Former Nets Legend Calls on Organization to Add Pieces to Become More Competitive

The Brooklyn Nets are in about the toughest spot you can imagine.

Their crosstown rivals, the New York Knicks, just celebrated a championship for the first time in 53 years, leaving Nets owner Joe Tsai embarrassed.

Former Nets legend Buck Williams caught wind of Tsai's comments, providing his own perspective on what he wants to happen next during an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio.

"I'm sure Joe wants to bring a better team to Brooklyn, but maybe this would be the fire to kind of light some of the decisions in terms of moving forward with the team," Williams said.

"You've got to have a competitive team in that New York rebuilding process that they have. I think they're heading in the right direction, but I think they have to also bring some other pieces in where they can be a little more competitive. They only won 20 games last year, so hopefully this is a team that's going to ignite him to make some different decisions and move the team a little quicker in this whole rebuilding process."

“Hopefully this is the thing that’s going to ignite them.”

Former Nets PF Buck Williams tells @GeraldBlss and @Mitch_Lawrence he thinks Nets owner Joe Tsai’s comments earlier this week will rile up the Brooklyn Nets.

Listen to the full interview: https://t.co/QGy2CCJLNO pic.twitter.com/urwQ4Uz18Z
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) August 23, 2026

The Nets are only a few years removed from boasting a superteam of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden, though it feels like a lifetime ago at this point.

In hindsight, Harden seems to regret his decision to sacrifice money and personal accolades to chase a championship in Brooklyn, but recency bias clearly isn't telling him how dominant that Nets team was at full strength, even if injuries and other circumstances got in the way.

But we're in the here and now, and the current reality is that the Nets haven't made the playoffs since the 2023 season, and you can argue that they only got there because of how dominant Durant and Irving were together during their last stretch together as Nets teammates.

While Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. are capable of putting of big numbers on any given night, the Nets don't have the proper infrastructure to account for some of their defensive flaws and other offensive shortcomings.

The Nets are also expected to heavily prioritize the development of Egor Dëmin and Mikel Brown Jr. this upcoming season, as the Nets are looking to feature them as their backcourt of the future.

At some point, though, the Nets will need to dip into their treasure trove of first round draft picks and look to acquire a franchise-changing superstar.

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