Brooklyn Nets receive “A” for valuable transfer

After weeks of speculation, general manager Sean Marks and the Brooklyn Nets have made their first move after simultaneously trading Mikal Bridges and their own first-round draft picks.

The franchise acquired former No. 10 overall pick Ziaire Williams in an absolute steal. For a package that included Williams and a 2030 second-round pick via Dallas, Brooklyn traded away recently acquired Mamadi Diakite, who was included as a bonus in the aforementioned Bridges deal.

Williams, a player with great potential, never really found his feet in Memphis but will now get ample opportunity to reach his full potential. The deal is exactly the low-risk, high-reward deal Brooklyn was looking for. A combination of Williams and second-year player Jalen Wilson will man the forward positions next season and try to replace Bridges’ performance. Simply a perfect trade for the Nets.

The same praise cannot be given to Memphis. This was a salary dump through and through. While his first three professional seasons were pretty disappointing, he is only 22 years old and has a lot of room to develop. Ultimately, the Grizzlies decided that the $6.1 million Williams is due next season was too high a price and gave up on the Stanford product altogether. Diakite is unlikely to ever make a real impact, especially considering the franchise just drafted Zach Edey 9th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. Unless Memphis has another move up its sleeve to justify the lopsided salary dump, this move seems a bit puzzling.

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