A sullen James Harden was traded to the Brooklyn Nets almost two years ago to the day. Back in January 2021, before the COVID vaccine card became popular, the newest super team was Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. It is now Super Bowl week 2023. Some of you all have vaccine cards stamped like a well-traveled passport. Irving still hasn’t been vaccinated, and also no longer Net. Harden was traded at the deadline last year and while most of New York was sleeping with no intention of worrying about the Nets in the morning, Durant was traded to the Phoenix Suns.
One quality the NBA has over the NFL is that it does a much better job of getting rid of obnoxious team owners. Dan Snyder still owns the Washington football franchise after the NFL decided to verbally submit the results of an independent investigation into his toxic workplace to commissioner Roger Goodell in the summer of 2021. In September 2022, the NBA released to the public the findings of an independent investigation into Robert Saver’s toxic workplace. On February 7, 2023, deal for Mat Ishiba to purchase the Suns and Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA was completed.
The Phoenix Suns got a new owner, Kevin Durant
A day later he got one of the best players in NBA history. The Suns traded Cam Johnson, ironman Mikal Bridges (this is your reward for never missing a game), Jae Crowder and four unprotected first round picks to the Nets for Durant and TJ Warren.
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So much for a great team
Return to the Nets. Fetty Wap wants some pointers on how to shut this down fast. For the second time in his 11 seasons in Brooklyn, the Nets’ version of a “super team,” managed to win just one round of the playoffs as a group.
It would be unwise to expect a championship from the first version of the Brooklyn Nets. Mikhail Prokhorov spent millions of dollars and years of cap space to acquire his former No. 1 veterans Deron Williams, Kevin Garnett, Joe Johnson and Paul Pierce. They beat the Toronto Raptors in a seven-game series in the first round in 2014, then lost to LeBron James and the Miami Heat in five.
In 2019, Prokhorov sold the final 51 percent stake in the Nets to Joe Tsai which bought the other 49 percent in 2018. In the weeks leading up to the completion of the sale, the Nets signed Irving, Durant who ruptured his Achilles tendon in the NBA Finals and DeAndre Jordan as three to complete. The ghost.
Durant committed to the Nets three days before Christmas 2020. A few weeks later, the Nets traded Harden. They were the favorites to make the NBA playoffs in 2021. The Nets beat the Boston Celtics in the first round and didn’t fall out of the second round nearly as easily as Pierce and Garnett’s 2014 team. Even with injuries to Harden and Irving, the Nets still pushed the eventual NBA champions Milwaukee Bucks to seven games.
Big 3 with nothing to show for it
This incarnation of the Nets will never win the playoffs together. Irving missed half of the next season because of his vaccine opposition, and Harden wanted out before the next trade deadline. This “big three” shared the field for a total of 16 games, including the playoffs.
The most interesting name on the Nets roster right now is Cam Thomas. At least his 40 or more points in three straight games leaves one interesting debate on the court in Brooklyn.
The Nets’ first attempt at building a team quickly was a reasonable failure. In a new city and a new building, the Nets needed to raise their voices to avoid ending up like the New York Clippers. But years later, they assembled a championship-caliber team. A three-star team that ended up not playing an entire NFL game together all season.
What a mess these last four seasons have been. If I were Kenny Atkinson I would stay in the Golden State too after being skunked by this franchise recently. This is the Nets’ 11th season in New York, and not only do they still rank second in fan interest in the tri-state area, but they also appear to be the second best-run franchise. And their only competition is James Dolan.
Maybe Joe Tsai can build a better band — JT and the Flameouts.