In the latest mock draft from DraftExpress and NBADraft.net, the Nets are taking Nolan Smith with the 36th pick. I have already expressed my dislike of the idea of Smith as a Nets player. However, he is a four-year veteran, he has character, and isn’t a poor distributor.
But is that why the Nets are drafting him? News from Adrian Wojnarowski from Yahoo! Sports might indicate something different. Apparently Josh Smith and the Atlanta Hawks are soon to part ways, and Smith has given the team four teams that he would consider going to: the Orlando Magic, the Houston Rockets, the Boston Celtics, and the Nets.
I would like for the Nets to have Josh Smith, but the assets just aren’t there. The Nets have no expiring contract to match Smith’s 12 million dollar contract; instead they have Travis Outlaw’s 4-year, $28 million clunker of a contract to give the Hawks. Assuming that the Nets draft Nolan Smith, the package could be founded on Smith, Damion James, Jordan Farmar, Anthony Morrow, and the Nets 2012 pick. However, if the Nets are to get Smith it would likely have to be a three-team deal. I don’t think that’s enough to make a deal.
Being a pessimistic fan is generally depressing, but in this situation I can’t devise a plausible situation in which the Nets pry Smith from the Hawks. Your thoughts?
