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Getty Images Buddy Hield #24 congratulates De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Kings
The 2022-23 NBA season will be pivotal for the Brooklyn Nets. After failing to make it past the second round in consecutive seasons, Nets fans expect to see their star-studded team of Ben Simmons, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving deliver a championship. But despite having more than 20 All-Star appearances between Durant, Kyrie, and Simmons, the Nets roster is very top-heavy and needs a role player or two for them to be a complete team that can contend for a tile.
As we have seen in these past playoffs with players such as Golden State Warriors center Kevon Looney and Boston Celtics big man Al Horford the performance of a team’s role players can be the difference between winning and losing a championship. One NBA general manager told Heavy’s Sean Deveney that the Nets should look to target Indiana Pacers sharpshooter Buddy Hield to round out their roster.
“A guy they would look at is Buddy Hield as Indiana is chopping things down there. They are not sure about Joe Harris of course,” the general manager said to Deveney.
“So, they could send out Harris and Cam Thomas and bring back a guy like Hield, who is a little bit of a wild card, but he needs to be in a winning situation that would focus him more. He has not had that in his career yet.”
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Nick Wright Proposes Wild Three Team Nets Trade
This isn’t the first time the Nets have been linked to the Pacers star in a potential trade. Recently FS1 analyst Nick Wright suggested a three-team trade between the Nets, Indiana Pacers, and Los Angeles Lakers that sends Malcolm Brogdon and Buddy Hield to the Nets.
“What about a different trade for a Net, that hasn’t actually played for the Nets. Rumor is he always wanted to be in Los Angeles. We don’t know if he will ever play for the Nets. And maybe it’s a three-way trade, and maybe the Nets do re-up Kyrie, and they say you know what, we are not comfortable having long-term deals in place for Kyrie and Ben Simmons. Two gigantic wildcards. Is there some type of Ben Simmons for Russell Westbrook and some picks out there?” Wright said during the May 30th episode of “First Things First”.
“Kyrie is there, a third team is involved. For example, what you’re saying about the Pacers. It’s [Malcolm] Brogdon and [Buddy] Hield to Brooklyn, Ben Simmons to Los Angeles, and Russell Westbrook and picks from both teams to Indiana. Brooklyn throws in some of their picks they got from Philly; Los Angeles throws in their own picks.”
Depth More Important Than Talent for the Nets
Having a wealth of talent gives teams a chance to win in the NBA, but as is proven with the last four NBA champions, having depth is more important than talent. The 2019 Toronto Raptors, 2020 Los Angeles Lakers, 2021 Milwaukee Bucks, and this year’s Warriors squad all had one thing in common. They had one or two stars that they built around based on their strengths.
The Nets already lack depth, which could become a bigger issue during this offseason. Key players such as Nicolas Claxton, Bruce Brown, and Andre Drummond are all set to enter free agency this season. It is an issue that they need to correct if they want to be contenders for next year’s title.
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Nets Urged by NBA Exec To Make Blockbuster Trade for $94 Million Starter