Nets Need Patience Ahead of Trade Deadline

The Brooklyn Nets need to wait for the best possible deal ahead of the trade deadline.
Jan 25, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) drives to the basket while being defended by Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams (8) during the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images
Jan 25, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) drives to the basket while being defended by Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams (8) during the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images
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The Brooklyn Nets are less than two weeks away from the NBA Trade Deadline, where they could look to be a big player trading Cam Johnson to a contending team.

Johnson, 28, is one of the top players in trade rumors at the moment, and the Nets are hoping his price skyrockets as other teams compete for his services.

Bleacher Report writer Grant Hughes is preaching patience for the Nets as they navigate Johnson's trade market in the final days leading up to the deadline.

"Though it might seem like the tanking Nets should take whatever they can get for Johnson in the wake of deals that sent out Dennis Schröder and Dorian Finney-Smith for second-round equity, that's not the right way to think about their position. Brooklyn recaptured control of its 2025 first-rounder in an offseason deal with the Houston Rockets, which incentivized this season's rebuild. But the Nets also regained their 2026 first-rounder in that trade," Hughes writes.

"That means they have two full years to strip this thing down. And with Johnson under contract through 2026-27, the only urgency they face stems from the possibility that his value might never be higher than it is today.

"If that pair of first-rounders is available, the Nets should happily agree to send Johnson away. But if teams balk at the price, there's no reason for Brooklyn to act impatiently. This is only the first year of what'll likely be a multi-season effort to hoard assets."

The Nets were not wasting time trading Schroder and Finney-Smith earlier in the season, but that may have been the front office trying to push the brakes on the team's early-season success.

Now, the Nets are performing at the level they need to in order to get a top pick in the NBA Draft, and trading Johnson would be another opportunity for the team to get even closer to its goal as the offseason gets closer.

The Nets are back in action tomorrow night as they take on Domantas Sabonis, De'Aaron Fox, DeMar DeRozan and the Sacramento Kings. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET from inside the Barclays Center.

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