How This Trade Impacts Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets have yet to receive the kind of offers they were hoping to when it was announced that Kevin Durant made a trade request. Their asking price is very high and rightfully so. They are in no hurry to deal him away, but this proposal with the Raptors gives them a lot of what they are looking for in return.

On the court this season, the Nets would remain competitive with the player they are getting back. While OG Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr. and Khem Birch aren’t blue-chip All-Stars, they are solid players in their own right and do have some upside.

Anunoby has a very high ceiling with his two-way potential on the wing. Built in the mold of Kawhi Leonard, if Anunoby even comes close to being the player that he is, the Nets would be ecstatic. His 3-point volume has increased each season he has been in the NBA and he is an elite, versatile defender.

Trent is already an excellent high-volume 3-point shooter, making 38.9 percent of his attempts in his career. That will keep him in rotations in the league for years, but if he can keep making strides defensively, he could approach All-Star level or get very close to it.

Khem Birch is included to help match salary, but he provides some more insurance for the Nets in the middle. He is a sizable upgrade over what they were getting from veterans past their prime at the end of the bench.

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Any reservations the Nets have about the player package, the draft picks could very well make up for. Receiving four unprotected first-round picks and two pick swaps is about as good as Brooklyn can expect. They would have the assets to swing another blockbuster trade down the line after this deal as well.