The Seismic Collapse of The Nets

A downfall for the ages sees the Brooklyn Nets have gone from three superstars and championship pursuits to a full reset in the matter of 13 months.

© Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

It began with a clean sweep and concluded with one of the biggest disappointments in NBA history. Overall, the Brooklyn Nets learned that life comes at you fast.

Brooklyn has agreed to trade superstar Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns in a massive blockbuster early Thursday morning that drastically changes the NBA's power landscape. It also packages the Nets into another rebuild with tons of difficult questions to answer.

The trade was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

After the organization mortgaged a heavy portion of its future for Philadelphia 76ers superstar James Harden during last year’s Trade Deadline, the chase for a championship became win or bust. Instead, Harden served as the first domino in Brooklyn’s drastic drop-off in just 13 months.

The former MVP became the first superstar to force his way out of the borough, heading down the New Jersey Turnpike to the City of Brotherly Love. Almost exactly a year later, Dallas Mavericks superstar Kyrie Irving followed in Harden’s footsteps out the door in identical fashion while dishing some negative comments days later. Now that Durant’s departure to the desert deprived the Nets of all championship hopes, the organization has pounded the full reset button.

"I'm just glad that he [Durant] got out of there," Irving said after learning about the blockbuster following his 24-point Mavs debut on Wednesday night.

Returns for Irving and Durant

Players: Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian-Finney Smith, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder.

Draft Compensation: Five unprotected first-round picks (2023, 2025, 2027, 2029, 2029), two second-round picks (2027, 2029), and a pick swap with the Suns in 2028.

Where Brooklyn At?

The Nets, who have now dealt four players during the trade deadline (Irving, Markieff Morris, T.J. Warren, and Durant) are expected to shop Crowder before 3:00 p.m. on Thursday. The disgruntled forward has been away from the Suns this whole season desiring to be dealt. 

When Irving demanded a trade on Friday, the future of Durant in a Nets uniform was in serious question. The now-former cornerstone did not trust Brooklyn’s stability to forge a championship culture after last season’s disappointment, which concluded in an embarrassing first-round sweep defeat to the Boston Celtics. That resulted in the superstar requesting to be traded. The Suns were one of many teams engaged in acquiring Durant but Brooklyn’s holdout for a godfather-sized package led to him rescinding his request.

Since Durant went down with an MCL sprain in his right knee, Brooklyn has been staying afloat. Outside of compiling a 5-9 record and seeing what the younger players can bring to the table in a larger capacity, it was also a glimpse at what the organization’s rebuild seeds are going forward. 

Brooklyn, who currently sits in the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference standings, now has a solid haul, in-house assets, and one remaining star in Ben Simmons to tip off their latest rebuild. Overall, the Nets collapse from the league’s elite back to the bottom. 

On the other end, Brooklyn stacked the Western Conference and won't see their former superstars that often. Irving teams up with young superstar Luka Doncic in Dallas while Durant elevates Phoenix to a fearful title contender, forging a Big 3 with Devin Booker and Chris Paul, while Deandre Ayton holds down the paint. 

The sudden change in direction leaves the fanbase once craving a championship to stunned and dumbfounded. In the end, a superstar era that was supposed to bring the organization its first elusive NBA title has become the league’s hardest recovery project.