The Brooklyn Nets continue their quest to surround Deron Williams with talent by agreeing to trade for Joe Johnson, who has nearly 90 million dollars and 4 years left on his deal, from the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. The trade is reported to go through regardless of Deron Williams' decision to return, though it is widely expected that he will. Nevertheless, the Nets are still not a title contender with Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, and their contracts make it difficult for the Nets to acquire the pieces that will make them one. This is exactly the same predicament that Atlanta Hawks are freeing themselves from with this trade and the trade that will send Marvin Williams to Utah for Devin Harris.
On a talent level, the Nets gave up nothing and acquired arguably the third-best shooting guard in NBA. What they are sacrificing in the trade, however, are cap space in the future and more
importantly, a chance to acquire Dwight Howard, who wants out of Orlando badly. Given that the Magic did not like the Nets' offer previously, it is impossible to think of a trade that could bring Howard to Brooklyn now that Joe Johnson has taken away the Nets' cap space to absorb some of Magic's bad contracts. It is even more far-fetched to believe that Dwight Howard can join the Nets as a free agent. Hence, it is safe to believe that Williams, Johnson, Gerald Wallace, who signed for 40 million for 4 years, and restricted free agent Brook Lopez will make up the core of the Nets for the next four years.
The Nets, assuming Deron Williams' return, will have more than 50 million dollars committed to just 3 players in Williams, Johnson and Wallace a year for the next 4 years. If the Nets re-sign Brook Lopez at a reasonable, maybe even below market-value 10 million a year, that will make it 60 million dollars for 4 players. The rest of the roster probably has to be filled with the mid-level exception and minimum salaries, unlikely to improve the team by much. As a result, this core will not get much help from any of the players not named Marshon Brooks.
How far can this group go in the Eastern Conference? As I wrote in my post about Kevin Garnett's signing, the East has only one powerhouse in Miami now because of the uncertainty of Derrick Rose's injury. Potentially, this means that the Nets can make it to the Eastern Conference Finals. Realistically, I would not place this Nets team ahead of the Bulls, the Pacers with Roy Hibbert or the Celtics for the next two years. Doesn't it sound familiar now? A team in the East that is probably good for home court advantage in the first round, but never good enough to advance past the second? That's right. The Atlanta Hawks were in exactly the same position for the last five years. The Hawks had several all-stars on the team but never had enough talent to fight with teams like the Celtics or the Heat. Once Joe Johnson signed for that outrageous deal, the Hawks had no chance to improve on their roster. This is the same situation the Nets will be in. They will not have the money to attract ot obtain players who can help the team, and as Johnson and Wallace age, may even start to decline after two years.
By then, the Nets probably will, as the Hawks did today, try to unload their burdensome contracts on another team, and regret their lack of patience for Dwight Howard, who despite his antics over the last season, is still the best center in the world.
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