Brooklyn Nets: A Journey To Basketball No-Man’s Land

How the Brooklyn Nets got stuck in the NBA’s No-Man’s land

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Should the NBA season come to a screeching halt today, the Brooklyn Nets wouldn’t be playoff bound. They currently sit 3rd in the Atlantic Division, behind the Toronto Raptors and now the Boston Celtics. To the casual sport’s fan, they’re in okay shape: they could potentially be heading to the postseason with a solid push, they’ve managed to retain many of their biggest names despite a barrage of trade rumors surrounding them heading into the trade deadline, and as of late they’ve even managed to string together a three-game winning streak that includes a victory over the Golden State Warriors (although it quickly turned into a 3-game.

What a casual fan doesn’t see is the disparity between the Eastern and Western Conferences for the past few years in the NBA. Only three of the Eastern Conference teams would have records strong enough to even make the playoffs in the West: the Atlanta Hawks would carry their top-seed over, the Cleveland Cavaliers would drop from 2nd to 7th, and the Chicago Bulls would sit just below them to round out the playoff picture.

In the East, a sub-500 record is enough to get you into the playoffs. The Brooklyn Nets have amassed a 25-36 mark to this point. Their offense ranks in the bottom half of the league in nearly every statistical category and their defense is only slightly better.

Brooklyn Nets /

Brooklyn Nets

The Nets might have been the biggest disappointment of the trade deadline, which passed a couple of weeks ago. With a total of 68 players and draft picks being moved about league-wide throughout the day, the Nets were unable to make any moves that would make a substantial impact. They’re biggest move was shipping Kevin Garnett back to his roots with the Minnesota Timberwolves, in exchange for Thaddeus Young, who provides decent production as a combo forward.

Many actually credit the Nets with the initiating talks between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Detroit Pistons. The Thunder were looking to add Brook Lopez, and the Nets decided to bring the Pistons in to the deal to make it all work. Trade talks then broke down and from that emerged the deal between the Thunder and Pistons, which also brought in the Utah Jazz.

The Nets came away from the deadline with no real improvements being made at any position. They were unable to solidify their team for a playoff push this season like the Thunder, and they opted not to go the way of the neighboring New York Knicks by tanking to receive a high-lottery pick. As it currently stands, the Nets aren’t in contention for a top-15 selection.

However, even if they were to make the lottery, the Nets would send their pick to the Atlanta Hawks in part of the Joe Johnson trade from 2012.

Much has been made lately of the Brooklyn Nets’ owner even looking to sell the team after owning the majority stake for roughly four years. Russian billionaire, Mikhail Prokhorov, has reportedly been seeking to sell his share of the Brooklyn Nets organization and the Barclay’s Center. Many fans took comfort in the past because of his seemingly bottomless bank account being able to bring in nearly any player imaginable.

The Nets currently sit in a spot that no team in the NBA wants to be in. They’re mediocre. They lack the production and winning edge to make a deep playoff run this season, and yet they’re still too good to get a lottery pick and begin to build towards a future.

Next: NBA Power Rankings: Warriors, Hawks Remind The NBA Who Is Who

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