Brooklyn’s Trade Saga Comes to an End

It is an understatement to say that the Brooklyn Nets’ 2021-2022 NBA season was a disappointment. Between dealing with a part-time Kyrie Irving, an injury-prone Kevin Durant, and a mentally unprepared Ben Simmons who has yet to play a game, their underwhelming 44-38 record and first-round exit drew widespread criticism and outrage from fans. When first formed, the Nets were the epitome of a superteam, and the backlash they faced when they fell short of expectations was inevitable.

Then, Durant demanded a trade out of Brooklyn at the beginning of NBA free agency. He was unhappy with the team’s performance and how general manager Sean Marks refused to offer Irving, his close friend, a contract extension. Durant listed the Phoenix Suns and the Miami Heat as his preferred destinations, both teams being the first seeds of their conference. The demand sparked outrage among the media and fans. To them, this insistence was Durant quitting on his team when things got hard again.

Despite this controversy, many fully expected that Durant would eventually be traded. Player empowerment was at an all-time high in the NBA, which was fully exhibited when Sixers guard/forward Simmons sat out games for half the season to force a trade with a lengthy four years remaining in his contract. Stars are used to getting what they want in the league, and many thought the Suns and Nets were about to close a deal.

However, as the offseason started to go by, trade talks came to a halt. The Suns re-signed center Deandre Ayton, their best trade asset. Since players cannot be traded until six months after signing, the Suns were knocked out of the Durant sweepstakes. The options for the Nets started to dry up. The Miami Heat offered a package centered around budding guard Tyler Herro, but the Nets declined the underwhelming offer. Ironically, the Boston Celtics, the same team that defeated the Nets a month ago, offered their young star Jaylen Brown. This proposal outraged the loyal Celtics fans, as Brown was the best player in the NBA Finals that very season, but the Nets declined nonetheless.

When the trade demand happened, every team in the league gave the Nets front office a call. Durant is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and had an MVP caliber 2022 season, and yet, trade talks came to a halt. Why wasn’t this trade getting done? Ironically, the most glaring problem is also Durant’s greatest appeal: his generational talent. While player empowerment is at its peak in the league, so are the values of those players. For example, Utah Jazz star center Rudy Gobert was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves early on during the offseason for five players and a whopping four first-round picks. Gobert is widely regarded as the best rim defender in the league, but his lack of ability to switch on faster players has cut the Jazz’s postseason short many times. Despite his glaring flaws, the Jazz received a gargantuan return for their center. Durant is several tiers above Gobert as a player, so it begs the question: what price does he demand? After all, superstars go for a premium, and Durant is one of the best superstars to ever step on the court.

Amid the stalled trade discussions, Durant met with Nets owner Joe Tsai to discuss the situation, where he took the opportunity to reiterate his trade request and issue an ultimatum: it was either the front office or him. The ultimatum was not completely unexpected, as players usually apply pressure and leverage publicity to increase the chances of a move happening. However, by forcing Tsai to publicly choose, Durant might have desecrated his relationship with the organization.

Durant has little right to blame the unfavorable direction on the front office. Durant and Irving have tugged on the reins of the franchise ever since they agreed to team up in Brooklyn. Player empowerment has allowed them to transcend their roles as players and influence team decisions, forcing the front office to bear the risk of disgruntling their precious stars. It was Durant and Irving who handpicked head coach Steve Nash, who had no coaching experience at all. They also insisted that the Nets sign center DeAndre Jordan, a close friend of theirs who is near the end of his career. They even pushed Marks to sign him to a four-year $40 million contract and took pay cuts so that Jordan could have a longer contract. Furthermore, they urged Nash to start Jordan over center Jarrett Allen, who developed into an NBA All-Star shortly after being traded.

It is unfair that Durant blames others when he is the one who is initiating all these ill-fated decisions. This entire fiasco was Durant’s excuse to leave yet another team when things are not panning out for him. After blowing a 3-1 lead to the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 Western Conference finals, Durant left his Thunder team and its loyal fans to join the Warriors, bringing forth the infamous phrase “If you can’t beat them, join them.” He then left the Warriors after arguments with forward Draymond Green, but many suspect that it was the constant invalidation of his championships with the Warriors due to the fact that they were already the best team in the league without him that spurred him to join and create the Brooklyn Nets in his own vision.

Hours after Durant reiterated his request though, Tsai cemented his decision to stand with the front office and call Durant’s bluff. In the following weeks, Marks and Nash met with Durant and Tsai and eventually talked things out, putting their best foot forward for the upcoming season.

The aftermath of the Durant saga is met with a mix of skepticism and optimism. While the chemistry between Durant and Nash will be tested after being pitted against each other, the Nets have quietly acquired additional pieces to their already decent roster. Their supporting cast includes solid shooters like Joe Harris and Seth Curry, scoring help in T.J. Warren and Cam Thomas, and underrated defenders like Simmons and Royce O’Neale, all under the lead of Durant and Irving. If the Nets can avoid the injuries and drama that plagued them the last three seasons, they have a title shot for the 2022-2023 season.