"Where does he think he's going to land in a trade after some team has given up a boat-load for him" - NBA insider reflects on the Kevin Durant-Brooklyn Nets debacle
The recent developments surrounding Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets have taken the NBA world by storm. Howard Beck joined Chris Mannix on "The Crossover" to share some insight on the situation.
Kevin Durant dropped the hammer on the Nets organization with his latest request. Reported by The Athletic's Shams Charania, the player offered an ultimatum to Nets owner Joe Tsai, asking him to pick between KD and the pairing of general manager Sean Marks and coach Steve Nash.
In a meeting with Nets owner Joe Tsai, Kevin Durant reiterated his trade request and informed Tsai that Tsai needs to choose between Durant or the pairing of general manager Sean Marks and coach Steve Nash, sources say.
Story: theathletic.com/3485297/2022/0…
In a move that forced Tsai to pick between Durant and the pair of Sean Marks and Steve Nash, the Nets forward has created a tense situation in Brooklyn.
Considering that the Nets struggled last season, Durant isn't wrong to demand a trade. Howard Beck attempted to shed more light on why the forward wanted out of the Nets. He also hit upon an interesting note when taking the Nets' current roster into consideration.
While speculating about the reasons behind Durant's ultimatum alongside Chris Mannix on "The Crossover", Beck had this to say about the Nets' roster:
"By the way, whatever anybody may think of the roster, last season or where it stands now, the roster as it stands right now could win the championship!"
Featuring players such as Durant, Kyrie Irving, Ben Simmons and role players such as Seth Curry and Joe Harris, among others, Brooklyn has a solid team. Beck even suggested that, on paper at least, the Brooklyn Nets had the pieces to win the chip.
However, as he continued to speculate on the reasons behind Durant's move, he also said:
"So what is it exactly that Kevin Durant is so concerned about? And where does he think he's going to land in a trade after some team has given up a boat-load for him that's going to have a better chance to win than what he has in Brooklyn?"
Beck concluded by saying:
"None of this makes any more sense today than it did when the trade demand first landed. In fact, it makes even less sense because now he's playing cards, that if you were going to play them, should have been played months ago."
NEW @TheCrossover Pod w/@HowardBeck: Diving into the latest bombshell report involving Kevin Durant. Links: bit.ly/2w1G5e2
Can the Brooklyn Nets win the title as constructed?
The Brooklyn Nets are an enigmatic lot to say the least. As Beck mentioned, on paper, the Nets have an extremely potent roster. While the superstar trio itself is convincing enough, Brooklyn have some pretty reliable role players as well on their side.
Free agent TJ Warren has agreed to a deal with the Brooklyn Nets, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
The Nets announce they have completed their expected trade for Royce O'NEALE. twitter.com/BrooklynNets/s…
While including recent additions such as Royce O'Neale and TJ Warren, the Nets have added fairly reliable defensive and offensive weapons to their roster. This in itself has the appeal of being one of the most competent teams in the league.
Unfortunately, this may not always be the case. As seen with the Brooklyn Nets last year, much like the LA Lakers last season, chemistry plays a major role in these matters.
Considering the sheer volume of drama over the last few months, the Nets locker room could be a complicated environment to navigate. The additional uncertainties with regards to the relationship between the players and the management only adds to these problems.
Overall, Brooklyn has a solid unit in place. But given their uncertain future, as Marc J. Spears mentioned on NBA Today, the Nets are the hardest team to project for in sports.
.@MarcJSpears has no idea how to project the Nets' finish this season:
“They could be [No. 1] and they could be out of the playoffs. ... There's no other team in sports that is harder to predict than the Brooklyn Nets.” https://t.co/m4oadhuEYV