The Brooklyn Nets have been informing teams that they do not plan to trade Kevin Durant ahead of Thursday’s deadline, but they may also have a difficult time making moves to improve the roster around him.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his “Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective” podcast this week (via Bleacher Report’s Mike Chiari) that teams have been reluctant to engage in trade talks with the Nets. The reason for that is rivals do not want to help the Nets improve their roster in any way, as that might lead to them convincing Durant to stay in Brooklyn.
The Nets landed Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round pick and two second-round picks when they traded Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks. They are likely trying to use some of those pieces to make other deals that would help them remain in contention. Rival teams that want to pry Durant away from Brooklyn might view any trade with the Nets that does not involve the two-time NBA Finals MVP as counterproductive.
We know there are teams that have interest in trading for Durant, but the Nets do not sound ready to blow up their roster. They are 32-22 and want to win this season.
Brooklyn refused to trade Durant over the summer despite his request, so there is no reason they would have motivation to do so now. But if they want to make moves before Thursday to better position themselves for a title run, that may prove to be difficult.
