This Brooklyn-Atlanta trade would transform underachieving Nets into true contenders next season

The Brooklyn Nets have an embarrassment of riches as far as perimeter shooting is concerned. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Seth Curry, Patty Mills and Joe Harris are all long-range snipers of the highest order. But are the Nets too perimeter oriented? Absolutely.

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Brooklyn doesn't get to the free throw line with regularity, outside of Durant and Irving attacking the rim when they're able to split double-teams. Harris and Curry will both be coming off ankle surgery, while Mills showed that heavy minutes in a starting role wore him down in the second half of the 2021-22 NBA regular season. 

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 Curry and Mills are both undersized and below average defenders that teams hunt in Steve Nash's switch happy scheme. Yes, Ben Simmons is expected to make his Nets' debut next season, but he's hardly a score-first point guard and shies away from going to the free throw line. Sean Marks needs to get creative this off-season and target a big man who can do it all: defend 1 to 5, shoot 3-pointers, rebound and attack the basket. With Trae Young carrying the scoring load, Atlanta slid down the Eastern Conference rankings this past season and has been rumored to shake things up. 

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 Brooklyn could send Harris, Kessler Edwards and one of the future first round pick it obtained in the trade with Philly centered on Harden and Simmons. Edwards is a dynamite young player who will need more time to develop as 3-an-D option for Brooklyn, but the clock is ticking on Durant's prime with Irving as his likely running mate. 

 A starting five of Simmons, Irving, Curry, Durant and Collins with Bruce Brown, Andre Drummond and Mills as the first three options off the bench would instantly transform a Nets team lacking physicality and defensive toughness into a formidable squad. The Nets are likely losing both Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge this summer and getting a quality big still approaching the prime years of his career isn't something Marks and company should pass up.