Houston Rockets 'Tried To' Trade Jalen Green To Brooklyn Nets For Mikal Bridges

Should the Nets have taken the Rockets up on the trade?

Mar 7, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) reacts after scoring a basket during the first quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The rebuild is here in Brooklyn. It's time for a complete new chapter for the Nets as they usher in a new era which was much needed following trading the core of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving away. They posted a 32-50 record last season in what felt like a transition season.

Instead of kicking off the rebuild, the Nets stacked the win-now talents they had a season where they rolled out with the talents they acquired via the initial trades that broke up the original core of the team.

Had they kicked off the rebuild, the Nets could have traded Bridges for Jalen Green in a deal with the Houston Rockets.

The Rockets are growing impatient and are ready to win now, and the Nets could have used that to their advantage. They could have maximized a trade package from Houston, getting a player in Green who could have been a cornerstone guard for the rebuild.

“The Rockets tried to trade Green to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges, who was traded to the New York Knicks," Sam Amico reported.

The report seems consistent with others that came out during the regular season -- the Rockets wanted Bridges, but the Nets wouldn't budge. As Amico mentioned, the Nets ended up trading the borderline star forward across the bridge, sending him to the New York Knicks in return for five first-round picks.

The rebuild was still kicked off strong for the Nets, but Green has All-Star potential that can be realized in the right situation, and Brooklyn could have been the right place for him to do so.

Now, it'll remain a what-if as the Nets are going to have to draft well to ensure the next era of basketball in Brooklyn goes strong and the team can eventually find their way to being a contender once again.

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READ MORE: Brooklyn Nets to Prioritize Building From Within

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