4-Step Plan for Brooklyn Nets to Return to the NBA Playoffs in 2015-16
The Brooklyn Nets won 38 games in 2014-15, got bounced in the first round of the playoffs, don't have cap room heading into the offseason and are bogged down with expensive contracts and roster inflexibility.
So naturally, there is a pretty simple formula to guarantee them a return to the postseason. It goes beyond, "The Nets just have to stay in the Eastern Conference," something with which I don't think they'll have any issues.
Brooklyn isn't going to turn itself into a title contender this offseason, but it can improve on the margins, adding reinforcements to bolster its depth and athleticism. If it does that, it could tread enough water in the weaker conference.
1. Purchase an Extra Draft Pick
The Nets have been open about their objective to cut costs, but purchasing another team's draft pick wouldn't necessarily hurt them in the long term.
By league rules, Brooklyn couldn't even spend more than $3 million on such a transaction. Plus, it'd bring in cheap labor. If the Nets were to acquire a second-round pick and draft someone who actually makes the roster, that's four years of the cheapest minimum contract NBA money can buy.
And it's completely possible the Nets could find a diamond in the rough. For all the criticism that's thrown GM Billy King's way (almost all of it legitimate), his best general managing look in recent years has been as a drafter.
Cory Jefferson looks like he could become a rotation player after playing the role of Mr. Irrelevant last June. Markel Brown went 44th overall and ended up starting 29 games this year. King snagged Plumlee at No. 22 in 2013, also. Though Brooklyn could've taken Rudy Gobert there, the current Nets backup center is still one of the best non-lottery selections from the 2013 draft.
Brooklyn already has two picks (Nos. 29 and 41) for June 25th's extravaganza, but the best way to find untapped second-round talent is to accumulate as many picks as possible and hope one or two work out. It's basically what the Philadelphia 76ers are doing in stockpiling all those second-rounders—but to a much lesser degree.
Brooklyn bought three picks last year, so it's reaped the benefits of that strategy already. It'd be surprising if King and the Nets didn't go the same route come June 25th.
2. Bring Back Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young
You already knew this one was coming, didn't you? Well, so did the Nets.
King has been about as public as he possibly can about his desire to bring back both Lopez and Young, the latter of whom we could potentially brand as the man who saved King's job. If Brooklyn doesn't steal Young from the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Garnett back in February (maybe the best trade King has ever made), the Nets likely don't finish the year 13-6, and maybe they don't make the playoffs, and maybe King doesn't keep his job.
But that's pure speculation. This comment on King's desire to bring Lopez back isn't.
"For us to get in the playoffs that stretch, he was the guy who carried us, (Lopez) was our best player," he said after the season, via Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. "I'll say it again, we want him back, I want him back, Lionel (Hollins) wants him back, ownership wants him back. We've all said it. There shouldn't be any more doubts about it."
And there certainly aren't, especially since he's made similar lobbies for Young's return, too.
When you have a roster which struggled to 38 wins and you don't have cap room to go out and sign capable replacements, you have to bring back the guys who helped you to the little success you found. That's Front Office 101.
Lopez and Young were those guys.
Lopez averaged 19.7 points and 9.2 rebounds after the All-Star break while also turning into one of the best offensive rebounders in the NBA. Young, meanwhile, allowed Lopez to operate more comfortably on the inside while helping the Nets defense with forced turnovers and some athletic plays.
Yes, I said "athletic." And athleticism is absolutely something the Nets need.
3. Find Athleticism on the Wings
The Nets don't have a ton of roster flexibility, but they might be able to add some athleticism on the perimeter if they're able to unload Joe Johnson, whom they are openly trying to deal along with Deron Williams.
There's no question Johnson is still an effective player (especially offensively), but he wouldn't exactly be one to light up the stat sheets at the NBA combine at this stage in his life. There is one plausible trade, though, which could bring back some leapers.
You know it: the one Brooklyn discussed this season with the Charlotte Hornets.
The Nets would give up Johnson and get back Gerald Henderson, Marvin Williams and, of course, Brooklyn native Lance Stephenson.
The Nets would be buying low on Stephenson, who's coming off one of the most disappointing seasons from 2014-15—he shot 17 percent from long range and had a higher turnover rate than he did three-point percentage. But at only 24 years old and with that talent, he's still redeemable. And the additions of Henderson and Williams could add a little defense, a little versatility and a little athleticism to a wing core more than a little in need of all those traits.
Last year's Nets struggled to guard superior athletes on the perimeter (though the late-season insertion of Markel Brown into the starting lineup remedied some of that). Bring in multiple players for Johnson, lengthen the bench, add the ability to force turnovers (a struggle from 2014-15), sprinkle in some defense and Brooklyn could end up stealing an extra win or two in 2015-16.
4. Find a Fitting Third Big Man
The key word here: "fitting."
Mason Plumlee is probably good enough to fill the role of third big man for plenty of teams, but he isn't the right fit for this Brooklyn squad, especially if Lopez were to return. We've been through it before, but here's a refresher:
Lopez and Plumlee don't play well together. Not at all.
The Nets were outscored by an unthinkable 13.7 points per 100 possessions when the two of them shared the floor this past season. To put that in perspective, the New York Knicks, who had the league's worst per-possession scoring differential, were 10.1 points per 100 worse than their opponents.
By the end of the year, coach Lionel Hollins was almost never playing them together. They ended up seeing only a few seconds next to each other during Brooklyn's first-round postseason loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
It didn't work on defense with Lopez pushing Plumlee away from the paint. It didn't work on offense with Plumlee displacing Lopez's rim game.
The Nets better prepare for that trend to continue into 2015-16. If Hollins veered away from Lopez-Plumlee lineups as the year progressed, why would he go back to them a season later?
So, what could Brooklyn do?
It could deal Plumlee, maybe as part of a larger Johnson or Williams deal (a distinct possibility, though his value clearly isn't as high now as it was when he was playing the best basketball of his career back in December). It could hold onto him as Lopez insurance—considering Lopez's injury history—and bring in another big man to be the primary backup.
However they do it, the Nets would be best off finding someone who could play next to Lopez or Young. If that means dealing Plumlee, so be it.
Follow Fred Katz on Twitter at @FredKatz.
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics are current as of May 31 and are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
