. Brooklyn figures to be a 4th or 5th seed in the NBA for the next 3-4 years. So, those draft picks are essentially going to be in late teens, early 20s. Hence, they are really not terribly more beneficial to the Celts than the 2nd round picks they would've gotten from Cleveland.

We pretty clearly have strong differences about the value of those draft picks.

[mmmmm]

Just to clarify:  As it stands right now, going into the 2015-16 season, the Nets will have over $62M committed to Johnson, Williams and Lopez.

Johnson:  $24.9M  (Last year of his deal)
Williams:  $21.0M  (plus $22.3M for 2016-17 with an Early Termination clause)
Lopez:     $16.7M  (Player option)

They also will have a 1.4M option on Plumlee and a 4.2M QO on Teletovic.

They will also have gone through the prior years with no 1st round pick in 2014, the lesser of theirs or Atlanta's pick in 2015 and will not be getting 1st round picks in 2016 & 2018 and will get the lesser of theirs or Boston's pick in 2017.

So they will, if nothing changes, be stuck with only the ability to round out their roster with minimum contract players.

That said, what is more likely to happen is that they will have to look at trading Lopez.   Lopez will probably be looking for a big extension.   The Nets, with their deep pockets might be willing to pay a max contract to him, especially with Johnson coming off the books after 2015-16, but they would probably be smarter to trade him to replace their missing draft picks and get other assets for rebuilding.

Johnson's contract will be expiring, but that's just a huge contract to try to move.   Maybe at the trade deadline, they could find a taker, but more likely they let it expire and use the cap room themselves in the summer of 2016.

At that point (the summer between 2016-2017) they should be able to buy their way back to competitiveness - especially if they got a good return on Lopez, but it's hard to see how they will be able to be competitive in 2015-2016.   So of all the picks that Danny has accumulated, the 2016 pick looks the most likely to be of pretty good value.   The 2017 swap option might be good as well, but the 2016 pick is the one I would try to keep.

I would be fine with trading any of the other picks, including both our 2014 picks, in trade packages to get a stud if Danny can find a good deal to make.

[JBcat]

After reading the post about "how bad does Brooklyn's future look?", it really sunk in just how good this trade was for the Celtics.

I've posted this before as what my strategy as GM would be, but let's assume it is in fact what we do as a franchise over the next few seasons and as one possible, hypothetical scenario, this is how it plays out if all the cards go correctly:

Two year span:

1. With Rondo at the helm we develop Bradley, Brooks, Green, Sully, Olynyk, Faverani, Iverson and Pressey
* Probably go to the lottery this year

2. We trade away Humphries, Wallace, Bass and possibly Courtney Lee over this year and next

3. Clear major cap space by the summer of 2015 - add a max level player...


So by the time 2015 rolls around, we're "sniffing" contention again - I do think that's possible.

If this is the case, because we have Brooklyn's unprotected 2016, 2017 & 2018 picks, we "could" be receiving high lottery picks for three straight years at the same time we are contending for championships - if Brooklyn implodes after Pierce and KG retire or move on.

After this season and next (2014 & 2015), Pierce and KG will definitely be gone from Brooklyn. Who knows what happens to that team from there. Some of those other players like Joe Johnson, Lopez and William's contracts could also come up and they could move on...

Here's the break down of the the picks we get from Brooklyn that the other guy posted. Thanks for that post, seeing it written out like that made it clear how much we could potentially receive from those picks.


2014
First round: No pick. The Hawks can swap picks with the Nets as part of last year’s Joe Johnson deal, and the lesser of the two picks is now owed to Boston from the Garnett-Pierce-Wallace trade.
Second round: No pick. It was traded to Boston (along with the rights to JaJuan Johnson) in 2011 for the rights to MarShon Brooks. Philadelphia now owns this pick.

2015
First round: The Hawks can swap picks with the Nets as part of the Johnson deal.
Second round: No pick. It was traded to Utah for Mehmet Okur in 2011.

2016
First round: No pick. It was traded to Boston in the Garnett-Pierce-Wallace deal.
Second round: The Clippers can swap picks with the Nets as part of the the Evans sign-and-trade deal last year. (The Clippers lose the ability to swap second-round picks if their own choice falls in the 56-60 range.)

2017
First round: The Celtics can swap picks with the Nets as part of the Garnett-Pierce-Wallace deal.
Second round: No pick. It was traded to Atlanta in the Johnson deal.

2018
First round: No pick. It was traded to Boston in the Garnett-Pierce-Wallace deal.
Second round: Brooklyn has this selection.


This still doesn't account for our own picks each year.

Now, Brooklyn could reload after Pierce and KG leave but who knows if their other core players stay?

Either way, we'll be getting what I think at worst will be first round picks in the 14-18 spots from Brooklyn in years 2016 through 2018, where you can find great value.

But there's a decent chance the picks could be much higher.       

That's just sick. We might have a rough couple years here, but we could be bouncing back very nicely by the summer of 2015 and be just stacked moving forward from there.

TP for the well thought out description of your plan, and the draft picks schedule.

However, you kind of glossed over point #3.  Even with clearing cap space for 2015 signing a worthy max player will be very hard.  Typically there are more losers than winners that try that strategy hoping to sign a max player.  Remember all those teams trying to clear cap space for when Lebron was going to be a free agent.  It may look like a really good free agent class now, but usually with Lebron, Bosh, and Howard notable exceptions if you are that good you don't make it to free agency, as their current team will either lock them up, or trade them such as the Carmelo trade.

I wish I could find the link, but I read an article recently that listed the all stars over the past 10 years, and what percentage of them came from teams that drafted them, traded for them, or signed as a free agent.  Overwhelming most of them came from either teams that drafted or traded for them, where a small percentage were signed as free agents.

So long story short I don't want to put all my hopes of signing a max player in 2015.   If it comes to it we might have to use an expiring say Wallace in his last year plus young players/picks to get that guy.   Ideally though IMO I'm hoping for a home run next draft so we don't have to give up much assets to get that guy later on.  But we all know the draft can be a crap shoot too even at the top of the draft so we'll see. 

[michael32951]

This is the start of a lost decade for the Nets, many players past their prime with little caproom and no draft picks in sight, the Celtics are very fortunate to have so many of their picks.  The Celtics will be raising banners while drafting the Nets lottery picks.

[ScoobyDoo]

Yeah, point taken JBcat and those types of stats are always surprising. It is actually rare that Houston got Dwight, normally he would have stayed with LA - the team that he approved to be traded to from Orlando...

I believe Kobe Bryant had "a lot" to do with Howard leaving for Houston, more than people think. Harden, Mchale and Olajuwan were probably big draws, but I think Kobe's arrogance didn't help at all.

But further to your point - and ackowledging re acquiring players through drafts or trades is more common than via free agent signings...

Those Jersey picks could come in handy in trade negotiations to secure a major free agent interested in new scenery - someone like Melo who is demanding a trade. Maybe a couple of our young guys who have developed nicely, packaged with a hypothetical 2016 Brooklyn lottery pick or just a couple of middle of the road picks in the 14-18 range, could well net us that star Veteran player that rounds out our team in a few years.

For example,and hypothetically, maybe Sully and Bradley really blossom over this year and next and someone of Cousins' level is available, demanding a trade. Would something like Sully Bradley and two first round picks, maybe one a lottery pick, secure the deal?

Bottom line is that with 9 first round picks over the next four seasons, I think Ainge did well by increasing his asset base that he can pull from to execute trades. I really like that. Holding on to Pierce and KG would have decreased your asset base from a rebuilding standpoint.

In an ideal scenario, we'll be competing for championships within 2-3 years at the same time we're drafting lottery players with Brooklyn's picks.

There is something "Auerbachian" about that - and how sweet would it be if that is in fact what Ainge eventually has pulled off with this trade?

                 

[filmexec]

@Scooby-do. Post the trade you told me here!

[NotNice]

Hey, guys. Nets fan here. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of the Nets side since it affects the Celtics picks.

The strategy of the Nets front office and ownership is to contend for 2 years. By 2015, Garnett/Pierce are expected to retire or maybe re-sign on a lesser deal, however if not. The Nets by shedding Gerald Wallace will be avoiding the repeater tax.

they will have a Euro stash pick Bojan Bogdanovic that will come over to the NBA in a season or two. Andray Blatche is expected to get re-signed with his bird rights (won't affect the cap), Pierce (if he's any good) will qualify for re-signing without affecting the cap. So, the Nets will be atleast a 5th seed or so in year 3 or maybe higher if they pull a magical addition.

Going into the 2015-2016 season the Nets only have four players under contract, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson (expiring), Brook Lopez (who has a player option) and Mason Plumlee (team option.) This means that the Nets will have cap space going into that summer, which has a number of potential big name free agents including Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (if they don’t opt out in 2014,) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kyrie Irving, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio and Kawhi Leonard, etc.

Also the 2015-2016 season will be Joe Johnson’s final season under contract, which means the team could use this expiring contract as trade bait.

Now, assuming the Nets don't make any major moves in 2015-16 off-season, they will have only Deron Williams, Mason Plumlee on the roster for 2016-17.


In the 2016-17 free agency, the Russian upstairs has made it pretty clear he intends to sign the big fish in that free agent class which is none other than Jay-Z's new client, Kevin Durant. Which interestingly enough has been in Brooklyn this summer and then in Manhattan. Then, there is also the native New Yorker, Joakim Noah in the FA class as well.

So, realistically, It's a unknown from 2017 and beyond but the Nets ownership expect to create a Yankees/Lakers esque way of building through free agency, Euro stash and trades. So, the goal is to stay pretty competitive and retool.

Now, I'm not sure how well the team will do but the draft picks for Boston but I think they'll rebuild fine. I don't even think the picks will be with you guys for very long once the right player comes along.

[Moranis]

Hey, guys. Nets fan here. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of the Nets side since it affects the Celtics picks.

The strategy of the Nets front office and ownership is to contend for 2 years. By 2015, Garnett/Pierce are expected to retire or maybe re-sign on a lesser deal, however if not. The Nets by shedding Gerald Wallace will be avoiding the repeater tax.

they will have a Euro stash pick Bojan Bogdanovic that will come over to the NBA in a season or two. Andray Blatche is expected to get re-signed with his bird rights (won't affect the cap), Pierce (if he's any good) will qualify for re-signing without affecting the cap. So, the Nets will be atleast a 5th seed or so in year 3 or maybe higher if they pull a magical addition.

Going into the 2015-2016 season the Nets only have four players under contract, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson (expiring), Brook Lopez (who has a player option) and Mason Plumlee (team option.) This means that the Nets will have cap space going into that summer, which has a number of potential big name free agents including Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (if they don’t opt out in 2014,) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kyrie Irving, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio and Kawhi Leonard, etc.

Also the 2015-2016 season will be Joe Johnson’s final season under contract, which means the team could use this expiring contract as trade bait.

Now, assuming the Nets don't make any major moves in 2015-16 off-season, they will have only Deron Williams, Mason Plumlee on the roster for 2016-17.


In the 2016-17 free agency, the Russian upstairs has made it pretty clear he intends to sign the big fish in that free agent class which is none other than Jay-Z's new client, Kevin Durant. Which interestingly enough has been in Brooklyn this summer and then in Manhattan. Then, there is also the native New Yorker, Joakim Noah in the FA class as well.

So, realistically, It's a unknown from 2017 and beyond but the Nets ownership expect to create a Yankees/Lakers esque way of building through free agency, Euro stash and trades. So, the goal is to stay pretty competitive and retool.

Now, I'm not sure how well the team will do but the draft picks for Boston but I think they'll rebuild fine. I don't even think the picks will be with you guys for very long once the right player comes along.

Nets do not have cap space in the summer of 2015 and Lebron is not a free agent in the same year as those other players, if he opts in next summer he opts in for two years making him a free agent in 2016.

[crimson_stallion]

It's better than the rumors of KG to the Clippers for Bledsoe/Jordan and PP to the Cavs for two second-round picks and a trade exception.

Disagree. Acquiring Bledsoe (point guard) and Jordan (center) would've fit two far bigger needs for the Celtics.

Actually, looking back, that would've been the PERFECT trade for a rebuilding team.

Now whether it was the Celtics or the Clippers who dragged this out, I don't know, but eventually the league step in and put the kibosh on the whole fiasco, which was unfortunate.

As for the Brooklyn deal, at first I was a fan of it. Now, I am not. We got overcrowded at the shooting guard, small forward and power forward position with a series of under-achieving players.

As for the draft picks, to me, they are meaningless. Brooklyn figures to be a 4th or 5th seed in the NBA for the next 3-4 years. So, those draft picks are essentially going to be in late teens, early 20s. Hence, they are really not terribly more beneficial to the Celts than the 2nd round picks they would've gotten from Cleveland.

The only way the Nets deal goes down as a good one is if Danny can turn around and package some of the Nets "assets" as part of a deal for a legit star.

Until then, we were better off coming back with Pierce and KG for one more year and this is coming from someone who was anxious to deal them for a fresh start.

I may have made the same decision Danny did which I then would've regretted.

1. Bledsoe is overrated and the whole reason for him leaving LAC is because they can't give him the playing time he wants/deserves.  In Boston he would either play minimal minutes behind Rondo or he's give us out 6th SG.  Either situation does not suit us all that well.

2. Jordan is really a terrible big.  He's basically a young Chris Wilcox with shot-blocking ability.  All he does is catch and dunk lobs, and block the occasional shot.  His real-world defense (aside from show-off blocks) is pretty mediocre, he has almost zero offensive game, he's foul prone and he can't shoot free throws.  I'd be far, far happier flicking of Humphries' expiring contract and a first rounder (which we have a ton of now for a solid starting center like Marcin Gortat and some extra cap space.

3.  The Clippers roster is full of talented young players.  As long as CP3 and Blake Griffin are on that team they are a playoff team, so the single 2nd round pick we'd have gotten from them would have been worth not very much at all.

By comparison the only BAD thing we got from the Brooklyn deal was the Gerald Wallace contract, everything else is good:

* Hump: Potential double-double + $12M expiring contract(Good)
* Bogans: Locker room leader + $5M expiring contract (Good)
* Brooks: Young scorer with upside on a cheap rookie contract (Good)
* $10M+ trade exception (Good)
* 4 - 5 future first round picks (Good)

Factor in the fact that Brooklyn will likely suck backly in 1-2 seasons when Pierce, Terry and KG are gone and those future first round picks just got even more valuable.

How on earth is this WORSE than the Clippers deal? The only benefit of the Clippers deal was the ability to use Bledsoe and Jordan as tade chips, but our future first rounders are probably worth just as much (maybe more) anyway.

[crimson_stallion]

Who's to say Brooklyn is going to tail off quickly?

I am not convinced they are going to be NBA champions anytime soon, but they also don't seem to be declining anytime soon either (despite Paul and KG being on the wrong side of 30.).

Mikhael Prokorov seems adamant about doing whatever he can to make Brooklyn a yearly contender.

Thus, I am not sure that any of the first round picks we got from Brooklyn are going to amount to anything significant.

Again, to me, the only way this deal goes down as a success is if Danny can package all the draft picks as part of a deal either get a legit star OR to possibly move up in one of the upcoming drafts.

Two seasons from now KG will be 40 and retired, Pierce will be 38 and retired (or a bench warmer), Terry will be 37 and retired (or a bench warmer). Johnson will be getting close to his mid-30's and well in decline.  Williams and Lopez will be the only quality players who still have life left in them. 

They still won't have cap space to sign any make any worthwhile trades or free agent signings, and they have just given away all of their future draft picks with any value to Boston.

The win record of the team will probably lie somewhere between the Bucks and the 76ers of last season, and they will be stuck in that mediocrity for many years to come.

In my eyes they are the favorites to win it all this season (yes, I believe they are better than the Heat / Spurs / Thunder) but there is no doubt that they sacrificed a LOT to put themselves in that position.

[manl_lui]

Who's to say Brooklyn is going to tail off quickly?

I am not convinced they are going to be NBA champions anytime soon, but they also don't seem to be declining anytime soon either (despite Paul and KG being on the wrong side of 30.).

Mikhael Prokorov seems adamant about doing whatever he can to make Brooklyn a yearly contender.

Thus, I am not sure that any of the first round picks we got from Brooklyn are going to amount to anything significant.

Again, to me, the only way this deal goes down as a success is if Danny can package all the draft picks as part of a deal either get a legit star OR to possibly move up in one of the upcoming drafts.

Two seasons from now KG will be 40 and retired, Pierce will be 38 and retired (or a bench warmer), Terry will be 37 and retired (or a bench warmer). Johnson will be getting close to his mid-30's and well in decline.  Williams and Lopez will be the only quality players who still have life left in them. 

They still won't have cap space to sign any make any worthwhile trades or free agent signings, and they have just given away all of their future draft picks with any value to Boston.

The win record of the team will probably lie somewhere between the Bucks and the 76ers of last season, and they will be stuck in that mediocrity for many years to come.

In my eyes they are the favorites to win it all this season (yes, I believe they are better than the Heat / Spurs / Thunder) but there is no doubt that they sacrificed a LOT to put themselves in that position.

well, besides those 3 picks we got from them, we have our own first round picks...therefore, we have 2 picks in those seasons (our's probably being the lottery, and their's in the mid teens) If they start declining, even better, two lottery picks in the same year if lucky, if not, one lottery and one around 11-15

I say not bad...but as most of you said, we can also package them in a deal to snatch an all-star

[BballTim]

Hey, guys. Nets fan here. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of the Nets side since it affects the Celtics picks.

The strategy of the Nets front office and ownership is to contend for 2 years. By 2015, Garnett/Pierce are expected to retire or maybe re-sign on a lesser deal, however if not. The Nets by shedding Gerald Wallace will be avoiding the repeater tax.

they will have a Euro stash pick Bojan Bogdanovic that will come over to the NBA in a season or two. Andray Blatche is expected to get re-signed with his bird rights (won't affect the cap), Pierce (if he's any good) will qualify for re-signing without affecting the cap. So, the Nets will be atleast a 5th seed or so in year 3 or maybe higher if they pull a magical addition.

Going into the 2015-2016 season the Nets only have four players under contract, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson (expiring), Brook Lopez (who has a player option) and Mason Plumlee (team option.) This means that the Nets will have cap space going into that summer, which has a number of potential big name free agents including Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (if they don’t opt out in 2014,) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kyrie Irving, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio and Kawhi Leonard, etc.

Also the 2015-2016 season will be Joe Johnson’s final season under contract, which means the team could use this expiring contract as trade bait.

Now, assuming the Nets don't make any major moves in 2015-16 off-season, they will have only Deron Williams, Mason Plumlee on the roster for 2016-17.


In the 2016-17 free agency, the Russian upstairs has made it pretty clear he intends to sign the big fish in that free agent class which is none other than Jay-Z's new client, Kevin Durant. Which interestingly enough has been in Brooklyn this summer and then in Manhattan. Then, there is also the native New Yorker, Joakim Noah in the FA class as well.

So, realistically, It's a unknown from 2017 and beyond but the Nets ownership expect to create a Yankees/Lakers esque way of building through free agency, Euro stash and trades. So, the goal is to stay pretty competitive and retool.

Now, I'm not sure how well the team will do but the draft picks for Boston but I think they'll rebuild fine. I don't even think the picks will be with you guys for very long once the right player comes along.

  Much like any team, if they somehow manage to acquire superstars they'll be fine, if they don't then things become bleak in a hurry. I wonder how different this plan sounds than the one the Nets had when LeBron/Wade/Bosh et al were free agents.

[wdleehi]

Hey, guys. Nets fan here. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of the Nets side since it affects the Celtics picks.

The strategy of the Nets front office and ownership is to contend for 2 years. By 2015, Garnett/Pierce are expected to retire or maybe re-sign on a lesser deal, however if not. The Nets by shedding Gerald Wallace will be avoiding the repeater tax.

they will have a Euro stash pick Bojan Bogdanovic that will come over to the NBA in a season or two. Andray Blatche is expected to get re-signed with his bird rights (won't affect the cap), Pierce (if he's any good) will qualify for re-signing without affecting the cap. So, the Nets will be atleast a 5th seed or so in year 3 or maybe higher if they pull a magical addition.

Going into the 2015-2016 season the Nets only have four players under contract, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson (expiring), Brook Lopez (who has a player option) and Mason Plumlee (team option.) This means that the Nets will have cap space going into that summer, which has a number of potential big name free agents including Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (if they don’t opt out in 2014,) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kyrie Irving, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio and Kawhi Leonard, etc.

Also the 2015-2016 season will be Joe Johnson’s final season under contract, which means the team could use this expiring contract as trade bait.

Now, assuming the Nets don't make any major moves in 2015-16 off-season, they will have only Deron Williams, Mason Plumlee on the roster for 2016-17.


In the 2016-17 free agency, the Russian upstairs has made it pretty clear he intends to sign the big fish in that free agent class which is none other than Jay-Z's new client, Kevin Durant. Which interestingly enough has been in Brooklyn this summer and then in Manhattan. Then, there is also the native New Yorker, Joakim Noah in the FA class as well.

So, realistically, It's a unknown from 2017 and beyond but the Nets ownership expect to create a Yankees/Lakers esque way of building through free agency, Euro stash and trades. So, the goal is to stay pretty competitive and retool.

Now, I'm not sure how well the team will do but the draft picks for Boston but I think they'll rebuild fine. I don't even think the picks will be with you guys for very long once the right player comes along.

The mention of Blatche in the Nets future does nothing but make me feel more optimistic about the draft picks the Celtics will get from the Nets.

[manl_lui]

Hey, guys. Nets fan here. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of the Nets side since it affects the Celtics picks.

The strategy of the Nets front office and ownership is to contend for 2 years. By 2015, Garnett/Pierce are expected to retire or maybe re-sign on a lesser deal, however if not. The Nets by shedding Gerald Wallace will be avoiding the repeater tax.

they will have a Euro stash pick Bojan Bogdanovic that will come over to the NBA in a season or two. Andray Blatche is expected to get re-signed with his bird rights (won't affect the cap), Pierce (if he's any good) will qualify for re-signing without affecting the cap. So, the Nets will be atleast a 5th seed or so in year 3 or maybe higher if they pull a magical addition.

Going into the 2015-2016 season the Nets only have four players under contract, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson (expiring), Brook Lopez (who has a player option) and Mason Plumlee (team option.) This means that the Nets will have cap space going into that summer, which has a number of potential big name free agents including Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (if they don’t opt out in 2014,) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kyrie Irving, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio and Kawhi Leonard, etc.

Also the 2015-2016 season will be Joe Johnson’s final season under contract, which means the team could use this expiring contract as trade bait.

Now, assuming the Nets don't make any major moves in 2015-16 off-season, they will have only Deron Williams, Mason Plumlee on the roster for 2016-17.


In the 2016-17 free agency, the Russian upstairs has made it pretty clear he intends to sign the big fish in that free agent class which is none other than Jay-Z's new client, Kevin Durant. Which interestingly enough has been in Brooklyn this summer and then in Manhattan. Then, there is also the native New Yorker, Joakim Noah in the FA class as well.

So, realistically, It's a unknown from 2017 and beyond but the Nets ownership expect to create a Yankees/Lakers esque way of building through free agency, Euro stash and trades. So, the goal is to stay pretty competitive and retool.

Now, I'm not sure how well the team will do but the draft picks for Boston but I think they'll rebuild fine. I don't even think the picks will be with you guys for very long once the right player comes along.

  Much like any team, if they somehow manage to acquire superstars they'll be fine, if they don't then things become bleak in a hurry. I wonder how different this plan sounds than the one the Nets had when LeBron/Wade/Bosh et al were free agents.

always a good plan until the superstar decided to take his talents somewhere else. When Lebron chose Miami over NY in 2010, NY didn't exactly do that bad. They got Amar'e and Carmelo which ended up being first round exits. This year they got to the 2nd round and with Iman Shumpert emerging, they don't look as bad.

Though depending if Deron pulls a Lebron, it's like what the above said: it will get black pretty quickly.

That in return will make our draft pick higher if we choose to keep them.

As of right now, those picks are nothing but assets for us to either keep to pick (if it benefits us) or trade ALL of them with packages of players to net us a star (which is another benefit).

Wishing for a higher draft pick from the Nets deal is only part of it. They are nothing but pawns or trading chips for us.

Danny should know what he's doing