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Point Guard Options Unveil Unlikelihood of Brooklyn Nets Signing Milos Teodosic

By Charles Daye

Aug 21, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Serbia point guard Milos Teodosic (4) is geared by United States forward Carmelo Anthony (15) in the men's gold medal basketball game between Serbian and USA during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 21, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Serbia point guard Milos Teodosic (4) is geared by United States forward Carmelo Anthony (15) in the men's gold medal basketball game between Serbian and USA during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /
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Over the past few weeks, there have been reports of the Brooklyn Nets‘ supposed interest in CSKA Moscow’s star point guard, Milos Teodosic. How serious is this interest in the Serbian superstar, and would he be interested to play for Brooklyn?

Brooklyn Nets General Manager Sean Marks was in attendance for a Euroleague game between CSKA Moscow and Darussafaka Dogus (of Istanbul). Presumably, Marks was there to scout talent for the Nets to acquire this offseason; most notably, start point guard Milos Teodosic.

The 30-year-old floor general had quite the performance in front of the Brooklyn GM. Teodosic notched a double-double in the win over the club from Istanbul, scoring 20 points, shooting 7-of-9 from the floor and dishing out 10 assists in under 30 minutes of play.

However, it is worth noting there were other players Marks and his team were scouting, both potential free agents and draft prospects. This is a good thing because the day before his double-double, Teodosic wrote a blog post about what it would take for him to play in the United States.

"“In order for me to go to the USA… a team has to meet both my competitive ambitions… which is the most important thing… and everything that has to do with the financial aspect as well as the aspect of the length of my contract,” wrote Teodosic."

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Even though the Nets have their own competitive ambitions (Brooklyn Grit, etc.) they still hold the worst record in the league. When Teodosic says “competitive ambitions,” it is probably safe to assume he means he’s seeking to be part of a playoff contender.

This could link him closer to the Denver Nuggets, the other team rumored to have interest in him. His FIBA teammate and fellow Serbian, Nikola Jokic, currently plays for the Nuggets.

The other big factor in Teodosic’s decision as he stated is the “financial aspect.” Brooklyn will have money to spend this offseason, but that does not necessarily mean they will want to max out a 30-year-old point guard who is unproven at the NBA level. Marks commented recently on how the Nets will approach players in free agency.

"“Well I think if a guy comes in (just for the money) he’s probably not going to be here. That’s not part of what we’re trying to build here. We want people, as Kenny said, guys who are all in. We are passionate about turning this thing around. That’s from a staff perspective, that’s also from the player perspective.You hope that we have done our due diligence over the course of time and found out as much intel as we can on what makes that guy tick. Does he really want to be here? When he is sitting across the table (from Kenny and I) is he telling us the truth? Does he really want to play that position? Is he okay with those many minutes? Is he actually going to take a discount or is he just coming here for the money? Those are all things we weigh out.”"

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Another wrinkle in potentially signing Teodosic, is of course the other potential free agent point guards this offseason. If George Hill or Patty Mills come at a lower price and/or buy into Marks’ and Atkinson’s culture, they are hypothetically a better fit than an older Euroleague star.

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Jokic stated in an interview that Teodosic does not want to come off the bench. Jeremy Lin is signed beyond next year and is currently on a decent salary for a starting point guard. On top of that, Marks’ most recent signing, Archie Goodwin, has looked good playing backup point guard and has expressed interest in signing with Brooklyn long term.

Meanwhile, Spencer Dinwiddie has improved as the floor general for the second unit, and rookie Isaiah Whitehead has played more minutes running the point than any other guard in his draft. That’s not even counting any potential free agent signings. However, it is already widely believed that one of the Nets’ top free agent priorities this offseason is Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

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Needless to say, Marks has some decisions to make about Brooklyn’s roster this offseason. While signing the so-called “best non-NBA player in the world” might sound attractive, Teodosic’s “orders” to play in the USA do not seem to match the cultural requirements in Brooklyn.