This article is a translation of ESPN reporter Bobby Marks and does not represent the views of translators and platforms.
The Brooklyn Nets ended a tumultuous season early, and there was no shortage of blames.
This ups and downs of the season, Nash barely managed the dressing room, which is worth acknowledging. But the coach's job is to keep his players in the best shape to make adjustments in games where the strength is close and to win. Nash and his coaching staff failed to do both, losing both game 1 and game 2 that could have been won.
Nash isn't the only one to blame.
The Nets' two home stars, Durant and Irving, aren't even the best two players in this series. The honor belongs to the Celtics' Tatum and Brown. Even Smart played better than the two of them.
Last January, Harden's deal turned into a disaster, and when Harden was traded for Simmons at the trade deadline, the Nets' management was seen as saving face. Harden's situation with the Nets at the time was so bad that league sources said there was no guarantee he would play for the Nets if his name still appeared on the team's roster after the trade deadline.
However, due to a herniated disc injury, Simmons has yet to play a game for the Nets. Simmons was supposed to make his debut in game four after 10 days of painless training, but on Sunday he said he woke up in pain and was therefore excluded from the squad.
In hindsight, maybe the Nets should have chosen an unhappy Harden for the rest of the season. The Durant, Irving and Harden trio may be doing better than the Nets are now in the series against the Celtics.
Sure, Harden could have become a free agent in the offseason and then signed with the 76ers, but that would have required the 76ers to break up his roster to create salary space.
Aside from griffin and Mills' remarkable performances in game three, none of the nets' players signed or traded offseason played their rightful role in the series. In fact, three of them, Bembry, Jeffon Carter and James Johnson, were not even on the Nets' big roster at the end of the season.
Does that mean the Nets need to completely rebuild their management, coaching staff and roster?
Of course not, but the Nets need to improve in every area, or they could end early again next season.
Current lineup
Lineup status: Failure to win the championship is failure
Remember the 2020 Christmas Nets game against the Celtics?
Durant and Irving scored a combined 66 points, and the Nets' roster was the envy of the NBA. Unlike most teams that trade draft picks and young players for the future, the Nets only need salary space to sign every player. The Nets have all of their draft picks and a strong core of role players, including Jarrett Allen, Bruce Brown, Carliss LeVert, Joe Harris, Jeff Green, Landry Shamet and Spencer Dinwiddie, to compete for the championship.
Three weeks later, Irving was absent for no reason and was eventually banned from the NBA for violating the NBA's covid-19 health and safety agreements.
As the Nets struggled with a 50 percent win, they traded their future draft picks for Harden. The move at the time not only provided Irving with an insurance policy, but also a third piece of the puzzle for the championship.
Now, the Nets' hopes for the championship are pinned on simmons' health, and the last time he played was last June, and Harris was recovering from surgery for reconstruction of his left ankle. The playoffs and regular season proved how important these two players are to the Nets.
Healthy Simmons and Harris will upgrade the defensive end of the team, with the Nets in the bottom ten defensive efficiency over the past two seasons.
Simmons is a two-time NBA defensive player. According to ESPNStats & Information, from 2017-18 to 2020-21, Simmons, as the top defensive player, was able to control his opponent's shooting percentage at 42.2%, which ranked third out of 147 defensive players who made 2,000 shots. During that time, only two players have played at least 7,500 defensive guards and forwards in the halftime: Simmons and bucks All-Star Middleton.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Simmons is also one of four players in NBA history who have averaged at least seven offensive rebounds and seven assists per game in the first four seasons of his career, along with Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson and Luka Doncic.
Harris, meanwhile, didn't fare well in the second round of last year's playoffs, but with a career three-point shooting percentage of 43.9 percent and a height of 6 feet 6 inches, he's a wing player the Nets desperately lack.
While Simmons, Durant and Irving all have contracts next season and have all expressed hope for a return, general manager Sean Max and the Nets' management still have a lot of work to do.
Including Irving's player options, the Nets have nine potential free agents: Mills (player option), Drummond, Bruce Brown, Clarkston, Aldridge, Griffin, Kessler Edwards (team option) and David Duke Jr.
The first-round loss to the Celtics exposed the Nets' lack of height in the lineup. Nets management must meet this demand with limited resources.
Irving's case
For better or worse, Irving, who only joined the Nets in 2019, doesn't seem to end their relationship anytime soon.
"To be honest, I'm here for a long-term partnership," Owen said in March. "I love this season and I'm grateful for that, it's not a typical season. But when I see my teammates and see where we are as a team, I look for long-term goals and what we can achieve. ”
The Nets are likely to spend the top 20 player's peak with Durant as Irving has a $36.5 million player option and says he won't go anywhere.
"For me, it feels comfortable here and I like the environment I'm in." Owen said, "I like it here. Once summer came, I knew we would have some conversations, but I couldn't possibly leave my brother number seven to go anywhere. ”
After all, what team's management wouldn't want two All-Star players to sign long-term contracts?
Every contract carries financial risk, and renewing Irving would not only bring huge luxury taxes, but also huge uncertainty: Can the Nets trust Irving on and off the court?
From a health perspective, if a player misses 119 games since the 2017-18 season due to non-CORONAVIRUS-related injuries and pays an average salary of $49 million, it could lead to a financial disaster. The argument instead is that Irving has benefited from the season with the fewest playing hours in his career.
Irving's off-field concerns are worth paying attention to.
Including missing 35 home games this season due to unvaccinated, Irving was also suspended last fall for unexcused leave.
The year before, he questioned whether the lineup at the time (Durant's season reimbursement) was good enough.
Over the past three seasons, off-court distractions have eclipsed Irving's All-Star performance on the court.
Still, the Nets need Irving just as much as he needs the Nets.
"Overall champion. That's it," Max told a group of season ticket holders during the season. 'If I say anything else, I'm going to do a huge amount of damage to 17 players and another 60 staff members because that's what we're here for.
Not counting Irving, the Nets' salary has exceeded the salary cap, and letting him go freely (or signing first and then changing) would be a bigger disaster than paying more than $50 million more to re-sign him.
Remember, it was Irving who recruited Durant to the Nets, not Irving, whom Durant recruited.
Irving is a top-paid player, but year after year, without a long-term contract. Unfortunately, this doesn't fit the way NBA commerce works.
Durant's contract will run through the 2025-26 season, and while Irving is eligible for a five-year contract through 2026-27, it's wise for the Nets to tie the two contracts together.
The $49.1 million contract for the third year and $52.5 million for the fourth year is hard to accept, but that's the price the Nets paid when Irving made a commitment to them in 2019.
Nets owner Cai Chongxin
Tsai's attention stems from the fact that the Nets need a hefty salary to keep up with their current roster.
"We have an incredible team with Tsai Chongxin," Marcos said in March. "He has been supportive of us and will continue to support us. So from that perspective, we know what our expectations are. ”
Cai paid $266 million in salary and luxury taxes this year (second only to the Golden State Warriors) but was eliminated in the first round and now faces a tough choice: keep the team's existing free agents — Brown, Claxton, Drummond, Mills (players' choice) — or cut costs and buy cheap veterans.
If the same lineup is retained, the Nets' salary and luxury taxes would be close to $330 million.
That option is a big risk when you consider that the four players the Nets signed in the last offseason, Bembry, Griffin, Aldridge and Johnson, were dropped or dropped out of the rotation sometime in the season.
If you want to test the dangers of cutting costs and building a lineup with cheap contracts, take a look at the Los Angeles Lakers.
Clarkston and Brown have triggered bird rights, and despite lack of financial flexibility, the Nets can go beyond the salary cap to keep both players.
Brown has proven his role in the Nets' unconventional offense over the past two years. But will a healthy Simmons make Brown's price-performance ratio less?
Compared to being a restricted free agent in the last offseason and wanting to sign a long contract with the team, he is now a full free agent and can sign with any team.
An important question for the Nets in the offseason is how they will take advantage of the $6.3 million middle-class exception and whether they will be allowed to use their trade exception (they have five exceptions, including two exceptions for $11.3 million and $6.3 million).
Drummond signed a base salary contract for veterans because he has non-bird rights — the top salary the Nets can give him is $6.3 million.
Drummond was traded from the 76ers to the Nets in the Harden-Simmons trade, becoming a longtime starting player for the Nets, averaging 11.8 points and 10.3 rebounds in 22.3 minutes per game. However, he has been a burden on the defensive end for the second consecutive playoff. In the second half of the series against the Celtics, he averaged only 8.2 minutes per game and did not play in the fourth quarter of the second game.
The Nets' best bet might be to sign Clarkston, make him a regular starter, and then sign a winger with a mid-range exception. The Nets could also put Simmons in the starting center position, with Clarkston as a bench.
Now it's back to whether the league allows the Nets to use not only the $6.3 million mid-class exception, but also a trade exception for the team. If two $6 million exceptions are used, the Nets' luxury tax would increase by at least $45 million.
Offseason salary cap breakdown and lineup depth distribution
Nets 2022-23 salary breakdown
(Table stats: Durant: about 44.12 million; Irving: about 36.94 million, player options; Simmons: about 35.45 million; Harris: about 18.64 million; Curry: about 8.5 million; Mills: about 6.18 million, player options; Thomas about 2.14 million; Sharp: about 2.11 million; Edwards: about 1.56 million; free agents: about 20.09 million.) Guaranteed salary: about $157 million; Unsecured salary: about $1.6 million; ; 2022-23 NBA salary cap: 122 million; 2022-23 luxury tax line: 147 million)
Nets 2022-23 lineup depth map
(Table information: Point Guard: Irving, Mills; Point Guard: Curry, Thomas; Small Forward: Harris, Edwards; Big Forward: Durant; Center: Simmons, Sharp)
Lineup requirements
1. Healthy Simmons and Harris
2. Depth of the defensive end
3. Frame player on position five
Available resources
1. Draft: The 76ers' first-round draft (if not postponed)
2. Future assets: the first round from 76 people in 2027 or 2028
3. A special case of the middle class of $6.3 million
Exceptions to transactions: $1.13 million, $6.3 million and $3.3 million
5. Cash: $6.3 million, sent or received through transactions
Key date
1. June 1: The Nets will decide the 2022 first-round pick they won from the 76ers in the Harden trade. With the 23rd pick in the first round, the 76ers should improve next year with Harden's addition. However, not many people thought the Clippers' unprotected draft, which was traded to the Thunder in the Paul George trade, would be in the top 15 picks of the first round. The Nets should use first-round picks again until 2023.
2. June 29: Irving and Mills both have player options in their contracts. Ahead of the All-Star Game, it was thought Mills might turn down his $6.2 million option. In 58 games, including 41 starts, Mills averaged 13.4 points per game and shot 41.9 percent from the field. However, over-playing time (a career-high 31.1 minutes) affected his performance. After the All-Star, Mills averaged 5.8 points per game, shooting 30.6 percent from the field and 30.3 percent from three-point range.
3. June 29: The Nets signed two-way player Kessler Edwards at the end of the regular season and added team options for the 2022-23 season. In 48 games, the striker averaged 20.6 minutes and scored 5.9 points. If the $1.6 million contract is denied, the Nets are expected to offer him a reasonable offer of $1.8 million and make him a restricted free agent.
4. June 29: The Nets are expected to offer one-year contract offers to Clarkston ($2.3 million) and David Duke ($50,000).
Limitations
1. Since the draft pick was given to the Rockets, the price code that the Nets can send in the transaction is limited. The Nets could trade two first rounds from the Harden trade from the 76ers and their own first round in 2029. They could also join the 2028 first round of swaps in future deals.
2. Durant has 15% trading margin in the contract. Because his salary is the allowable maximum salary, the margin is invalid in the transaction.
3. If Owen chooses to sign and is traded after July 1, his trading margin is $5.5 million. If Owen signs a maximum salary contract that contains a trade margin, then in future transactions, the trade margin will be void.
Eligible for early renewal
In addition to Irving (if he chooses to renew his contract), the Nets have three other players, Simmons, Harris and Seth Curry, who are eligible to renew their contracts early with the team.
2. Simmons has three years left on his contract, but will reach the renewal standard on August 11, which is the third anniversary of his signing of the rookie's contract extension. The Nets could extend his contract for two seasons, starting with the 2025-26 season and adding $88.1 million in salary. However, given Simmons' lingering back injury problems, it will be difficult for the Nets to extend him early without playing a game this season.
3) Curry is eligible to renew his contract starting July 6, but because he is the Nets he was traded to, the Nets have limited years (two additional two years) and growth (5%) in the new contract ($17.4 million for two years). Once the restrictions are lifted on Aug. 11, Curry will be eligible to sign a four-year, $58 million contract extension. Considering curry's $8.5 million contract for the 2022-23 season is lower than the salary of a middle-class player and the average salary of a player, Curry is more cost-effective. Because the Nets exceed the salary cap in 2023-2024, signing Curry on a contract extension should be a priority.
Harris is eligible for an early three-year contract extension, but he underwent a second surgery on his left ankle – and the new contract is likely not going to materialize.
Drafts
We'll know around June 1 if the Nets use first-round picks, or after June 23 that he won't use draft picks.
If the 76ers' 2022 draft pick is postponed to 2023, it will not be protected.
The Nets also have a protected first-round top 8 pick from the 76ers in 2027 or 2028.
3. The signing is a prerequisite, because the 76ers must send their 2025 first round (top 6 protected), 2026 first round (top 4 protected) or 2027 first round (top 4 protected) to the Thunder.
4. If the 2025 first-round pick reaches the Thunder, the Nets will get the 76ers' 2027 first-round pick (top 8). Without the first round picks, it will transition to 2028 (the first 8 seasons are protected).
5) If the Nets don't get a first-round pick in either season, they'll get the 76ers' second-round pick and $200 for 2028.
The Nets hold the first-round picks for 2022 and the unprotected picks in the first rounds in 2024 and 2026, from the Rockets, who also have the right to swap first-round picks with the Nets in 2023, 2025 and 2027.
Here's ESPN's Jonathan Givaney's draft advice for the Nets:
23rd overall (from the 76ers): Walker Kessler| center | Auburn University
Kessler's characteristics are based on his body type, weighing 245 pounds, with an arm span of 7 feet 5 inches and standing 9 feet 3 inches tall. He towered above his opponents, making him an excellent target for cover after passing high balls, and he showed good hand when he touched the ball. He has flexible footwork under the basket, can destroy turn jump shots and hook shots, and he can also end the attack from the outside. He also has some potential in passing, especially in high and low positions and short passes after blocking, and he can mostly find empty opportunities on the field.
Originally written by Bobby Marks
Compilation: Poetic