Getty Paul Millsap of the Nuggets denies Myles Turner of the Pacers.
After a win over LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day, the Brooklyn Nets sat in 1st place of the Eastern Conference playoff standings and seemed to have a firm handle on their season. But these days all the Nets do is seem to lose. After Sunday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets, Brooklyn has now lost eight straight games. To add even more salt to the wound, Nets’ star Kyrie Irving is only eligible for 10 of the team’s remaining 29 games as he still has not taken the New York City mandated COVID-19 vaccination.
Kyrie Irving is only eligible to play in 10 of the Nets’ last 29 games this season because of the NY vaccine mandate.
The Nets are currently the 7-seed. 😶
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Proposed Trade Has Nets Trade Paul Millsap to Bulls
The Nets have fallen from being the top seed in the Eastern Conference on Christmas to staring down the barrel of a play-in game. The February 10 trade deadline is looming and Brooklyn may end up being one of the more active teams. Greg Swartz of “Bleacher Report” suggests that the Nets move 4-time NBA All-Star Paul Millsap in exchange for draft capital.
“Millsap is a buyout candidate, although the Nets should prefer to trade the 36-year-old to get his $2.6 million deal cleanly off their books and reduce their $110.4 million luxury-tax bill. Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported that the Nets and Millsap “have agreed to find the four-time All-Star a new team where he can have a greater contribution.” He also noted that the Bulls and Golden State Warriors were the other two teams Millsap considered signing with last offseason,” Swartz writes per Bleacher Report.
“The Bulls can absorb Millsap’s salary into their $5 million trade exception and still stay under the luxury-tax line. With Patrick Williams lost for the year following wrist surgery, Chicago could use the frontcourt depth and another veteran to help in their championship pursuit. Because the Bulls have to send something back in return, the two teams can simply swap future second-round picks.”
Steve Nash Shows Compassion for Millsap
When the Nets signed Millsap during last summer’s free agency period, he was expected to be a key contributor for the team. But the emergence of younger Nets’ centers such as Nicolas Claxton and Day’Ron Sharpe has pushed the 4-time All-Star back in the rotation.
“You add it all up, there are five centers. I think it makes it difficult and for different reasons and different parts of the season, we pressed different buttons and although he did get some opportunities, he didn’t get a ton of opportunities,” Nets head coach Steve Nash said to Brian Lewis of the “New York Post”.
“I feel that was unfortunate for Paul, and I understand. Just a difficult situation we didn’t foresee but here we are. Day’Ron and Nic have emerged, LA [LaMarcus Aldridge] has had a great year and we know Blake’s been available the whole season and whether he’s playing very well or he’s struggling, we know what he brings. You add it all up, there’s not enough space for everybody.”
With a Kevin Durant return still a few weeks away, and Kyrie’s availability still being part-time, the Nets have a tough road ahead. A big move before the trade deadline could be in the cards for the franchise.
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