No, do what they have to get it. Bringing back a king’s ransom for Durant will be general manager Sean Marks’ one and only chance to salvage a disastrous situation, to make this an on-the-spot rebuild instead of a long, arduous rebuild. This situation has effectively frozen much of the league, including the Nets, in terms of deciding what to do with Kyrie Irving. It remains to be seen where the Nets will send Durant and how much they will get for him. The Jazz Bear is eyeing the answer, both as a template for what picks the Nets might take and as a potential three-way trade partner. The Nets are believed to be looking for a young All-Star as the centerpiece of the deal, as well as a number of options. ESPN reported that not only have more than half the teams in the league named Marks with offers, some have even circled to raise their offers before even receiving a counteroffer. This is an unusual circumstance, but the whole situation is an unusual circumstance. Kevin DurantAP Players of Durant’s ilk don’t usually become available. Durant asked to leave Brooklyn not only because of the Irving melodrama, but also because he didn’t see enough infrastructure and leadership in the franchise, Yahoo’s Chris Haynes reported on NBATV. But wanting to go out and going where he wants are two different things. Durant has four years left on his contract and, shockingly, has no player option or no-trade clause. That has already reduced his leverage in selecting a landing spot, and the volume of offers the Nets receive will reduce even more. They will likely decide on one of those deals before deciding where to trade Irving and his expiring contract. While the Nets will clearly work with Durant and business partner Rich Kleiman to find a suitable destination, Marks has proven to be unsentimental and will ultimately accept the offer that works best for the organization. The simplest and cleanest moves could be to New Orleans (around Brandon Ingram and picks) or Toronto (based on Rookie of the Year Scotty Barnes and picks). Raptors boss Masai Ujiri traded for Kawhi Leonard in 2018 and won a title the following season. What would Durant give for four years? There are glaring issues with Durant’s preferred teams, the Suns and Heat, that could force an expansion trade to include one or two other teams. This is no stranger to Marks, who accomplished an NBA record with five teams. Sean MarksCharles Wenzelberg / New York Post The Nets can’t get back the Heat’s best piece, center Bam Adebayo. The collective bargaining agreement won’t allow them to trade a rookie extension designated player like Adebayo because they already have Ben Simmons on such a deal. (Remember this quirk in the CBA. It will come up again. And again.) And Durant reportedly only wants to play for Miami if he’s next to Adebayo, Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry, according to The Athletic. The Nets can’t bring back Devin Booker from the Suns and aren’t believed to be interested in taking Phoenix free agent center Deandre Ayton in a sign-and-trade. However, Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reported that Utah is exploring a trade for Ayton to replace Gobert. Phoenix could then reroute the incoming picks, along with their own and forwards Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson. But the Jazz could be relevant in another way, because of superstar guard Donovan Mitchell. After Utah let go of Mitchell’s lifelong friend Eric Paschal, the Nets traded for his friend Royce O’Neal and the Jazz traded for Gobert, declaring they were rebuilding. That could prompt Mitchell to ask for a trade. If that happens, it could tempt the Nets to move on from Simmons to make any three-way deal possible for Mitchell. There is a tepid market, at best, for Irving. And because any deal for Durant will likely be more complicated and certainly more important, the Nets plan to work that out first before sending Irving to the Lakers or anywhere else.
