The Brooklyn Nets remained rather dormant at this year's trade deadline, opting to execute smaller-scale deals rather than swing for the fences on an all-out blockbuster like most fans may have wanted.
Though some were ultimately upset with the club's decision-making, with staying stagnant the front office now approaches an offseason with their key assets still in tow and ready to be used to bolster the roster this summer.
While there's any number of players the Nets could look to pursue, should they wish to go for one of the league's big fish, Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report believes Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young could be a worthwhile option, and recently constructed a package that he believes may bring him to the borough.
Brooklyn Nets trade proposal pairs Mikal Bridges with Trae Young
Citing their need for a legitimate number one option, Bailey suggests Young could be an ideal candidate to fill this void within Brooklyn's rotation, and pairing him with a talented core of Bridges, Cam Thomas, and Nic Claxton could wind up making them an incredibly menacing bunch.
"For the Nets, this trade gives them a potential path out of the basketball purgatory they've been in since trading Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant last season.Andy Bailey
There's a decent amount of talent on that roster, but there probably isn't a single bona fide star (depending on how you feel about Cam Thomas).
Mikal Bridges and Nic Claxton are solid, but both are probably one or two spots higher in the pecking order than they should be. Young would push them closer to their more natural roles, create better scoring opportunities for them (and everyone else on the team) and give Brooklyn the identity it's lacked for the last 12 months."
Throughout his six seasons in the association, Young has established himself as one of the game's best point guard talents who can make a difference in the scoring and facilitation game.
In 50 games played in 2023-24, the 25-year-old once again finds himself earning an All-Star nod (the third of his career) while posting stellar averages of 26.7 points, 10.9 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 37.1 percent from deep.
Adding his floor general style of play to this Nets team would only help improve their productivity, especially for Bridges, Thomas, and Claxton, all of whom have been asked to play out of their comfort zones all throughout this tumultuous campaign due to, as Bailey noted, Brooklyn's lacking of a true go-to star.
If this year has proven anything, it's that this club either needs to commit to contending and bolstering its talent pool with complementary pieces or tear it down and start selling off some of its bigger-name commodities.
Should they choose the former route, there doesn't appear to be many other possible targets to purse that could get fans back into the seats and improve their on-court play quite like Trae Young could.