What draft picks do the Nets have to offer in a Lillard trade?
After trading away James Harden, Irving, and Durant in a less than a calendar year, one would expect Brooklyn’s asset cupboard to be packed with valuable picks.
That’s not the case.
The Nets do have a number of first-rounders; the trouble is they’re not incredibly desirable as most of them came from Phoenix or the Philadelphia 76ers, which likely make them late first-round selections.
Brooklyn owns the following first-round draft picks:
- 2023 (own)
- 2023 (via Phoenix)
- 2025 (via Phoenix)
- 2025 (Houston holds rights to a swap)
- 2027 (Houston holds rights to a swap)
- 2027 (via Philadelphia)
- 2027 (via Phoenix)
- 2028 (own)
- 2028 (via Phoenix)
- 2029 (own)
- 2029 (via Phoenix)
- 2029 (via Dallas)
The most valuable of those picks would come down the road in 2027, 28, and 29. In that scenario, at least, the Suns might be past the Durant era and may not be perennial title favorites, which could bump their pick up higher in the draft.
Still, despite the long list of picks, none are must-haves.
Do the Nets have assets to offer the Blazers in exchange for Lillard? Yes. But they may have to give up more than they’d like, and that might leave the roster too bare for Brooklyn to be considered title contenders, even if they do acquire Dame.