LeBron James: New Jersey Nets' Greatest Gamble

After trading Jason Kidd for Devin Harris, the Nets made it clear that they were entering a stage of rebuilding. Then, by trading Richard Jefferson this summer, the stage has transformed into a risky gambit with the prize being Lebron James. The question is—will it pay off?

Shawn Carter is the mastermind, a shrewd businessman and known friend of Lebron, and this trade and direction is clearly his doing. Trading for Yi Jianlian gives the soon to be Brooklyn Nets a huge fan base, and a huge source of revenue in the future. If he blossoms into a star, even better, it will provide Bron-Bron with even more incentive to leave Cleveland.

Drafting Brook Lopez provides them with their center of the future, a low post player with an amazing skill set. All this being said, the key to the Nets future lies not in the hands of Jay-Z, but another Carter—Vince Carter.

At 31, if Vince is not careful, he will soon begin to decline as a player. He needs to remain a superstar and a leader of the Nets for another two years, showing that he is still a dominate force at 33, in the summer of 2010. He needs to show that he can still be the "franchise player," and lead New Jersey to two respectable seasons before Lebron gets there.

If the successfully signed Lebron, combined with steady draft choices in the next two summers, the year of 2010-2011 will be remarkable for the Brooklyn Nets. Picture a line-up of (with ages in 2010-2011):

C- Brook Lopez (21)

PF- Yi Jianlian (21)

SF- Lebron James (26)

SG- Vince Carter (33)

PG- Devin Harris (27)

Bench- Sean Williams (24) , Marcus Williams (25), Chris Douglas-Roberts (23)

This is a team that could compete with anyone in the East. If Lawrence Frank has the sense to play an uptempo offense, they’ll be unstoppable.

It ultimately comes down to Lebron—if they get him, the New Jersey Nets will be known for pulling off one of the greatest heists in NBA history. If not, they’ll be left with a single aging star, and no sure plan to rebuild. It was a bold move, but a gamble nonetheless, and everyone must wait two seasons to see if it will pay off.