The Andray Blatche-to-Brooklyn rumor will soon have a resolution.
Brooklyn Nets general manager Billy King confirmed to Marlon Clarke of OurBKSocial that the Nets & Blatche’s representation have had discussions about a return to Brooklyn for the seven-footer, who spent the last two seasons with the Nets before leaving for China to join the Xinjiang Flying Tigers.
The Nets never made an offer to Blatche in free agency, despite the two best seasons of his career as a scorer off the bench. Blatche’s off-court indiscretions played a part in their decision not to bring him back.
Since Blatche has yet to sign with another NBA team, the Nets still own his Early Bird rights, meaning they could sign him to a contract above the league minimum despite being over the cap.
King also told Clarke that doesn’t expect to make any moves before Thursday’s 3 P.M. trade deadline. “I doubt if we’ll do anything but we’re going to work the phones and if something makes sense we’ll do it,” King told Clarke. The Nets hoped to find a trade partner that would take one of their pricy former All-Stars to shed salary, but have yet to find a suitable deal for Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, or Joe Johnson.
King also declined to talk about a potential trade for Lance Stephenson, citing NBA rules restricting GM’s from discussing another team’s players publicly. The Nets have reportedly discussed deals with the Charlotte Hornets around both Lopez and Johnson for Stephenson, the Brooklyn native who has struggled in his first season in Charlotte.
