Nets rumors: Brooklyn offering Landry Shamet to move up in NBA Draft

The Brooklyn Nets need to retool fast if they want to put Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden in a position to knock off Giannis Antetokounmpo and the reigning champion Bucks.

That could mean undoing previous moves, like the trade acquisition of Landry Shamet during the 2020 NBA Draft.

In a three-way trade that featured the Nets, Pistons, and Los Angeles Clippers, Shamet was acquired in a deal that sent No. 17 pick Saadiq Bey to Detroit and Luke Kennard to Los Angeles. While Shamet was wildly inconsistent, he ended up having a productive season with the Nets when the dust settled.

Despite Shamet’s ultimate success, Brooklyn, in possession of the No. 27 overall pick in the 2021 Draft and three second-round picks, could look to get rid of Shamet in order to address their lack of quality at the center position. If they have a player in mind they want at the draft, Sean Marks appears ready to move up.

Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report claims that the Nets are willing to package Shamet with the No. 27 pick in order to move up in the NBA Draft.

With 2021 offering the Nets more draft capital than they’ll have at any point in the next decade, this year is the year to move up if they want to.

Nets rumors: Should Brooklyn move Landry Shamet?

Shamet got off to a very rough start in Brooklyn, as he was briefly dropped from the rotation. While 9.3 points per game on 40% shooting might not be amazing production for one of the first guys off of the bench, his numbers picked up later in the year.

A February 10 win against the Pacers kick-started a solid run for Shamet. From that point on, he averaged 10.8 points per game while making 41% of his 3-point attempts. On a team where the three superstars are attracting tons of defensive attention, that’s all you can ask of a role player.

Shamet’s apex during the 2020-21 season was a game against the Miami Heat in which he totaled a career-high 30 points with the rest of Brooklyn’s stars on the mend. Shamet is still just 24 years old and will enter restricted free agency after this season, so there is a ton to like about him considering his trajectory.

As good as Shamet was, it’s easier to find a bench guard who can shoot than a center that can help Brooklyn fix some lackluster interior defense. If the Nets want to either free up financial wiggle room to chase a big like Khem Birch in free agency or move up in the draft to select one, Shamet might need to be discarded.

Considering that the Nets have been linked to North Carolina center Day’Ron Sharpe heavily in the pre-draft process, could Shamet potentially be included in a deal that moves the Nets into the late teens with the goal of selecting him?

The Nets might be able to convince a veteran or ring-chaser to sign with them on a cheaper deal in order to replace Shamet. The future is now for a Nets team that has their eyes set on the ultimate prize in the sport, and refusing to add a potential difference-maker for years to come because of a theoretical holdup over a Shamet trade would show an uncharacteristic lack of aggression.

However, this deal could come back to bite the Nets in the butt. Steve Nash and Mike D’Antoni need tons of shooters to run their offense properly, and there aren’t many of Shamet’s quality that could be had for an economical price. They need to make sure whoever they draft is a sure-fire stud if they trade Shamet away to move up a few pegs in the order.

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