Nets Trade Predictions Ahead of Thursday's NBA Deadline

At times this season, the Brooklyn Nets seemed like they could go either direction at the trade deadline.

With the trade buzzer set to sound at 3 p.m. ET on Thursday, though, it feels pretty obvious what the Nets need to do.

After slipping to 11th in the Eastern Conference standings (i.e., out of the play-in tournament), there's almost no way this front office can justify any kind of buying. There also isn't a great argument against them doing some kind of selling, even if it's only parting with non-essential role players.

Let's get into the specifics, though, and predict what the Nets could do at the deadline.

They Hang Up on Anyone Asking About Mikal Bridges

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PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 3: Mikal Bridges #1 of the Brooklyn Nets looks on during the game against the Philadelphia 76ers on February 3, 2024 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)

There is a universe in which the Nets spark trade season to life by dangling star swingman Mikal Bridges. Given the lack of difference-makers on the market, he'd surely deliver a fortune and have Brooklyn well-prepared to plunge into a top-to-bottom rebuild.

That isn't our reality, though.

Teams keep calling about Bridges, and the Nets keep telling teams Bridges "is not available," per HoopsHype's Michael Scotto. They could have gotten back "several" of the picks they owe the Houston Rockets from the James Harden trade, but they declined. Houston reportedly even dangled former No. 2 pick Jalen Green in an offer for Bridges, and Brooklyn still wasn't interested, per Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer.

While there's probably a trade price point at which even the Nets couldn't say no to a Bridges deal, it's so astronomically high that it will never be offered to them. He's staying put.

They Either Keep Spencer Dinwiddie or Sell Him at a Deep Discount

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BROOKLYN, NY - FEBRUARY 5: Spencer Dinwiddie #26 of the Brooklyn Nets dribbles the ball during the game against the Golden State Warriors on February 5, 2024 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by David L. Nemec/NBAE via Getty Images)

While the Nets aren't listening to offers on Bridges, they could move several veterans this week.

Spencer Dinwiddie looms as one of their most obvious trade candidates, especially since the impending free agent is "unlikely to be a long-term piece beyond this season," per HoopsHype's Michael Scotto.

Brooklyn has some incentive to move Dinwiddie, but what can it reasonably hope to get? This season has been rough for the 6'5" guard, whose shooting rates are down to just 38.9 percent from the field and 32.5 percent from three.

That sagging production along isn't good for his trade value, but the abundance of available lead and combo guards might be even worse. Between Tyus Jones, Malcolm Brogdon, Collin Sexton, D'Angelo Russell and Dennis Schröder, there are a slew of alternatives to Dinwiddie, many (all?) of whom might be preferrable to most teams. It's possible Dinwiddie's trade price has fallen so low that Brooklyn doesn't even bother to deal him.

They Trade Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O'Neale for Draft Picks

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BROOKLYN, NY - FEBRUARY 5: Royce O'Neale #00 of the Brooklyn Nets dribbles the ball during the game against the Golden State Warriors on February 5, 2024 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Nets are fielding calls for both of these players, as they should.

Two-way wings are always coveted in the modern NBA, and Brooklyn is one of the few teams with so many of them that it can afford to give a few up.

Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O'Neale are both on the wrong side of 30, and the Nets clearly aren't in position to contend with them now or in the foreseeable future. They simply offer more to this franchise as trade chips than they do as on-court contributors, because they're best when helping teams win bigger than Brooklyn is able.

Finney-Smith might be worth at least a first-round pick in this market, and if O'Neale isn't—he's a partial-season rental on an expiring contract—he might at least bring back multiple seconds. The Nets need those picks more than they need these veterans.