NBA Trade Rumors: Antawn Jamison Is Last Thing the Brooklyn Nets Need

The Brooklyn Nets have already had a busy summer, but they may not be done yet.

And no, we're not even counting the reportedly failed attempt to land Dwight Howard.

According to Peter Vecsey, the Nets are on the verge of orchestrating a sign-and-trade deal for free agent Antawn Jamison:

"

Nets' talk re sign-n-trade for Jamison is as serious as it can get without it actually being done. How can they do better than pro's pro?

— Peter Vecsey (@PeterVecsey1) July 12, 2012"

Jamison played for the Cleveland Cavaliers for the last two-and-a-half years, and he's held up pretty well at age 36.

His overall shooting efficiency has tanked a bit, but he still makes over 34 percent of his three-point attempts. That is a particular virtue for a 6'9" forward who can spread the floor while collecting over six rebounds a game.

Unfortunately, Jamison is not what Brooklyn needs most at the moment.

ESPNNewYork.com's Mike Mazzeo reports that the Nets have reached an agreement with Brook Lopez that would keep the free agent around for another four seasons. Lopez is a great scorer, but he is a painfully subpar rebounder for being a center. 

Say what you will about Kris Humphries, but the man can rebound.

That doesn't necessarily mean he is the best fit for Brooklyn's revamped starting five, but it's hard to believe that Jamison is the solution either.

On the one hand, Gerald Wallace is one of the best rebounding small forwards around. He will certainly contribute the kind of toughness and tenacity that the Nets' frontcourt desperately needs.

On the other hand, it's not an especially good sign when your 3-man is the best rebounder in your starting unit. That's precisely the scenario Brooklyn would face were it to team Lopez and Jamison together at the 4 and 5.

The scoring would be nice, but that kind of paint presence would be prone to giving up more offensive rebounds than last year's Golden State Warriors, who charitably spotted their opponents a league-worst 13.2 per game.

If the Nets can use Jamison as a sixth man to breath life into the bench, that's an arrangement that might actually make some sense. But if he is to replace Humphries as the rotation's starting power forward, this could be an ill-suited venture.