It was not too long ago, that Billy King, General Manager of the Brooklyn Nets was able to pull off the unimaginable. During the their final season in New Jersey, the Nets finished an abysmal 12-70. However, during the 2012 offseason, King was able to lock up his very own “Big 3.” With Brook Lopez still on his rookie deal but playing like an All-Star, King convinced then All-Star point guard Deron Williams to stay and then traded for All-Star Joe Johnson by giving up essentially no big pieces. With Lopez, Williams, and Johnson all on the squad, it looked like Brooklyn was ready to make a run for an NBA title.
After an unsuccessful attempt, Brooklyn moved even closer to all in sacrificing many future 1st round picks for Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry who while all were close to the end of the line in their career, still had something to offer. During the 2013-2014 season, Terry tried rushing back from injury and ultimately his play suffered. He was shipped to Sacramento and once again the Nets had nothing significant to show for the season losing to the Miami Heat in the 2nd round of the playoffs despite taking care of Miami in the regular season.
Paul Pierce left via free agency and landed with the Washington Wizards and the Nets now find themselves in the 9th spot in the East with a record of 21-31. Even if the Nets end up in the playoff picture, it looks as though they won’t go far having been inconsistent all season long. Point guard Deron Williams has been injured and even when healthy, Williams has not played close to the All Star caliber level he once played at. Joe Johnson has been discouraged by a lack of effort from his teammates and Brook Lopez has been in head coach Lionel Hollins dog house due to his defensive efforts at times. With the trade deadline just days away, all three of these players have been made available. Former All-Star Kevin Garnett has hinted at possibly being bought out to play for a contender but he has since shot those rumors down.