For the second consecutive year, Landry Shamet has been traded in a deal agreed to on the day of the NBA draft, and you can chart his declining trade value as he approaches the conclusion of his rookie contract by comparing the packages.
Last year, Shamet was deemed equivalent to the 19th pick, which the Brooklyn Nets sent out to get him in a three-team deal. This year, it's the 29th pick and Jevon Carter, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Let's grade the deal, and examine what the move means for both Brooklyn and the Phoenix Suns.
Suns get: Landry Shamet
Nets get: Jevon Carter, 2021 first-round pick (No. 29)
Brooklyn Nets: B+
Surely, the Nets are thinking about the possibility of Shamet getting a pay raise on his next contract. He's eligible for a rookie extension this summer and would otherwise become a restricted free agent next July. At $3.75 million in the final year of his rookie deal, Shamet is a good value as a bench shooter. But the defensive limitations that pushed him to the fringes of head coach Steve Nash's rotation by Game 7 of Brooklyn's Eastern Conference finals loss to the Milwaukee Bucks might make him less palatable on his next contract.
Instead of one cheap year of Shamet, the Nets now get two years of Carter at a similar rate ($3.65 million this season, $3.9 million in 2022-23) and a second pick late in the first round to go with their own, No. 27 overall.
It will be interesting to see whether Carter can carve out a bigger role in Brooklyn. His defense at point guard fits what the Nets need from their role players, as does Carter's 38% career 3-point shooting. Yet he fell out of head coach Monty Williams' rotation in the playoffs, playing sparingly even when guards Chris Paul and Cameron Payne were unavailable as Williams favored more experienced E'Twaun Moore. In part, it didn't seem like the Suns trusted Carter to handle the ball, which will be less of an issue playing alongside either James Harden or Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn.
I'm also curious how the Nets handle two draft picks in a similar range. A move worth watching is Brooklyn dropping back a few picks into the second round in order to be able to pay less in 2021-22 salary for luxury-tax purposes. The New York Knicks, picking at No. 32, would be a logical partner if there's someone the Knicks like on the board in the late 20s.
Phoenix Suns: C
From the Suns' standpoint, the most interesting aspect of this deal is what it might signal about the future of their two point guards. Paul has a deadline of Sunday to decide on a $44.2 million player option for 2021-22 with Phoenix having a few options to bring him back. The Suns could extend his contract if Paul picks up the option or re-sign him to a contract with a smaller starting salary but more total guaranteed money.
If Paul opts in, the luxury tax becomes an issue for Phoenix next summer, and shedding the No. 29 pick would help the Suns have some hope of re-signing Cameron Payne as an unrestricted free agent and avoiding it. Alternatively, Shamet could be insurance if Payne leaves, though he's no more capable as a primary ball handler than Carter.
Most likely, Phoenix will bring back the same core, putting Shamet in the role of fourth guard that Carter, Moore and Langston Galloway (the latter two both free agents) split last season. Shamet is the best shooter of that group, having hit 40% of his 3-point attempts in his NBA career. Still, backcourts with Payne and Shamet would give up a lot of size defensively, potentially limiting Shamet's role in the playoffs.
The Suns have their own tax concerns heading into Shamet's next contract. Phoenix starters Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges are also extension eligible and sure to command massive raises. Add in a new contract or an extension for Paul, and the Suns could be looking at a large tax bill in the 2022-23 season. Given owner Robert Sarver's reluctance to pay the tax historically, something might have to give. And Phoenix will have one less value contract on the books without this year's first-round pick.