The Brooklyn Nets completed a massive overhaul of the franchise’s roster, trading their best player, Mikal Bridges, to the New York Knicks, sources told ESPN on Tuesday, and landing a deal with the Houston Rockets to return the franchise’s first-round picks lost in the James Harden trade.
After teetering in the post-Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving windows between pursuing the playoffs and the draft lottery, the Nets declared a direction and suddenly have 16 first-round picks available through 2031, including four selections in the starry 2025 NBA draft.
The Nets were listening to offers from several teams on Bridges, but his desire to play with his three former Villanova teammates on a championship contender — and the Knicks’ confidence they could keep him long term — gave New York the confidence to finally unload its array of draft picks into a major trade, sources said.
Nets general manager Sean Marks and Knicks president Leon Rose escalated discussions quickly Tuesday afternoon and evening, and New York ultimately overwhelmed the marketplace with four unprotected first-rounders (2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031), a protected 2025 first-round pick via the Milwaukee Bucks, the Knicks’ unprotected 2028 pick swap and a 2025 Brooklyn second-round selection, sources said.
The Nets had pursued star-level players to pair with Bridges, but they didn’t become available to them, and Brooklyn ultimately found itself with several teams, including Memphis and Utah, willing to offer significant draft packages for Bridges early this week, sources said.
