2019-20 Finish: 57-25 (4th in East)

Season Highlight: Closing the season on a 21-2 run

The Nets had some ups and downs, they started the season with a 12-3 record (but followed that start with a seven-game losing streak). But without much doubt, the biggest up was a 21-2 run to close the season, going from a solid 36-23 team to a borderline 60-win squad. The run pushed them all the way up to No. 2 on the final Power Rankings and put them in fourth place in the east.

Season Lowlight: Bowing out of the playoffs in the second round

It was probably easily foreseeable given the two losses in Brooklyn’s 21-2 season-ending run were to Milwaukee and Charlotte, but it was surely still hard to watch a team that ended the season so hot take seven games to beat the fifth-seed Cavaliers and then have the Hornets gentleman sweep them in the conference semifinals. One would think being that hot toward the end of the season would indicate some improvement and a closing of the gap between the two giants in the east.

Best Trade: Brooklyn sends Russell Westbrook, Kendrick Nunn and 1st-Rounder to Boston for Stephen Curry and Jevon Carter.

The only thing I would think holding back this trade is the almost exorbitant price paid by Brooklyn to get Curry — Westbrook (a star), Nunn (a breakout rookie) AND a first-round pick. Boston probably got the better end of the deal in terms of assets, however I don’t think the Nets lost a second of sleep over it as the results speak for themselves. You know that 21-2 run I mentioned? It pretty much falls right in line with Curry’s arrival in Brooklyn. Getting the best player in the deal paid off despite the cost.

Worst Trade: Brooklyn sends DeMar DeRozan and 1st-Rounder to Atlanta for Steven Adams and 1st-Rounder

I don’t think Brooklyn made any bad trades, but this is one that maybe they regretted after the fact. Moving DeRozen for Adams made sense for a team that needed the frontcourt depth, but the 23 points per game he brought might have been missed a bit come playoff time. 

Other Notable Trades:

— Brooklyn sends Blake Griffin to Orlando for Jeremy Lamb and Tyler Johnson.

— Brooklyn sends Jeremy Lamb, 1st-Rounder and 8 GM points to LA Lakers for Norman Powell

For a minute I considered making the Griffin trade the best for the Nets. Getting off that monster contract for a guy whose rating is declining, with little hope of going up, is a major, major win. The thing that mainly held that designation back is that the Nets never got the full use of Johnson, whom they immediately bought out, or Lamb, who suffered a season-ending injury.

Speaking of Lamb’s injury, that’s why he was dealt with a first-round pick for Powell. A purely win-now move, especially in the light of the Nets having since traded Powell away.

Free Agency:

Free Agency and the offseason will be all about working the cap. Including all cap holds, the Nets have just under $181.5 million on the books for next season. Three players — Curry, Middleton, Adams — will be paid $105.6 million of that. It’s going to be an interesting, busy and expensive offseason for the Nets.

Star: Steph Curry- G

One of the best in the league, Curry can lead any team to title contention with his one-of-a-kind shooting ability and solid point guard skills to boot. He scored over 29 points per game in his 20 regular season games in Brooklyn and upped that scoring to 32 points per contest in the playoffs (fun fact, Curry has yet to miss a free throw in a Nets uniform).

Goat: Kris Middleton- F

For a guy who got paid $30.6 million last year, Middleton wasn’t exactly a productive workhorse. He was by no means bad — 15.4 points in the regular season on 49/43/92 shooting with 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists. But $30 million for that? There’s a lot better ways to use that kind of money.

Draft Grade:

— Zeke Nnaj (28th) 

It’s hard to fault wizkid for making this pick. Zeke fell six spots from his NBA selection of 22nd overall which made him much more attractive, and his offensive potential also makes him an attractive target overall. But he lacks explosiveness and defensive prowess could limit his viability at the next level.

The Future:

The future is now. The Nets are trying to win now and definitely have the pieces to at least be at the top of the standings. Brooklyn with Steph Curry was a monster and if guys like DeAaron Fox and Caris LeVert make improvement strides this season things will be all the better. Time will tell if they can stand up to the NLL giants like Milwaukee and Charlotte.