Nets: 3 free agents to sign after James Harden mega trade

The James Harden trade has left the Nets without a ton of depth.

The Brooklyn Nets pulled off the impossible, acquiring James Harden from the Houston Rockets in order to form one of the best “ big threes” in league history between Harden, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving.

One of the unfortunate realities of that deal is the fact that most of Brooklyn’s depth, including the likes of Caris LeVert, Jarrett Allen, and Taurean Prince, was traded away. With three roster spots open and enough money to sign some quality pieces via Spencer Dinwiddie’s injury exception, look for free agents like these to end up in Brooklyn.

These three free agents could end up on the Nets after the James Harden deal.

3. Jamal Crawford

Crawford is no stranger to Brooklyn, as he had a cup of coffee with Jacque Vaughn’s bubble squad down at Disney World. While Crawford is now 40 years old and offers very little on the defensive end, the Nets just lost 40 points per game in this trade by trading away LeVert and company, and that has prompted a need for a reliable veteran swingman who can come off of the bench and hit some threes. With the approval of some Nets legends, Crawford could make a return trip to Brooklyn in order to provide them with some solid shooting.

Crawford is not going to put up numbers that will help him compete for a Sixth Man of the Year award. What he is going to do, however, is put the ball in the basket, thanks to both his expert shooting from long range and ability to glide to the basket. With two of the most ball-dominant players in the league playing alongside one of the league’s best scorers, Crawford is not going to demand a ton of touches, but he should have enough veteran moxie to drill a key three when Brooklyn’s momentum is waning.

You can count on one hand the number of players in this league who engender more respect than Crawford, and he should be able to hold together a Brooklyn team that likely will be learning how to play together when the playoffs roll around.

2. Dewayne Dedmon

As good as DeAndre Jordan looked this week and as impressive as rookie Reggie Perry has been in spurts, an already bad Nets interior defense just got even worse with Allen moving on to Cleveland. While the cupboard is comparatively bare when looking at center options on the free-agent market, Dedmon stands out as the best player still available. While he emerged as a solid backup big in Orlando and San Antonio, Dedmon really took off in Atlanta, as the former USC star averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds with the Hawks, all the while shooting 36 percent from three on three attempts per game.

Even if Jordan starts to play a little better on both ends of the floor, the lack of depth on the interior only exacerbates the squad’s poor defense that could come back to bite them in the postseason. Adding Dedmon could help alleviate that, given his ability to scoop up rebounds, block shots, and nail a few baskets on the offensive end every game without demanding the ball too much.

Brooklyn trusted Jordan and Perry to stop the parade of elite big men that the East will throw at them in the postseason is simply foolish. The first order of business for Steve Nash and Sean Marks should be looking for free agents that can improve their defense, and Dedmon can do that while remaining a quality offensive player that can play a big part in helping Nash fix Brooklyn’s issues with rebounding on both ends of the court.

1. Rondae Hollis-Jefferson

The only two players from the 2018-19 Nets that surprised many by making it to the postseason are Dinwiddie and Joe Harris, with the rest being kicked out of town in pursuit of players like Durant, Irving, and Harden. While Hollis-Jefferson, who was waived by Minnesota after spending the 2019-20 season with the Toronto Raptors, never developed into the elite offensive option that Brooklyn was banking on, he played an integral role on some of those young, exciting Nets teams in the pre-KD era, averaging 9.9 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 44 percent from the floor. Hollis-Jefferson could make a return to Brooklyn, as he looks like a natural replacement for Prince.

Hollis-Jefferson’s calling card will always be his defense, as his ability to guard four different positions on the floor made him a valuable asset to Kenny Atkinson’s Nets teams, and he could re-establish his value in the league with Nash. While Prince might be in Cleveland, Rondae might be one of the more seamless replacements out there on the market given his defensive versatility.

While Jefferson has plenty of skills on the court that could lead to him contributing to this Nets team, bringing him back could serve as a sign that the Nets still value the last few years of groundwork-laying that led to the arrivals of Durant and Irving.

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