Harsh reality check reveals who's really to 'blame' for tumultuous Nets season

Despite having legitimate postseason aspirations heading into the year, at 21-35, the Brooklyn Nets have proven to be one of the league's most disappointing clubs thus far in 2023-24.

From their third-worst field goal percentage and eighth-worst net rating to the underwhelming production from the sidelines, this team has been wildly unproductive in virtually every aspect of the game this season.

And while many may wish to point their fingers at some of the players or members of the coaching staff when it comes to casting blame for this tumultuous campaign, in a recent piece penned by Bleacher Report, writer Andy Bailey issued a harsh yet rather deserving reality check on who's really the one who deserves to take credit for this team's shortcomings.

The culprit: Brooklyn's front office.

Brooklyn Nets front office put on blast for tumultuous 2023-24 season

"Few teams seem as stuck as the Brooklyn Nets.

Their highest-paid player, Ben Simmons, has played in 13 games all season. There's little to no evidence to suggest he'll suddenly be consistently available going forward.

After about 12 months with the organization, it's become pretty clear that Mikal Bridges, the centerpiece of last season's Kevin Durant trade, isn't a bona fide No. 1 type of player.

When given the opportunity to acknowledge that fact and trade him for a rebuild-boosting package, the front office reportedly turned it down."

- Andy Bailey

Passing on this "get-out-of-jail-free card," as Bailey put it, ultimately proved to be the most noteworthy wrongdoing Sean Marks and company have taken part in this season and, in turn, seemingly has them on track toward remaining in NBA purgatory through at least the conclusion of this season.

Perhaps the lone potential bright spot of their current situation is that, per post-deadline reports, the Nets plan to commit their focus toward constructing a competitive roster around the likes of Mikal Bridges which, considering the success Marks has already had in the past when building up a team from the ground floor with little to no draft capital, is an exciting bit of news to monitor moving forward.

However, as far as this year is concerned, Brooklyn's decision makers have failed to fortify any semblance of a successful squad.