Getty James Harden and Enes Kanter get face to face during the Nets win over the Blazers.
The Brooklyn Nets already were a super team before Saturday. With Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, they had their Big Three. With DeAndre Jordan and recently signed Blake Griffin, they had a pair of role players with All-Star appearances on their resume.
Then, on Saturday, they added a sixth player with at least one All-Star selection to his name. Actually, LaMarcus Aldridge has been to seven All-Star Games. Collectively, these Nets have a whopping 41 All-Star appearances.
And they might not be done.
That fact is, for lack of a better term, scary.
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Thanos and Jesus: Future Nets?
Yes, the Nets have an embarrassment of riches with a roster overflowing with All-Stars, but they also have the room to improve even more. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who broke the news of the Nets’ signing of Aldridge on Saturday, made a point of it to mention that fact.
“Nets still have one more roster spot to use in the buyout market,” Woj tweeted 13 minutes after his tweet revealing Aldridge was headed to Brooklyn.
Nets still have one more roster spot to use in the buyout market.
On Twitter, there were plenty of colorful responses to that tweet by Wojnarowski. But one stood out in its emphasis of just how unstoppable these Nets appear to be now.
“Thanos ? or maybe Jesus,” tweeted Enes Kanter, the Portland Trail Blazers forward who is averaging a double-double this season.
Consider the point made.
Indeed, it’s hard to fathom that the Nets could still improve their loaded roster, but that possibility is on the table.
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Who Could Nets Target in Buyout Market?
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that Aldridge will join the Nets on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal. That means the Nets still have two exceptions — the mid-level exception and the disabled player exception, which they received after Spencer Dinwiddie suffered a partially torn ACL — at their disposal as they peruse the buyout market.
Andre Drummond, the top prize on the buyout market, is still available, though the Nets’ signing of Aldridge means there would be less of a role for him in Brooklyn. The Lakers are reportedly the frontrunners for his services, anyway.
Otto Porter Jr., who averaged 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds in 25 games with the Bulls earlier this season before being traded to the Magic, could be a fit. The veteran forward has yet to be bought out by his new team, but that could be coming. One reporter said as much recently.
I have a feeling that Otto Porter Jr. will get bought out by Orlando. He’s not a real S&T candidate this offseason and has no real value to Orlando for the rest of this season.
But with the Nets now in possession of the depth they need in their froncourt, a wing/guard could make more sense. Miami Heat guard Avery Bradley could fit the bill in that regard if he’s bought out.
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