If last season’s playoffs and Steve Nash’s rotations hadn’t yet solidified the Brooklyn Nets’ desire for versatile, widely-spaced bigs, their trade from DeAndre Jordan to the Detroit Pistons should remove any doubt.

In the first 48 regular season games of the 2020-21 NBA season, DeAndre Jordan was only recorded as inactive twice and started in all but 10 of those games. In the next 24 games, Jordan only played 11 times, of which he started seven times.

Once the playoffs got underway, DeAndre Jordan’s place in the rotation was too. The single center All-Star, triple All-NBA and double All-Defensive had been all but cut or traded. Until now.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Nets transferred Jordan to the Detroit Pistons not only to free up roster space that was otherwise wasted, but also to wipe the salary off the Nets’ books, thus wiping out $ 47 million in salary and wages. taxes.

Additionally, the Nets have given up on Alize Johnson, who has been productive in 18 games with the team, making room for their next big move.

After a sudden mid-season retirement following a first signing with the Nets, it looked like LaMarcus Aldridge was done with basketball. Still, rumors made their way into the media, and it seemed that if Aldridge was indeed to come out of retirement, it was likely his return would come with the Nets. Well he came out of retirement, as on Friday it was announced that Aldridge would be joining the Brooklyn Nets on a one year contract, worth $ 2.6 million.

Overall, these moves bring attention to the direction the Nets and perhaps the rest of the NBA teams are going. Moving Jordan and effectively replacing him with Aldridge put Brooklyn in a position where any Paul Millsap, Blake Griffin or Aldridge could start at five spots, leaving the other two having nightmares on the opposing benches. Brooklyn’s star-studded frontcourt is able to space the floor and bring positionless play to an already ambiguously organized team.

As for the Pistons, their approach seems geared towards acquiring future assets, in the form of four future second-round picks. While the Pistons are effectively taking over Jordan’s salary, Detroit is expected to work on a buyout with Jordan, allowing him to gain the attention of competitors elsewhere in free agency (likely by joining the Lakers).

The Pistons, however, abandon both Jahlil Okafor and Sekou Doumbouya. Neither player has been exceptionally impressive over the last season with the Pistons, as Okafor played the role of rim protector, expected roll-man, and Doumbouya made himself available as a defender. long-standing and ordinary rim finisher. .

It seems unlikely that Okafor will have a big role to play in Brooklyn, given that it effectively fits, on a lower level, the style of play that Jordan uses.

The Nets bench is as solid as it is, with a roster of around 12 points deep, meaning Doumbouya, among others, must beat James Johnson and DeAndre ‘Bembry for the rambling defensive amateur role. .

So, as the NBA appears to have distributed the erstwhile All-Stars among a few selected teams, Aldridge, Millsap and the rest of the Nets seem poised to compete with the Bucks for a bid for the 2022 Finals. As for the Pistons, their current roster , excluding Mr. Jordan of course, are looking to improve their game and build on a collection of talented veterans and promising young players.