Brooklyn Nets Playing Offseason Perfectly While Not Targeting Stars

This offseason has seen the Nets enter a rebuild, but it's the best scenario for their organization's future.

Feb 9, 2023; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets General Manager Sean Marks addresses the media prior to the game against the Chicago Bulls at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

The Brooklyn Nets have made just three big moves this offseason, but it's paid off tremendously for them. Of course, the biggest move was trading Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks in exchange for six first-round picks. Although a huge get for New York, Bridges is not an All-Star, and the haul Brooklyn got was bigger than previous deals for players like Rudy Gobert and Damian Lillard.

After receiving a plethora of picks from the Knicks, the Nets went and dealt future picks from the Phoenix Suns to get their own 2025 and 2026 first-round picks back from the Houston Rockets, after losing them in the James Harden trade back in 2021.

Immediately after these trades, Nicolas Claxton signed a four-year, $100 million contract to return to Brooklyn.

Sean Marks was in the hot seat before making these moves. Years of trying to avoid the lottery had the Nets in NBA purgatory since the 2021 playoffs, the closest the Nets ever got to the Eastern Conference Finals in the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving era. There had been talk of the Nets keeping Mikal Bridges and trying to pursue a star like Donovan Mitchell. It seems like Marks came to his senses, because he then made a series of moves that saved the franchise in the long run.

Brooklyn will likely be a lottery team for a few years, but they now control their destiny through the NBA Draft, rather than free agency or the trade market like in years past. Marks will now rebuild the Nets the right way.

Brooklyn not targeting another star was the best thing they could have done. Players like Mitchell and Trae Young would improve their record, but it wouldn't result in a contending team. Instead, the Nets keep their most valuable assets and will continue to find suitors for veterans such as Dennis Schroder, Cam Johnson, and Dorian Finney-Smith.

Now, Nets fans can look to forward to the development of Cam Thomas, a prolific young scorer, as well as their leadup to the 2025 NBA Draft, where prominent prospects Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, and Ace Bailey highlight the class.

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