Brooklyn Nets: Will They Use Their Trade Exceptions?

The Brooklyn Nets have two trade exceptions expiring in December; will they put them to use to add some talent to their roster?

The Brooklyn Nets have been one of the worst teams in the NBA thus far this season. They have a 4-13 record, and if not for the Philadelphia 76ers still being winless this season, the Nets would be the worst team in the Eastern Conference. The Nets mortgaged their future a couple of seasons ago and have very few alleys to improve their aging team. They do have one avenue to improve their team though, and that is through the trade exceptions they have.

The Nets have two trade exceptions that will be expiring in December, both from a trade last season with the Philadelphia 76ers. With the 76ers looking to add cap, even if the players wouldn’t play, the Nets unloaded Andrei Kirilenko and Jorge Gutierrez and in return they received Brandon Davies and the right to swap 2018 second round draft picks. With Kirilenko and Gutierrez, the Nets also shipped a 2020 second round pick to the Nets that the 76ers like hoarding so much.

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While none of those three players are currently in the NBA, the Nets did come away with something usefull in this deal in the way of trade exceptions. For Kirilenko, the Nets received one of $3,326,235 and for Gutierrez they received one worth $816,482.

These exceptions will expire on December 11th, meaning the Nets could be motivated to make a deal before then to try and improve their team. We saw the Miami Heat and Memphis Grizzlies do it earlier in the season when Mario Chalmers and James Ennis were sent to the Grizzlies for Beno Udrih and Jarnell Stokes. What could the Nets be looking to add?

For starters, they could really use some help on the perimeter. The Nets have a strong duo inside in Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, but there isn’t much to get excited about on the perimeter. Jarrett Jack is better suited as a backup combo guard, while Joe Johnson is way below the average PER of 15 with a rating of 9.3. The Nets have gotten decent contributions from Shane Larkin and rookie Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, but the Nets need an infusion of talent.

The question is, will they be able to do it? The Nets are in a tough position, as most players signed in the offseason cannot be traded until then. That makes it difficult to execute mulit-player trades, but as we saw with the Grizzlies and Heat, it is a feasible thing to do. The Nets are also battling the tax line, as they are within $2 million of the $84.74 million limit.

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That handcuffs the Nets a bit, as their pool of players to choose from is extremely limited. It will be difficult to pull of a trade to improve the team, but if they look hard enough they could find something to help improve the production on the court. Finding a cost effective three-point shooter or wing player would be worthwhile, as that is where the Nets are seeing some of their biggest struggles.

It will not be an easy thing to do, but on a team with so few assets and building blocks, the Nets will have to get creative when trying to improve their roster.

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