Feb 22, 2012; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Nets fanse prior to game against the Orlando Magic holding up pictures of New Jersey Nets guard MarShon Brooks (left) and point guard Deron Williams (center) and Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (right) at the Prudential Center. Orlando Magic defeat the New Jersey Nets 108-91. Mandatory Credit: Jim O
In December 2011, Dwight Howard became the first NBA superstar to demand a trade to the Brooklyn Nets. What if the Magic had agreed to the Nets’ offer before that year’s trade deadline? What if Howard got his wish granted and got the chance to ball in Brooklyn?
During the 2011-12 season, the Nets were playing their final season in New Jersey and had recently acquired superstar point guard Deron Williams from the Utah Jazz at the previous trade deadline. The Williams trade helped to positively change the perception of the Nets, as they were about relocate to Brooklyn.
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Meanwhile in Orlando, All-Star center Dwight Howard asked to be traded to the Nets because he wanted to team up with Williams to form the most lethal point guard/center pick-and-roll in the NBA. Howard was very serious about this and even went out to dinner with Williams to talk about their future.
At the time, it wasn’t like the Nets had a lot of trade assets, especially after trading for Williams. The Nets traded Derrick Favors, the third overall pick in the 2010 draft, their starting point guard Devin Harris, two first round picks, and cash, to get Williams from the Jazz.
Needless to say, the first couple of offers proposed by the Nets didn’t seem to be enticing to the Magic, who in fairness, did not want to see Howard leave Orlando. Most of the proposed trades included Brook Lopez and a pair of first round picks to the Magic for Howard, and the Nets would also have to take on an unfavorable contract, most likely to have been Hedo Turkoglu. Then, Howard was suddenly struck by loyalty and waived his option, staying in Orlando to play in the postseason with the Magic.
That offseason, then-Nets general manager Billy King acquired Gerald Wallace for a top-three protected pick that would become Damian Lillard. King signed Wallace to a four-year, $40 million deal, in hopes to get Williams to sign an extension. D-Will did sign said extension, a five-year $98.7 million extension, and then King traded for Joe Johnson, who still had four years, $89.3 million left on his deal. Then Howard decided he wanted his agent to try and get him to the Brooklyn Nets again.
The final proposed trade was four future unprotected picks, and both Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries in sign-and-trades for Howard, Jason Richardson, Chris Duhon and Earl Clark. The Magic GM said no, but what if this trade happened?
Jan 12, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) controls the ball defended by Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) during the third quarter at the Barclays Center. The Rockets defeated the Nets 113-99. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
The Dwightmare Becomes a Reality
On the positive side, the Magic would’ve acquired Lopez, a 20 points-per-game scorer, who would probably have been completely content living that close to Disney World, along with four unprotected first-round picks to help build their franchise.
In Brooklyn, they open the Barclays Center with franchise point guard Deron Williams and superstar center Dwight Howard, two box office draws that make Mikhail Prokhorov smile. The only hypothetical weakness the team would face going into the season would be at the power forward position, where you would have had players like Reggie Evans, Andray Blatche, and Earl Clark competing for the starting spot, trading starts in the rotation throughout the season.
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The Brooklyn Nets, led by Howard, averaging a double-double–20 points and 14 rebounds per game–would go on to win 55 games (the Nets went 49-33 in 2012-13) to beat out the 54-win New York Knicks for the second seed in the Eastern Conference behind the newly formed “Big-Three” Miami Heat.
Howard would match his post-season averages from the previous season, averaging 27 points and 15 rebounds per game. The Nets would defeat the Boston Celtics in seven games in the first round of the playoffs before meeting their cross-city rivals in the conference semifinals.
The Knicks swept the Atlanta Hawks in the first round, resting as Brooklyn battled Boston. In one of the highest-rated playoff series ever, the Nets would go on to defeat the Knicks, in upset fashion (buzzer beater by Joe Johnson), in seven games before losing in six to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Year one would be the high point of the Dwightmare.
Jan 12, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) is defended by Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) during the third quarter at the Barclays Center. The Rockets defeated the Nets 113-99. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Title Dreams and a Rude Awakening
The following season, Jason Kidd would become the new head coach of the Brooklyn Nets. With the much-publicized success of reaching the ECF for the first time since the Kidd Era, the Nets had very high expectations for this team going forward.
However, Kidd’s Nets would get off to a slow start and ultimately win less games than the previous season, 49 compared to 55. Brooklyn still made the playoffs, only to be upset in the first round by the Toronto Raptors.
The following season, a mixture of Williams’ bad ankles and bad attitude crossed with the Nets accommodating Howard would only further alienate the same point guard that was once the reason Howard wanted to be in Brooklyn.
In a move to show stability within the organization, Kidd was given a promotion (HC/GM and President of Basketball Operations) despite failing to find playoff success like his predecessor. With the lack of future picks due to the Orlando trade and with Howard’s full support behind Kidd, Prokhorov fired Billy King.
Feb 27, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets forward Josh Smith (5) dribbles the ball during the first quarter as Brooklyn Nets guard Markel Brown (22) defends at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Falling Out
The Nets would acquire power forward Josh Smith, Howard’s best-man at his wedding and former teammate of Johnson, who both made Atlanta a constant playoff contender, to sew up the weak spot at the four in the starting five. While Howard, Smith and Johnson would find great chemistry together with Williams seeming like the odd man out. Williams looked more like a role player on the court than the franchise point guard he was paid to be, averaging career-lows in points and assists.
Howard would have a stellar postseason performance, averaging 26 points and 14 rebounds per game, to lead the Nets to another Eastern Conference Finals, before falling short to the Cleveland Cavaliers, led by their returning hero LeBron James. 2014-15 would be the last year Williams would spend in Brooklyn. The Nets bought out his contract following another abysmal playoff performance.
Following the buyout, the Nets were left with Shaun Livingston and Jarrett Jack at point guard, going into what would be the final year of Howard’s contract. While he found some success in Brooklyn, the title aspirations that were once shared by Howard and the Nets organization were obviously fading. With no real floor general and an aging starting lineup, the Nets barely made the playoffs, backing into the eighth seed before getting swept by the Cavs in round one.
Howard never publicly demanded a trade like he did in Orlando, but tensions between him and Kidd were relatively well-known throughout the league ever since Kidd cut Smith the prior to the 2015-16 season. Howard would opt-out to return “home” to Atlanta, hoping to follow a similar path to LeBron and lead his hometown team to a title.
With no real trade assets and little money on the books, Kidd found a way out of Brooklyn after a heated exchange with ownership, leaving the Nets to blow up and start a complete rebuild going into the 2016-17 season.
Ownership, realizing too many max contracts and subsequent luxury taxes aren’t good for the long-term health of the franchise, decided to go in a different direction. Prokhorov taps Sean Marks from the Spurs and Kenny Atkinson from the Gregg Popovich coaching tree, to build a Spurs-like culture in Brooklyn, a culture that is more about the team than superstars.
