The NBA moratorium is over, and it's official: Thaddeus Young is no longer part of the Nets' new trajectory. Caris Le Vert is.
And Jeremy Lin is officially a Net.
In exchange for Young, the Nets acquired the rights of Le Vert, who was the 20th pick in this year's draft, and a future second-round pick from the Indiana Pacers, the Nets announced Thursday. The deal was all but done on draft day but the leaguewide waiting period precluded the team from announcing the trade, as it was agreed to only in word.
Still, on that day, Young, a power forward who's going to the Pacers after 101 games with the Nets and 93 starts, said his goodbyes to the fans and the city on social media. On Thursday, LeVert, a guard who played four seasons at Michigan, introduced himself.
"Blessed and honored to say I am officially be apart of the [at sign]BrooklynNets," he tweeted.
LeVert _ 6-foot-7 and 21 years old _ was considered one of the premier young talents in college basketball before a series of foot injuries required surgery, sidelining him for long portions of the last three years. He's had three surgeries on his left foot, and attended the NBA combine on crutches. But, if he can stay healthy, the Nets could have come away with a steal on draft day.
He helped Michigan to three NCAA Tournament appearances, including a spot in the Elite Eight in 2014 (he was also on the team when Michigan made the championship game in 2013 his freshman year but did not score off the bench). As a senior, he averaged 16.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 30.9 minutes, playing 15 games before his foot injury. He shot 50.6 percent from the field, and 44.6 percent from 3-point range.
The Nets on Thursday officially announced the signing of Jeremy Lin. Lin will be coming to the team for a reported three years, $36 million. Things are less secure with Tyler Johnson, since his original team, the Heat, have three days to match the four-year $50-million offer sheet _ something that at first seemed very unlikely for cap reasons, but becomes more possible after former teammate and fellow shooting guard Dwyane Wade chose to leave the Heat for the Chicago Bulls.
