The Brooklyn Nets have started the offseason strong as they have gotten through the 2023 NBA Draft without an issue and appear to have players that could be impactful for them down the line. Once the Nets took care of business with the draft, they moved on to free agency where they made some nice moves.
One of those moves, according to multiple reports on Friday, was trading guard Joe Harris and two second-round picks to the Detroit Pistons for essentially salary relief. Shams Charania later reported that Brooklyn was sending a 2027 second-round pick (via the Dallas Mavericks) and a 2029 second-round pick (via the Milwaukee Bucks) to the Pistons.
At the time, there was no reporting as to what Brooklyn was receiving in return for Harris and the second-round picks. Later in the day, Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype tweeted that the trade allowed the Nets to re-sign Cam Johnson while opening up the $12.4 million mid-level exception to be used on a free agent. Gozlan also pointed out that the deal generated a $19.9 million trade exception which could make it easier for Brooklyn to trade for someone with a large salary like Damian Lillard.
Ultimately, trading Harris gave the Nets more flexibility in terms of what they could do this offseason while signing their most important free agent in Johnson. Plus, the exception could be handy later on this offseason.
Grade: B+
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Story originally appeared on Nets Wire