Why Brooklyn Nets Makes This Trade

With this deal, the Brooklyn Nets basically start and end a rebuild in a single transaction.

For this team to go from being the Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden show to being built around Ben Simmons, Jaylen Brown and Irving would be a surreal experience. Life, sometimes, is stranger than fiction.

Of course, this trade only makes sense if the Nets assume that Ben Simmons will be an integral part of their core moving forward. If they’re making that assumption, it’s easily justified. They’re acquiring a player that’s in his age range at the expense of one who’s well outside of it.

Meanwhile, Al Horford is the perfect stretch five to pair with Simmons in the short term. If they have a successful year built around Simmons, Brown, and Irving, they’ll have a template to move forward with. The team should begin aggressively targeting Horford’s successor in that event.

LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: 2 Trade Packages To Send Brooklyn Nets Superstar Kevin Durant To Boston Celtics

Trading Kevin Durant would be an incredibly bold move. If it allows the Nets to suddenly roster a core of players mostly 25-and-under who fit logically together, it might be the right one.