Getty Joe Harris #12 of the Brooklyn Nets reacts during the first quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers
The Brooklyn Nets have been rumored to be looking to deal their veteran sharpshooter Joe Harris after he’s returned from injury this season. Ric Bucher reported that Brooklyn is ‘hope to move’ Harris ahead of the February 9 trade deadline. The Nets were also said to have offered Harris in potential John Collins proposals, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Now, Harris has been linked in another potential trade, but this time for Bojan Bogdanovic from the Detroit Pistons.
Nets Trade Proposal For Bojan Bogdanovic
Bogdanovic has been believed to be available at the deadline since the Pistons traded for him ahead of the 2022-23 season. On the December 30 episode of The Bill Simmons podcast, Simmons proposed a deal that brought Bogdanovic to Brooklyn as a Joe Harris upgrade.
“Bogdanovic, that’s a guy that we know he can play in a playoff series playing crunch time. What, if your Brooklyn, you have those to Philly firsts, I think you have to Philly firsts from the Simmons-Harden trade still. Joe Harris and those two firsts, is that enough for Bogdanovic? Do you do that if you’re Brooklyn?”
Simmons was joined by The Ringer’s Wosny Lambre for the December 30 episode of the podcast. Lambre stated that if he were the Nets, he would do the Bogdanovic deal.
“You know he’s a clear upgrade from Joe Harris in the sense that he actually plays, right? Like he is available, and so they that’s kind of been the secret to the secret sauce to Brooklyn’s turnaround is, one horrible competition, but two just getting dudes back at all has helped them immensely, and so, yeah, I think Brooklyn should definitely be trying to get that because they need warm bodies,” Lambre replied.
Nets Likely to Trade Joe Harris, per Executive
The Nets have been reported to be looking to trade Harris since before the season even started. A rival executive told Heavy Sports back in September that the Nets would either move on from Harris or Seth Curry in a trade ahead of the deadline. With all reports of Harris being available, it looks like he is the Nets sharpshooter that will be dealt this season.
“One of them [Curry or Harris] will get dealt before the deadline, that would be my guess. Both are really good shooters. Obviously, that is their skill. But both are bad defenders who will be targeted in the playoffs. Obviously, finding a new home for either guy has not been the priority for them this summer so, no, they have not really had talks about a deal for either guy, so far.
But I suspect they’ll want to come out and see how healthy Harris is, see if he is back to his old form, then they may start to figure out what they can get for him vs. what they can get for Curry. Harris has more value if he can show he is healthy — he is not as poor a defender as Curry. If they’re going to try to make a deep playoff run, Harris is more likely the one they’d keep,” the executive told Heavy.
Bogdanovic Season-Long Trade Rumors
Bogdanovic has had trade rumors swirling around him all season long in Detroit. However, on December 6, James Edwards III of The Athletic reported that the Pistons don’t appear “eager” to trade Bogdanovic as he continues to play at a high level for them.
“The Pistons don’t appear to be eager to move Bogdanović, who is in the midst of a career-scoring season and has added great leadership value to the young team,” Edwards wrote.
However, with him averaging 20.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game, the Croatian power forward is only making himself a more attractive trade piece. Bogdanovic played his first three seasons with the Nets and his scoring would be a welcome addition to this surging Nets squad.