Nets source: "There was nothing we liked."
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 16, 2015
‘Tis the rumor season. The Brooklyn Nets have reportedly decided to “stand pat” on trading center Brook Lopez, less than 24 hours after reports surfaced that the Nets wanted to close a deal by the weekend for their pricy backup center.
The rumors ran rampant, even getting to the point where the Nets were considering swinging Kendrick Perkins’s expiring deal, which they didn’t have yet, to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Thaddeus Young. But the Nets apparently were not interested in the Thunder’s trade package of Perkins, Jeremy Lamb, and one other prospect, even with the potential of swinging Perkins back to the Western Conference.
But the Nets never got far enough down the line to have a conversation with the Timberwolves, one source said, and decided not to pull the trigger on the Thunder’s deal, waiting for a better-value trade.
Brooklyn is deciding, for now, not to move on Brook Lopez deal to OKC, per source. Can always change back in a hurry w/one phone call, tho.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) January 16, 2015
Lopez has become more of a perimeter player this season, even hitting the first regular season three-pointer of his career, but has also improved as a rebounder in limited time since returning from a lower back strain.
The trade deadline is a little over one month away, and with the Nets looking to cut cost and the Thunder needing a jolt to keep them in the playoff race with the losses piling up, it would be no surprise to see these two teams talk trade again, or to see more competitors enter the race for Lopez.
