Nothin' But Nets
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Will Brook Lopez Be Traded?

By Anthony Parisi

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Brook Lopez was mentioned in numerous trade rumors last week but the Nets didn’t find any offers that they received to be intriguing enough to let their longest tenured player go so Lopez is still a member of the team. The Nets drafted Lopez in 2008 and ever since then he has been loyal to the organization that he wants to stay with for his entire NBA career. Lopez was convinced last week that his time in Brooklyn was coming to an end and the news was hard for Lopez to deal with.

Here we are on Monday January 19th and Lopez is still a member of the Nets. There was an initial report that said Lopez would be traded by the end of last weekend but I was told from a source inside of the Nets organization that Nets management decided to wait for the trade deadline to get closer before heavily shopping Lopez again. Lopez’s last two games have been productive ones scoring 26 points on Friday and 15 points on Saturday, so maybe hearing his name being talked about in trade rumors fired up Lopez. Lopez is safe for the next few weeks but expect his name to be discussed in trade talks yet again as the trade deadline gets closer.

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Although Mason Plumlee’s emergence has forced Lionel Hollins to utilize Lopez off of the bench, Lopez’s importance is still essential for this Nets team and when Lopez is at his best it creates a huge problem for opposing defenses. The Nets annihilated the Washington Wizards 102-80 on Friday and Lopez’s offensive outburst was a big reason why Brooklyn was so successful. Lopez had a horrendous first half, scoring only one point and gathering three fouls, but the second half treated him much better. Lopez had 25 points in the second half and the Wizards had no answer for Lopez who seemingly had everything working. The Nets were only ahead of the Wizards by three at the end of the first half with Lopez struggling but as soon as Lopez got it going in the second half the Nets ended up winning the game by 22 points. That shows how important Lopez’s output is for Brooklyn on a nightly basis.

It’s not only what Lopez does on the court that makes his bond with the organization special, it’s his loyalty. Lopez has been talked about in trade rumors numerous times since he was drafted by the Nets and that would tick off a lot of guys, but Lopez still wants to be a Net for life despite being constantly shopped. Injuries have derailed Lopez’s progress lately but before the injury bug hit Lopez he was recognized for his terrific play by making the All Star team. When healthy, Lopez is as dominant of a big man on the offensive side of the ball in the NBA but the problem is he isn’t always healthy. His health is a major reason that he is being put on the trade block and if the Nets are given an offer that they like I expect them to pull the trigger and trade Lopez.

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