What moves can and should the Nets make in the offseason?
When Sean Marks took over as general manager in February 2016, the Brooklyn Nets resembled an expansion team -- except they did not have their first-round picks for rebuilding. Yes, the Nets had made three straight playoff appearances since their 2012 arrival in Brooklyn, but there was a steep cost.
Now entering the third offseason in his tenure, Marks and his front office have slowly begun to build their assets with a combination of young players and draft picks. Still, there is work to be done.
With the Nets eliminated from the postseason, let's start our series looking ahead to the free agency, draft and trade decisions facing teams this offseason.
Find a new home for Jeremy Lin
When Lin signed a three-year, $36 million contract in 2016, the Nets seemed to have found a reliable point guard at a below-market salary. Lin was coming off a strong season in Charlotte and had been injury free for most of his career (missing only 23 games from 2013-14 to 2015-16). Things have changed.
Lin has played in only 37 games because of a left hamstring injury in 2016-17 and rupturing his right patellar tendon in the first game this season. After trading for a point guard of the future in D'Angelo Russell, plus the emergence of Spencer Dinwiddie, Lin is the odd man out.
Take a conservative approach with cap space
Unless there is a home for Lin without taking back salary, Brooklyn will be operating with a projected $11-13 million in cap space. The Nets should not be afraid to roll over cap space until the summer of 2019, when Lin and DeMarre Carroll come off the books. The Nets could have up to $25 million in cap room in 2019 if they take a conservative approach this July.
They could also be a landing spot for a team looking to dump salary, such as the Los Angeles Lakers. Even though the Luol Deng contract continues to be an albatross, history has shown that no contract is untradable if the right incentive is attached. In this case, Brooklyn would need multiple first-round picks to swing a deal.
Explore an extension for Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
The Nets should not let Hollis-Jefferson enter free agency in 2019. Yes, they will be protected by his restricted status, but Hollis-Jefferson is the type of modern forward teams look to acquire -- one who can guard up to four positions and produce on the offensive end (high-level midrange game), and he is still only 23 years old.
Because Hollis-Jefferson was picked in the early 20s, his cap hold in free agency next year is $7.4 million. One way for the Nets to structure an extension without risking significant cap space in 2019 would be to offer Hollis-Jefferson a four-year, $44 million extension with $1 million of unlikely (but achievable) bonuses and a starting salary of $10 million in 2019-20. The Nets would risk only $2.5 million in cap space and would not have to get into a bidding war next summer.
Don't risk assets to trade Mozgov
The cost of acquiring Russell was absorbing the remaining $48 million contract of Timofey Mozgov. A starter in the first 13 games, Mozgov has been relegated to coming off the bench. The development and upside of rookie Jarrett Allen has made Mozgov a rotational player at best, but one earning $16 million and $16.7 million in the next two seasons.
Trading Mozgov would come at a cost for Brooklyn. Even if the Nets explored stretching the remaining salary over the next five seasons, the $6.5 million annual cap hit combined with the money ($5.5 million) owed to Deron Williams would have the Nets with $12 million in dead money. For a team not in win-now mode, letting the remaining Mozgov contract sit on the books is not a hindrance.
Under contract in 2018-19
2018-19 salary breakdown
Player 2018-19
1. Allen Crabbe $18,500,000
2. Timofey Mozgov $16,000,000
3. DeMarre Carroll $15,400,000
4. Jeremy Lin $12,516,746
5. D'Angelo Russell $7,019,698
6. Rondae Hollis-Jefferson $2,470,357
7. Jarrett Allen $2,034,120
8. Caris LeVert $1,702,800
9. Spencer Dinwiddie (non-guaranteed) $1,656,092
10. Isaiah Whitehead (non-guaranteed) $1,544,951
11. First-rounder (Toronto) (first-round hold) $1,618,320
12. Nik Stauskas1 (free-agent hold) $11,421,441
13. Jahlil Okafor2 (free-agent hold) $6,263,272
14. Dante Cunningham3 (free-agent hold) $4,370,000
15. Quincy Acy4 (free-agent hold) $1,499,698
16. Joe Harris4 (free-agent hold) $1,499,698
Deron Williams (waiver) $5,474,787
Total $108.5 million
Salary cap $101.0 million (projected)
1. Restricted Bird rights
2. Fourth-year salary restriction
3. Non-Bird rights
4. Early Bird rights
The Nets can go in two directions this summer.
Brooklyn can keep Randy Foye's $3 million free-agent hold and act like a team over the salary cap. Doing so would leave the Nets with the $8.6 million midlevel and $3.4 million biannual exception to use. Because the $1.5 million Joe Harris free-agent hold is not removed, Brooklyn would still retain early Bird rights on the guard. The Nets also would have the 175 percent traded player exception to use in a deal and the $1.9 million trade exception created when Rashad Vaughn was sent to New Orleans.
Creating cap space would see the Nets renounce their $20 million in free-agent holds, including Harris. Along with the $4.4 million room midlevel exception (available after cap space is used), Brooklyn would have $13.1 million available. If the Nets elect to retain the Harris hold, their cap space would then be $11.6 million and Brooklyn could still exceed the cap to sign Harris once its cap space is gone.
Expect Brooklyn to take an approach like Dallas this past year -- acting as a team over the salary cap but with the option to create room if needed. For example, if Brooklyn elected to trade Lin without taking back salary, cap space would increase to $26 million and the full midlevel, biannual and trade exceptions would then be relinquished.
Dates to watch
Dec. 8 is the first date that Brooklyn can extend Dinwiddie's contract. Signed to a three-year, $3.9 million non-guaranteed contract in December 2016, the guard is eligible to sign a four-year, $45 million contract. Brooklyn can elect to extend or sign Dinwiddie as a free agent in 2019. Because Dinwiddie has a low $1.6 million free-agent hold, the Nets can use cap space first on available free agents in 2019, then sign Dinwiddie with Bird rights and go over the cap. However, this comes with a risk since Dinwiddie will be hitting unrestricted free agency.
On Oct. 31, $250,000 of his $1.6 million contract also becomes guaranteed.
If the Nets are looking to create additional cap space, they can do so by releasing Isaiah Whitehead. The 2016 second-round pick's $1.5 million contract becomes guaranteed if he is not waived by June 30. Releasing Whitehead would save only $700,000 based on the Nets being charged $831,000 in an incomplete roster charge.
Brooklyn will need to weigh whether the four-month audition of Nik Stauskas translates into a $4.3 million qualifying offer. If the Nets elect to give Stauskas a qualifying offer by June 29, the shooting guard would be a restricted free agent but Brooklyn would have the right to pull the offer by July 13 without the player's consent. Stauskas is projected to be a minimum-level free agent with a starting salary at $1.6 million.
Restrictions
When Brooklyn acquired Jahlil Okafor from Philadelphia, it did so knowing it would be restricted in offering a contract that could not exceed $6.3 million to the soon-to-be free agent. That $6.3 million matches the fourth-year option the 76ers declined on Okafor's rookie contract. Okafor, who has played sparingly since his arrival, is unlikely to return to Brooklyn. If he does, it would likely be on a minimum contract.
The Nets are not allowed to trade their 2019 first-round pick until the night of the draft.
The free-agent focus
With 10 players under contract for next season -- including the possible addition of three draft picks -- Brooklyn should focus on one of its own free agents: Joe Harris. The journeyman has had a resurgence in Brooklyn since signing a two-year minimum contract in 2016 and has proved to be a top scorer coming off the bench. Per Cleaning the Glass, Harris ranks in the 98th percentile in effective field goal percentage (59.2), the 90th percentile for 2-point percentage (56th) and the 85th percentile for 3-point percentage (40.9). Harris has certainly outplayed his current $1.5 million contract and projects to fall in the $5-6 million salary range. With a free-agent market thin among shooting guards, Harris could be the Nets' safe choice even if he gets a little expensive.
If Harris' price tag becomes too rich, Brooklyn will have a glaring need for bench scoring and would be best served by going the minimum route to preserve cap space for 2019 -- though that philosophy could change if the Nets draft a wing in the first round.
Because coach Kenny Atkinson has a tendency to go small with Carroll or Hollis-Jefferson at power forward and Brooklyn doesn't have a big man off the bench besides Mozgov, Marks will need to look at those in free agency without breaking the bank. Although an average rebounder, Montrezl Harrell fits. Like Harris, the 2015 second-round pick has found success in a different environment and can back up power forward or center. Prying Harrell from the Clippers could be a challenge because of restricted free agency.
Extension-eligible candidates
Don't look for the Nets to entertain extension discussions other than with Hollis-Jefferson, Russell and Dinwiddie.
Because Russell has a $21 million cap hold, Brooklyn can explore extension talks with an eye toward creating savings in 2019.
Besides those three players, Brooklyn has Mozgov, Allen Crabbe, Carroll, Lin and Whitehead all eligible. Other than Whitehead, the four players have 2018-19 salaries that exceed $12 million.
Carroll is also eligible to have his contract renegotiated with cap space, something that is unlikely to happen.
The draft assets
There is a light at the end of the tunnel. For the first time since 2013, the Nets will control their own first-rounder in 2019.
In the meantime, here's how ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz have Brooklyn picking in the 2018 draft:
When Sean Marks took over as general manager in February 2016, the Brooklyn Nets resembled an expansion team -- except they did not have their first-round picks for rebuilding. Yes, the Nets had made three straight playoff appearances since their 2012 arrival in Brooklyn, but there was a steep cost.
Now entering the third offseason in his tenure, Marks and his front office have slowly begun to build their assets with a combination of young players and draft picks. Still, there is work to be done.
With the Nets eliminated from the postseason, let's start our series looking ahead to the free agency, draft and trade decisions facing teams this offseason.
Find a new home for Jeremy Lin
When Lin signed a three-year, $36 million contract in 2016, the Nets seemed to have found a reliable point guard at a below-market salary. Lin was coming off a strong season in Charlotte and had been injury free for most of his career (missing only 23 games from 2013-14 to 2015-16). Things have changed.
Lin has played in only 37 games because of a left hamstring injury in 2016-17 and rupturing his right patellar tendon in the first game this season. After trading for a point guard of the future in D'Angelo Russell, plus the emergence of Spencer Dinwiddie, Lin is the odd man out.
Take a conservative approach with cap space
Unless there is a home for Lin without taking back salary, Brooklyn will be operating with a projected $11-13 million in cap space. The Nets should not be afraid to roll over cap space until the summer of 2019, when Lin and DeMarre Carroll come off the books. The Nets could have up to $25 million in cap room in 2019 if they take a conservative approach this July.
They could also be a landing spot for a team looking to dump salary, such as the Los Angeles Lakers. Even though the Luol Deng contract continues to be an albatross, history has shown that no contract is untradable if the right incentive is attached. In this case, Brooklyn would need multiple first-round picks to swing a deal.
Explore an extension for Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
The Nets should not let Hollis-Jefferson enter free agency in 2019. Yes, they will be protected by his restricted status, but Hollis-Jefferson is the type of modern forward teams look to acquire -- one who can guard up to four positions and produce on the offensive end (high-level midrange game), and he is still only 23 years old.
Because Hollis-Jefferson was picked in the early 20s, his cap hold in free agency next year is $7.4 million. One way for the Nets to structure an extension without risking significant cap space in 2019 would be to offer Hollis-Jefferson a four-year, $44 million extension with $1 million of unlikely (but achievable) bonuses and a starting salary of $10 million in 2019-20. The Nets would risk only $2.5 million in cap space and would not have to get into a bidding war next summer.
Don't risk assets to trade Mozgov
The cost of acquiring Russell was absorbing the remaining $48 million contract of Timofey Mozgov. A starter in the first 13 games, Mozgov has been relegated to coming off the bench. The development and upside of rookie Jarrett Allen has made Mozgov a rotational player at best, but one earning $16 million and $16.7 million in the next two seasons.
Trading Mozgov would come at a cost for Brooklyn. Even if the Nets explored stretching the remaining salary over the next five seasons, the $6.5 million annual cap hit combined with the money ($5.5 million) owed to Deron Williams would have the Nets with $12 million in dead money. For a team not in win-now mode, letting the remaining Mozgov contract sit on the books is not a hindrance.
Under contract in 2018-19
2018-19 salary breakdown
Player 2018-19
1. Allen Crabbe $18,500,000
2. Timofey Mozgov $16,000,000
3. DeMarre Carroll $15,400,000
4. Jeremy Lin $12,516,746
5. D'Angelo Russell $7,019,698
6. Rondae Hollis-Jefferson $2,470,357
7. Jarrett Allen $2,034,120
8. Caris LeVert $1,702,800
9. Spencer Dinwiddie (non-guaranteed) $1,656,092
10. Isaiah Whitehead (non-guaranteed) $1,544,951
11. First-rounder (Toronto) (first-round hold) $1,618,320
12. Nik Stauskas1 (free-agent hold) $11,421,441
13. Jahlil Okafor2 (free-agent hold) $6,263,272
14. Dante Cunningham3 (free-agent hold) $4,370,000
15. Quincy Acy4 (free-agent hold) $1,499,698
16. Joe Harris4 (free-agent hold) $1,499,698
Deron Williams (waiver) $5,474,787
Total $108.5 million
Salary cap $101.0 million (projected)
1. Restricted Bird rights
2. Fourth-year salary restriction
3. Non-Bird rights
4. Early Bird rights
The Nets can go in two directions this summer.
Brooklyn can keep Randy Foye's $3 million free-agent hold and act like a team over the salary cap. Doing so would leave the Nets with the $8.6 million midlevel and $3.4 million biannual exception to use. Because the $1.5 million Joe Harris free-agent hold is not removed, Brooklyn would still retain early Bird rights on the guard. The Nets also would have the 175 percent traded player exception to use in a deal and the $1.9 million trade exception created when Rashad Vaughn was sent to New Orleans.
Creating cap space would see the Nets renounce their $20 million in free-agent holds, including Harris. Along with the $4.4 million room midlevel exception (available after cap space is used), Brooklyn would have $13.1 million available. If the Nets elect to retain the Harris hold, their cap space would then be $11.6 million and Brooklyn could still exceed the cap to sign Harris once its cap space is gone.
Expect Brooklyn to take an approach like Dallas this past year -- acting as a team over the salary cap but with the option to create room if needed. For example, if Brooklyn elected to trade Lin without taking back salary, cap space would increase to $26 million and the full midlevel, biannual and trade exceptions would then be relinquished.
Dates to watch
Dec. 8 is the first date that Brooklyn can extend Dinwiddie's contract. Signed to a three-year, $3.9 million non-guaranteed contract in December 2016, the guard is eligible to sign a four-year, $45 million contract. Brooklyn can elect to extend or sign Dinwiddie as a free agent in 2019. Because Dinwiddie has a low $1.6 million free-agent hold, the Nets can use cap space first on available free agents in 2019, then sign Dinwiddie with Bird rights and go over the cap. However, this comes with a risk since Dinwiddie will be hitting unrestricted free agency.
On Oct. 31, $250,000 of his $1.6 million contract also becomes guaranteed.
If the Nets are looking to create additional cap space, they can do so by releasing Isaiah Whitehead. The 2016 second-round pick's $1.5 million contract becomes guaranteed if he is not waived by June 30. Releasing Whitehead would save only $700,000 based on the Nets being charged $831,000 in an incomplete roster charge.
Brooklyn will need to weigh whether the four-month audition of Nik Stauskas translates into a $4.3 million qualifying offer. If the Nets elect to give Stauskas a qualifying offer by June 29, the shooting guard would be a restricted free agent but Brooklyn would have the right to pull the offer by July 13 without the player's consent. Stauskas is projected to be a minimum-level free agent with a starting salary at $1.6 million.
Restrictions
When Brooklyn acquired Jahlil Okafor from Philadelphia, it did so knowing it would be restricted in offering a contract that could not exceed $6.3 million to the soon-to-be free agent. That $6.3 million matches the fourth-year option the 76ers declined on Okafor's rookie contract. Okafor, who has played sparingly since his arrival, is unlikely to return to Brooklyn. If he does, it would likely be on a minimum contract.
The Nets are not allowed to trade their 2019 first-round pick until the night of the draft.
The free-agent focus
With 10 players under contract for next season -- including the possible addition of three draft picks -- Brooklyn should focus on one of its own free agents: Joe Harris. The journeyman has had a resurgence in Brooklyn since signing a two-year minimum contract in 2016 and has proved to be a top scorer coming off the bench. Per Cleaning the Glass, Harris ranks in the 98th percentile in effective field goal percentage (59.2), the 90th percentile for 2-point percentage (56th) and the 85th percentile for 3-point percentage (40.9). Harris has certainly outplayed his current $1.5 million contract and projects to fall in the $5-6 million salary range. With a free-agent market thin among shooting guards, Harris could be the Nets' safe choice even if he gets a little expensive.
If Harris' price tag becomes too rich, Brooklyn will have a glaring need for bench scoring and would be best served by going the minimum route to preserve cap space for 2019 -- though that philosophy could change if the Nets draft a wing in the first round.
Because coach Kenny Atkinson has a tendency to go small with Carroll or Hollis-Jefferson at power forward and Brooklyn doesn't have a big man off the bench besides Mozgov, Marks will need to look at those in free agency without breaking the bank. Although an average rebounder, Montrezl Harrell fits. Like Harris, the 2015 second-round pick has found success in a different environment and can back up power forward or center. Prying Harrell from the Clippers could be a challenge because of restricted free agency.
Extension-eligible candidates
Don't look for the Nets to entertain extension discussions other than with Hollis-Jefferson, Russell and Dinwiddie.
Because Russell has a $21 million cap hold, Brooklyn can explore extension talks with an eye toward creating savings in 2019.
Besides those three players, Brooklyn has Mozgov, Allen Crabbe, Carroll, Lin and Whitehead all eligible. Other than Whitehead, the four players have 2018-19 salaries that exceed $12 million.
Carroll is also eligible to have his contract renegotiated with cap space, something that is unlikely to happen.
The draft assets
There is a light at the end of the tunnel. For the first time since 2013, the Nets will control their own first-rounder in 2019.
In the meantime, here's how ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz have Brooklyn picking in the 2018 draft:
- No. 29 (via Raptors): Tyus Battle | SG/SF | Syracuse
- No. 40 (via Lakers): Jerome Robinson | PG | Boston College
- No. 45 (via Bucks): Trevon Duval | PG | Duke
