Brook Lopez: Is There a Trade Market for the Nets Center?

Should the Brooklyn Nets trade Brook Lopez? That’s a decision for Sean Marks to make. However, if Brooklyn were to do so, what would Lopez’s market look like?

It’s becoming a rare occurrence that impact players change teams in the NBA via trade. Most significant moves are done in free agency, and even sign-and-trades are only initiated after a player chooses their preferred destination.

However, the Nets have a player that, in the minds of some, could be an impact player available via trade. That player is Brook Lopez.

On Monday, RealGM posted a piece on why the Nets should trade Lopez. In the piece, potential destinations for Lopez were broken down into tiers of likeliness.

There are two points of view in a situation like this. Those who believe the Nets’ rebuild will be accelerated by jettisoning Lopez out of town, and those who feel it would be foolish to trade Brooklyn’s best player.

If the Nets had control of all of the draft picks they have sent (and will continue to send) to the Boston Celtics, there may not even be a discussion of trading Lopez. But the Nets lack assets at this point. And while other teams, such as the Celtics, build a nucleus through the draft, the Nets face challenges.

Trading Lopez, in theory, should net Brooklyn a first round pick. He is a valuable player, although he plays a position that has rapidly lost popularity. Still, though, if the Nets were to trade Lopez, it would have to be worth their while. Brooklyn will not simply give Lopez away just to be rid of him.

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RealGM asserts that four teams, the Rockets, Pelicans, Mavericks and Hornets, may have interest in Lopez but a trade wouldn’t seem to match up with Brooklyn. There are several teams — most of the league — which RealGM says wouldn’t make sense in a Lopez trade. And there are three teams who could be acquire Lopez, but probably will not: The Cavaliers, Warriors, and Bucks. Cleveland and Golden State are teams that could find a spot for Lopez, but do not necessarily need him.

Milwaukee, on the other hand, seems logical if we’re operating under the premise that Greg Monroe will opt out of his deal after this season. Lopez, in theory, could be a viable replacement. The problem is, Milwaukee doesn’t have much to offer that could entice Brooklyn into trading Lopez.

At this point, there doesn’t seem to be a logical trade partner for Brooklyn to ship Lopez out of town. Also, and this is a vastly important note: It’s unknown if Brooklyn even wants to trade Lopez. Perhaps they want to hold on to one of the true veterans on the roster, and the longest tenured member of the team.

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If the Nets are struggling as the calendar turns to 2017, maybe they’ll consider trading Lopez. If a team who currently doesn’t need Lopez suffers an unforeseen setback — such as an injury — that could present a viable scenario to trade Lopez. But ultimately, that’s a decision for Sean Marks to make.