The Brooklyn Nets made an unbelievable “clean sweep” during free agency, landing Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan.
For the Nets, the madness began when they cleared up the cap space by trading away Allen Crabbe and acquired Taurean Prince. The former Atlanta Hawks forward will provide some instant help in the frontcourt as the Nets wait for Durant to recover from his ruptured Achilles.
Considering Durant is almost certainly not playing next season, we did not include Durant in this depth chart. Regardless, Brooklyn is still very much in a position to succeed. Irving-Harris-LeVert-Prince-Jordan will be a dominant starting lineup that can make noise in the Eastern Conference.
Their bench will be led by Spencer Dinwiddie and Garrett Temple, who both also bring a great locker room presence to the team. Dinwiddie had a crucial role in recruiting Irving to the Nets, per Anthony Puccio.
Even though the decision to add Jordan and relegate Jarrett Allen to the second unit was questionable, there is no doubt that his relationship with Durant helped them land the two-time NBA Finals MVP. Jordan and Allen will presumably split minutes, with Allen perhaps even occasionally getting more playing time.
Next season, second-year forwards Rodions Kurucs and Dzanan Musa will be in the rotation as frontcourt options behind Prince. As for their younger players, however, it is now considered unlikely rookies Nicolas Claxton and Jaylen Hands will get much playing time in the immediate future.
One of their final roster spots could go to Jared Dudley on a minimum deal, as reported by The Athletic’s Michael Scotto. They also extended a qualifying offer to Theo Pinson, who is familiar with the system and performed well in the G League for the Long Island Nets.
Brooklyn should be applauded for their careful cap gymnastics as well as their ability to not only persuade Irving and Durant to come to the Nets but getting them to take discounted deals as well.
