The Brooklyn Nets have been quite active this NBA offseason. With their core in place with a Big 3 of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, the front office has been hard at work building the roster around them.
The 2021 NBA Draft was the first crack they had at adding depth to the roster. They traded Landry Shamet to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for the No. 29 overall pick and Jevon Carter. That gave Brooklyn five selections and they made all five of them.
Is Paul George 100% in the Clippers’ future plans after Kawhi Leonard's 4-year contract extension?
With the 27th pick, the Nets selected LSU scoring guard Cameron Thomas. With the 29th pick, via the Suns, they selected North Carolina center Day’Ron Sharp. Three picks were made in the second round, with Kessler Edwards out of Pepperdine going 44th, Marcus Zegarowski out of Creighton going 49th and RaiQuan Gray out of Florida State going 59th.
Strapped for cash in free agency, the Nets were never going to be big spenders. They were able to convince Patty Mills to leave the San Antonio Spurs for them, agreeing to a two-year, $12 million deal using the mini mid-level exception. James Johnson signed a veteran’s minimum deal to join the team as well.
Blake Griffin and Bruce Brown were both re-signed. Griffin signed another veteran’s minimum deal and Brown signed the $4.7 million qualifying offer.
Brooklyn will be competing with other contending teams to sign veterans looking to chase a ring. Which players could everyone be vying for? Here are two free agents Brooklyn could target for a ring-chasing deal.
2. JJ Redick
JJ Redick ended last season with the Dallas Mavericks, but it was not where he wanted to be. The New Orleans Pelicans were looking to trade him and Redick was under the impression he would be bought out if a trade could not be completed that landed him closer to his family.
Redick battled injuries throughout the 2020-21 season, resulting in him shooting 37.1 percent from the 3-point line; the second-lowest shooting percentage for him in a season. That goes to show how good of a shooter JJ Redick is, as many players would love for 37.1 percent to be a nearly career-low.