The Brooklyn Nets are in rebuild mode and they could be angling to move up into the teens of the upcoming NBA Draft.
According to Mike Scotto of The Athletic, the Brooklyn Nets are exploring trade opportunities in an effort to move up in the NBA Draft. General manager Sean Marks will need to do some moving and shaking if he wants to jump up in the draft. They are clearly looking to acquire as many young assets as possible.
Scotto writes that:
“The Brooklyn Nets are looking to move up into the teens, if possible, league sources told The Athletic.”
“The Denver Nuggets (14th overall), Washington Wizards (15th overall) and Milwaukee Bucks (17th overall) are teams in win-now mode that could dangle their picks as trade bait to the Nets and the rest of the league.”
After Billy King got fleeced by Danny Ainge of the Boston Celtics, the Nets were stuck in NBA purgatory. They have not had the luxury of lottery draft picks despite being one of the worst teams in the league the past few years. This is the last year they will be forced to watch another team reap the benefits of their losing season—this year it’s Cleveland.
The last time the Nets picked higher than 22, was in 2010 when they took Derrick Favors with the third overall pick. The Brooklyn Nets were still the New Jersey Nets at that point.
The Nets have hit on their most recent pick in Jarrett Allen and they’re looking to duplicate that success again this year. While it’s possible to steal a good player at the bottom half of the first round, the Nets would be giving themselves a much better opportunity at stealing someone if they were to move up into the teens.
There would be ample talent available for the Nets to draft in the teens. Kevin Knox, Zhaire Smith, Lonnie Walker, and Kevin Huerter could all be available in that range.
