Ex‑Nets trades net 10 picks
- Brooklyn’s rebuild came into focus after the Nets turned Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson into a draft-heavy return: five firsts and a swap from the Knicks, plus Denver’s 2032 first. - The Bridges deal brought four unprotected Knicks first-round picks, a 2028 unprotected swap, a protected 2025 Bucks first and a 2025 second; the Johnson deal later added Michael Porter Jr. and another first. - Those moves followed Brooklyn’s 32-50 finish and moved the franchise further from a quick reset and deeper into a long asset build. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2)
Brooklyn’s front office used two wing trades to stockpile draft capital instead of chasing a fast climb back into the playoffs. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2) The first move came on June 25, 2024, when the Nets sent Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks. Brooklyn got Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton, Mamadi Diakite, four unprotected first-round picks, a protected 2025 Bucks first, a 2028 unprotected swap and a 2025 second. (nba.com) (espn.com) The second came on July 6, 2025, when Brooklyn sent Cam Johnson to Denver. The Nuggets announced they gave up Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick. (nba.com) Count the draft pieces together and the Nets came away with 10 pick assets tied to those two players: six from the Bridges trade if the swap is included, one second-rounder, and one more first from Denver, on top of the player return. (espn.com) (nba.com) The structure matters more than the headline total. Four of the Knicks firsts are unprotected — 2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031 — which gives Brooklyn direct upside if New York declines later in the decade. (nba.com) (espn.com) Brooklyn made that choice after a 32-50 season in 2023-24, when Bridges averaged 19.6 points but the Nets still missed the postseason. The team chose to move a durable veteran scorer at peak value rather than keep building around him. (nba.com) Johnson’s trade fit the same timeline. Denver’s release said he was coming off a career year with Brooklyn at 18.8 points per game, which meant the Nets sold another productive starter for a future first instead of immediate help. (nba.com) The player coming back from Denver also shows the balance Brooklyn struck. Michael Porter Jr. gave the Nets a 26-year-old scorer under contract, but the extra 2032 first kept the deal centered on long-range flexibility. (nba.com) That leaves Brooklyn with a rebuild built less on one draft night than on multiple future windows. The Nets didn’t just trade Bridges and Johnson; they converted two proven wings into years of optionality. (espn.com) (nba.com)
