NBA Trade Rumors: Brooklyn Nets Should Target Cavaliers' Darius Garland

The Brooklyn Nets could be one of the most intruiging teams to follow this offseason. There is no real expectation, and any of the three directions they go will make sense for Nets general manager Sean Marks.

Should the Nets go out and trade for a star, shop their role players young assets and draft picks or even sit on their hands, it would be understandable. All three options feel like very real possibilities, too.

Of course, there are moving parts. Nets center Nic Claxton is hitting unrestricted free agency. Should he leave, the team's hand is sort of being forced, and shopping their players and tearing down the roster would seemingly be the right move to make.

The team has already been rumored to be in the mix to land Cleveland Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell. Should Mitchell return to the Cavaliers, though, the team could then look into trading their other star guard in Darius Garland, considering the pairing of the guards didn't pan out as expected. They were competitive in the first round of the playoffs, but it took away from the play of Garland.

Garland could be an incredible driver of the Nets offensive, maximizing those of Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and Nic Claxton -- all of which are better suited with a playmaker who is also capable of scoring. Garland fits the bill and would be an incredible fit in a Nets jersey.

In this scenario, the Cavaliers moving forward with Mitchell rather than Garland is beneficial to the Nets chances of landing a star, and, sure, they might have to give up Dorian Finney-Smith and maybe even Cam Johnson, but landing Garland to build around a core of Bridges and Claxton would be well worth it.

Should the Cavaliers return Mitchell and extend his contract, the Nets need to go in on landing Garland. They'd be a sure playoff team, and a jump from Bridges and Claxton alongside Garland would raise the team's ceiling in the postseason.

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