According to early reports, the Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics may be prepping a blockbuster draft day trade.
Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski says that the Nets are talking about acquiring Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett from the Boston Celtics. Pierce and Garnett have long been on the trading block, most recently in a trading involving them and coach Doc Rivers to the Los Angeles Clippers, a deal that was blocked by the league.
However, the Celtics still seem eager to drop Pierce and Garnett and free up some cap room for Celtics, who are definitely in rebuilding mode. The trade would send them Kris Humphries, Gerald Wallace, and Tornike Shengelia, including three first round draft picks, which means the Nets wouldn’t have a first round draft pick for the next three years (it depends if they’re protected or unprotected picks).
The Nets don’t mind spending money on talent.
This wouldn’t the first time the Nets, or any team, opted for a “win-now-mortgage-our-future-later” philosophy. With Russian owner Mikhail Prokhorov watching the team and waiting for a championship or two, the Nets are desperate for a big move. While they thought that getting Deron Williams to sign long term along with the big (fiscally) trade for Joe Johnson last year, they could manage to get others to come to Brooklyn. A lineup of Williams, Johnson, Pierce, Garnett, and Brook Lopez could actually be relatively formidable in the East. Last year, the Nets ousted in the first round by the Bulls, who won a Game 7 in Brooklyn. With former Defensive Player of the Year Kevin Garnett (and former MVP) anchoring the defense — Garnett transformed the defensive mentality on Boston during their glory days — and Pierce being the offensive spark that he is, this could be quite a coup for the Nets.
Now, it’s being reported that either Jason Terry or Courtney Lee may be included in the deal. SB Nation notes that both Terry and Lee had difficulties last year after signing similar $5.2 million contracts.
We’ll update this post if there’s any update on the trade. Until then, enjoy the 2013 NBA Draft, which takes place tonight.