There is no shortage of people to blame for a tumultuous season that ended prematurely for the Brooklyn Nets.
Give Steve Nash credit for managing the locker room in another unstable season. But the coach's job is to put his players in the best position to succeed in close games and make adjustments. Nash and his staff failed on both accounts, letting winnable Games 1 and 2 slide away.
Nash is not the only person that the blame should fall on.
The Nets' two franchise players, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, were not even the two best players in the series. That honor went to the Celtics' Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Even Marcus Smart outplayed the Brooklyn duo.
The James Harden trade last January turned into a disaster, and it was thought the Brooklyn front office saved face when Harden was flipped for Ben Simmons at the trade deadline. The Harden situation was so toxic in Brooklyn that league sources say there was no guarantee he would even suit up if he was on the roster past the deadline.
However, Simmons didn't even play in a game for Brooklyn because of a herniated disc. Simmons was expected to make his Nets debut in Game 4 after a 10-day pain-free ramp up, but was ruled out Sunday after saying he woke up feeling sore.
In hindsight, maybe Brooklyn was better off rolling the dice with an unhappy Harden for the remainder of the season. A Durant, Irving and Harden trio is better than what the Nets had in the Boston series.
Of course, Harden could have walked for nothing in the offseason and then signed with the 76ers, but that would have required Philadelphia to tear down its roster to create cap space.
Outside of the spark by Blake Griffin and Patty Mills in Game 3, none of the players Brooklyn signed or traded for in the offseason made an impact in the series. In fact, three of those players, DeAndre Bembry, Jevon Carter and James Johnson, were not even on the Nets roster when the season ended.
Does this mean the Nets need a complete overhaul of their front office, coaching staff and roster?
No, but Brooklyn needs to improve in each area or once again face an early ending to their season.
State of the roster
Roster status: Championship or bust
Remember on Christmas Day 2020 when the Nets blew out the Celtics?
Durant and Irving put up a combined 66 points, and the Nets' roster was the envy of the NBA. Unlike most teams that mortgage their future with draft picks and young players, the Nets only needed cap space to sign each player. Brooklyn had all their draft picks and a strong nucleus of complementary players, including Jarrett Allen, Bruce Brown, Caris LeVert, Joe Harris, Jeff Green, Landry Shamet and Spencer Dinwiddie, to contend for a championship.
Three weeks later, Irving took an unexcused absence and was eventually suspended for violating the NBA's COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
With the Nets struggling at .500, they traded their future for Harden. The move at the time not only provided an insurance policy to Irving but a presumed third piece to a championship roster.
Now, the Nets' hope for a championship resides in the health of a player that last played in June (Simmons) and another that is recovering from reconstructive left ankle surgery (Harris). The postseason and regular season have only confirmed how important both are to Brooklyn.
A healthy Simmons and Harris upgrades a defensive unit that ranked in the bottom 10 in defensive efficiency each of the past two seasons.
Simmons is a two-time All-NBA Defensive first teamer. From the 2017-18 to 2020-21 seasons, Simmons held opposing players to 42.2% shooting as the closest defender, the third-lowest rate among 147 players to defend 2,000 shots, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. During that span, only two players defended both guards and forwards at least 7,500 times in the half-court: Simmons and Milwaukee Bucks All-Star Khris Middleton.
Simmons is also one of four players in NBA history to average at least seven offensive rebounds and seven assists through his first four seasons, joining Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson and Luka Doncic, per ESPN Stats & Information.
Harris, meanwhile, struggled in the second round of the playoffs last year but has a career 43.9% 3-point shooting percentage and, at 6-foot-6, gives the Nets the size they desperately lack on the wing.
Simmons, Durant and Irving, who has indicated that he wants to return, are all under contract next season but there is a ton of work to do for general manager Sean Marks and Brooklyn's front office.
Including Irving's player option, Brooklyn has nine potential free agents: Mills (player option), Andre Drummond, Bruce Brown, Nic Claxton, LaMarcus Aldridge, Griffin, Kessler Edwards (team option) and David Duke Jr..
The first-round loss to Boston exposed the Nets' lack of size. The Brooklyn front office must fill that need with limited resources.
Kyrie Irving
For better or worse, the Nets and Irving's relationship that started in 2019 does not seem to be coming to an end any time soon.
"To be honest, I signed up for this for the long run," Irving said in March. "I love this year. I'm grateful. It has not been the prototypical year. But when I look at my teammates and I look at what we have as an organization, I'm looking for the long run and what we can do, legacy talk."
Brooklyn is likely to have a top-20 player in his prime playing alongside Durant, as Irving has a $36.5 million player option and has given the indication that he is not going anywhere.
"For me, it has always been about being comfortable and loving where I'm at," Irving said. "I love it here. Once that summertime hits, I know we'll have some conversations, but there's no way I could leave my man seven anywhere."
After all, what front office wouldn't want two All-NBA players on long-term contracts?
There is financial exposure to every contract, and committing to Irving not only comes with a lucrative monetary sacrifice but also massive uncertainty: Can the Nets trust Irving on and off the court?
From a health standpoint, committing an average salary of $49 million to a player that has missed 119 games to non-COVID-related injuries since the 2017-18 season could result in a financial disaster. The counter argument: Irving benefited from playing the fewest minutes in his career this season.
Irving's off-court concerns are merited.
Including the unvaccinated status that caused him to miss 35 home games this season, Irving was suspended last fall when he went on an unexcused sabbatical.
The year before, he questioned whether the current roster at the time (with Durant out for the season) was good enough as constructed.
In each of the past three seasons, distractions off the court have overshadowed Irving's All-Star play on the court.
Despite that, Brooklyn needs Irving just as much as he needs the Nets.
"Championship. That's it," Marks told a group of season-ticket holders during the season. "I'd be doing 17 players and another 60 staff members over there a massive disservice if I said anything other than that, because that's what we're all here for."
The Nets are over the salary cap without Irving, and letting him go for nothing (or working out a sign-and-trade) would be a bigger catastrophe than the $50 million plus price tag they will owe him at the end of a new contract.
Remember, it was Irving that recruited Durant to Brooklyn, not the other way around.
Irving is a max player but year to year, not with a long-term contract. Unfortunately, the business of the NBA does not operate that way.
Durant is under contract through the 2025-26 season, and although Irving is eligible for a five-year contract that would take him into the 2026-27 season, it would be smart for Brooklyn to align the two contracts together.
A $49.1 and $52.5 million contract in years three and four is tough to stomach, but that is the price of business the Nets got themselves into when Irving committed to them in 2019.
Nets owner Joe Tsai
Tsai is highlighted because of the high payroll needed to keep this roster together.
"We have an incredible ownership group with Joe Tsai -- talk about putting your chips in the middle," Marks said in March. "He's supported us and supported us and continues to support us. So from that standpoint, we know what our expectations are."
Tsai paid $266 million in salary and tax this year (the second highest behind the Golden State Warriors), only to lose in the first round, and is now faced with the decision to keep the team's own free agents -- Brown, Claxton, Drummond, Mills (player option) -- or cut costs and go bargain shopping with the veteran minimum.
If the same roster returns, the Nets could see their salaries and tax penalty approach $330 million.
This option comes at a high risk when you consider the four players Brooklyn signed to the veteran minimum last offseason, Bembry, Griffin, Aldridge and Johnson, were either waived or cut out of the rotation at some point during the season.
If you want proof on the dangers of cutting costs and building the bench with inexpensive contracts, just look west to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Claxton and Brown have established Bird rights and, despite no financial flexibility, Brooklyn can exceed the salary cap to bring back both players.
Brown has proven in the past two years that there is a role for him in Brooklyn's unconventional offense. But would a healthy Simmons demote Brown to an expensive insurance policy?
Instead of working out a long-term deal last offseason, when Brown was a restricted free agent, he is now free to sign with any team.
A big offseason question for the Nets is how they will utilize their $6.3 million tax midlevel exception and if ownership approves the use of one of their trade exceptions (they have five exceptions including two for $11.3 and $6.3 million).
Drummond was signed to the veteran minimum and because he has non-Bird rights -- the maximum Brooklyn can offer him is $6.3 million.
Drummond became the Nets' permanent starter since he was acquired from Philadelphia in the Harden-Simmons trade, averaging 22.3 minutes, 11.8 points and 10.3 rebounds. However, for a second straight postseason he has been a liability on the defensive end. He averaged only 8.2 minutes in the second half of the Boston series and did not play in the fourth quarter in Game 2.
The best option for Brooklyn could be to sign Claxton with the intention that he will be the full-time starter, and then use the tax midlevel exception on a wing player. The Nets could also put Simmons at center and have Claxton as the backup.
It now comes back to whether ownership will sign off not only on the $6.3 million midlevel but also use one of the team's trade exceptions. If both $6 million exceptions are used, it would add at least $45 million to Brooklyn's tax bill.
Offseason cap breakdown and depth chart
Team needs
• A healthy Ben Simmons and Joe Harris
• Defensive-minded depth
• Rim protector at the 5
Resources to build the roster
• The draft: First-round pick from Philadelphia (if not deferred)
• Future assets: 2027 or 2028 first-round from Philadelphia
• $6.3 million tax midlevel exception
• Trade exceptions: $11.3, $6.3 and $3.3 million
• Cash: $6.3 million to send or receive via trade
Dates to watch
• June 1: Brooklyn has a decision to make on the 2022 first-round pick that was acquired from Philadelphia in the Harden trade. The first is slotted at No. 23, and Philadelphia should improve next year with a full season from Harden. However, not many people thought the Clippers' unprotected firsts that were traded to Oklahoma City in the Paul George deal would result in a top 15 pick. The Nets should punt on this year's draft and wait until 2023.
• June 29: Kyrie Irving and Patty Mills both have a player option in their contracts. Prior to the All-Star break, it was thought that Mills would likely decline his $6.2 million option. In 58 games (including 41 starts), Mills averaged 13.4 points and shot 41.9%. However, the workload (a career high 31.1 minutes) has since impacted his performance. Since the break, Mills is averaging 5.8 points and shooting 30.6% from the field and 30.3% from 3.
• June 29: The Nets signed two-way player Kessler Edwards at the end of the regular season and included a team option for 2022-23. In 48 games, the forward averaged 20.6 minutes and 5.9 points. If the $1.6 million option is declined, expect Brooklyn to tender him to a $1.8 million qualifying offer and make him a restricted free agent.
• June 29: Expect the Nets to tender a one-year qualifying offer to Nicolas Claxton ($2.3 million) and David Duke ($50,000).
Restrictions
• Because of the draft picks owed to Houston, the Nets are restricted on what they can send out in a trade. Brooklyn is allowed to trade the two firsts acquired from Philadelphia in the Harden trade and their own first in 2029. They are also allowed to include a 2028 first-round swap in a future deal.
• Durant has a 15% trade bonus in his contract. Because his salary is the max allowed, the bonus is voided in a trade.
• If Irving opts-into his contract and is traded after July 1, his trade bonus is $5.5 million. If Irving signs a max contract that includes a trade kicker, the incentive would be voided in a future trade.
Extension eligible
• Besides Irving (if he opts in), the Nets have three players, Simmons, Harris and Seth Curry that are extension eligible.
• Simmons still has three years left on his contract but will meet the extension criteria on Aug. 11, the three-year anniversary of when his rookie extension was signed. The Nets can extend him for an additional two seasons, starting in 2025-26 and for an additional $88.1 million in new money. However, considering that Simmons has dealt with a lingering back issue, it is hard to see Brooklyn extending him without playing a game this season.
• Curry is extension eligible starting on July 6, but because he was acquired in a trade, Brooklyn is limited in years (an additional two) and percentage increase (5%) on what they can offer in a new contract (two-years $17.4 million). Once the restriction is lifted on Aug. 11, Curry would then be eligible to sign a four-year $58 million extension. Curry has one of the better value contracts considering his $8.5 million contract in 2022-23 is below both the midlevel exception and average player salary. Because Brooklyn is over the cap in 2023-24, signing Curry to an extension should be a priority.
• Harris is eligible for a three-year extension but recently underwent a second surgery on his left ankle -- a new contract is highly unlikely to happen.
The draft
We will know closer to June 1 if Brooklyn has a first-round selection or will enter the June 23 draft with no picks at all.
• If the 2022 Philadelphia is deferred to 2023, it is unprotected.
• Brooklyn also owns a 2027 or 2028 top-8 protected first from the 76ers.
• The pick is conditional because of Philadelphia's obligation to send their own 2025 first (top-6 protected), 2026 first (top-4 protected) or 2027 first (top-4 protected) to Oklahoma City.
• If the first to the Thunder is conveyed in 2025, Brooklyn will receive the 76ers' first in 2027 (top-8 protected). It will rollover to the 2028 season (top 8 protected) if the first has not been conveyed.
• If Brooklyn does not receive a first in either season, they will get a 2028 second and $2 million from Philadelphia.
• The Nets' own first in 2022, along with an unprotected first in 2024 and 2026, belong to the Houston Rockets, who also have the right to swap their own first with Brooklyn in 2023, 2025 and 2027.
Here's how ESPN's Jonathan Givony has Brooklyn selecting in June:
No. 23 (via PHI): Walker Kessler | C | Auburn
Kessler's appeal starts with his dimensions, weighing 245 pounds with a 7-5 wingspan and a 9-3 standing reach. He towers over opponents, making him an outstanding target for pick-and-roll lobs, and shows reliable hands while catching pocket passes. He's able to knock down turnaround jumpers and hook shots while demonstrating polished footwork around the basket or attacking closeouts from the perimeter with both hands. He also shows potential with his passing, especially out of high-low and short rolls where he has mostly made good decisions while flashing a feel for cutting to open spots.