Dynasty to Travesty

Being a New Yorker was hard enough after seeing the Mets lose in the Wild Card series and the Yankees get swept by the 2022 World Series champs, Houston Astros. However, no one would've thought that the Brooklyn Nets franchise would dismantle the way they have the past year and a half.

The Nets currently have a record of 4-7 and stand 11th in the Eastern Conference, yet that's not the worst part of this already troubled franchise. On November 2, the Nets and head coach Steve Nash decided to part ways and continue the season without the two-time MVP being present with the team.

This shocking move had everyone around the league speculating whether it was a smart and planned-out idea by the Nets to pursue Ime Udoka or if they were trying to make Steve Nash the scapegoat of the issues arising within Brooklyn.

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Not only was Nash fired, but Kyrie Irving was recently suspended for the antisemitic tweet he posted on his Twitter account. The tweet has made all forms of media and public figures chime in on this incident and has grown into a worldwide discussion.

As a result, Irving was given a five-game suspension by the Nets and a list of items to complete before joining the team again, which is a bit excessive and unnecessary, in my opinion. Irving also has had his Nike relationship suspended until further notice, but this is not what this article focuses on; it just has to be brought up because of Kyrie's affiliation with the Nets.

The list continues, as Ben Simmons has missed a few games due to leg soreness and hasn't been as productive on the court as the Nets would like him to be. Kevin Durant is playing on his own at the moment, and he's been holding it down as the team has a 2-1 record and have looked more competitive since the issues with Kyrie arose.

Overall, if you had suggested that the Nets would be in this position currently with Durant and Irving, I would've called it asinine and insane to think that Irving and KD wouldn't work like how we all thought they would. However, thinking back to 2019 till now, though, there were plenty of signs that made you raise your eyebrows or second guess the Nets' decision-making.

The first move was firing head coach Kenny Atkinson to replace him with an ex-player who's never even coached on the collegiate or professional level. The next questionable move was trading away a young core that would be blossoming if they were on the Nets right now for James Harden, who was looking for any place besides Houston to contend for a championship and was considered a one-year rental. The Nets gave away the future for the present, altering the future events for the Nets.

Harden, KD, and Irving only played 13-15 games together as a trio. Their first playoff appearance as the big three resulted in Harden and Irving being sidelined with injuries and losing in seven games to the eventual champs in the Milwaukee Bucks.

To make matters worse, Brooklyn started the 2021-22 season without Irving because of the vaccine mandate in NYC and ultimately lost Harden in a swap for Ben Simmons, who wasn't even healthy enough to suit up for the Nets. The cherry to top it off was being swept by the young and hungry Boston Celtics and having one of the most disappointing seasons in NBA history.

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This leads back to how the Nets have been doing since their first-round exit. Of course, this situation still looks hideous and appalling. The Nets were supposed to be the juggernaut that would run the East for the next 5-7 years, and right now, the Bucks, Celtics, Cavaliers, Heat, Hawks, and 76ers seem like far better contenders than the Nets look at the moment.

I don't have the answers to the Nets' issues and troubles, but I will suggest a few things that can help them.

The first suggestion is to trade away Irving because they only signed off on him because of Durant. It's noticeable that they don't want to keep accepting the baggage that comes with Irving, whether it's his fault or the media trying to make the situation bigger than it was.

Secondly, I would trade Kevin Durant and get as much return on the investment as they can. Durant is easily a top 1-2 player in the world and doesn't think this Nets team can fulfill his needs of competing for a championship or even being a team that opponents would fear. It's a reason KD asked for a trade or for the coach and general manager to be fired because he knows what it takes to win a championship and be the top dog in the league.

Finally, if I were the Nets, I would start fresh and just re-do what they built in 2019 with that young and energetic Nets team that was woo walking on the side of the bench and cheering Jared Dudley on as if he were the MVP. This is just my point of view and some suggestions that would benefit those three parties.