The Brooklyn Nets reportedly agree to terms with young forward Taurean Prince ahead of the 2019-20 NBA season.
On the eve of the 2019-2020 NBA season, the afternoon was filled with teams performing last-minute roster changes and contract negotiations. The Brooklyn Nets were among the many teams doing just that.
Late Monday afternoon, NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Nets and Taurean Prince agreed to a two-year, $29 million contract extension. Prince is a member of the 2016 NBA Draft class and was eligible for an extension this year.
Brooklyn Nets F Taurean Prince has agreed to a two-year, $29M contract extension, CAA Sports' Steve Heumann tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 21, 2019
The 6-foot-8 forward out of Baylor is entering his fourth season in the league. He spent his first three seasons as a member of the Atlanta Hawks. Last season, he averaged 13.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists.
This was the right move for the Nets. As a refresher, Prince was traded to the Nets from Atlanta for Allen Crabbe, the 17th pick in the 2019 draft and a 2020 lottery-protected first-round pick. Brooklyn also received a 2021 second-round pick.
Throughout the preseason, Taurean was arguably the Nets’ best player. In four preseason games, Prince averaged a team-high 16.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 22.4 minutes. He also shot 63.2% from the field and 69.6% (16-23) from 3-point range. The one piece of talent the Nets have been searching for is someone to play the stretch-four position. And with Prince, they just might have found that piece.
Although he’s just 6-foot-8, Prince’s ability to stretch the floor on the offensive side of the ball can’t be ignored. He’s a career 38% shooter from 3-point range and has seen his percentage increase each year he has been in the league. Spencer Dinwiddie has been very vocal about Prince’s game.
“He’s going to be a pleasant surprise, somebody a lot of people are discounting. [He] can really, really shoot it.” Dinwiddie said, per Brian Lewis of the New York Post.
With Prince signed, Brooklyn now has a solid core of players in the fold through the next few years, including Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and DeAndre Jordan. Not to mention the Nets also exercised the options on Jarret Allen and Dzanan Musa.
With all the talk around Kyrie and LeVert this season, Taurean Prince might end up being the Nets third or fourth best player if he’s the surprise Spencer Dinwiddie thinks he is.
