Nets urged to swap Ben Simmons for 12x All-Star ahead of trade deadline

Following their gut-wrenching loss to the Miami Heat this past Monday, the Brooklyn Nets have now dropped eight of their last nine outings, and, above anything, what this lowly stretch has shown is that they desperately need an upgrade at the point guard position if they wish to compete for their sixth-consecutive playoff berth.

Plagued by clunky and stagnant offensive execution, since the calendar page flipped to 2024 Jacque Vaughn's squad has proven to be one of the worst offensive units in the entire league, ranking third-worst in offensive rating, dead last in point totals, and 25 in assists per game.

With reports now surfacing suggesting that Ben Simmons could soon make his long-awaited return to the lineup after missing the past 33 games and counting due to back issues, some believe that his presence within the rotation could go on to help bump the team's putrid production back up to a place of respectability.

However, many others still think that an outsourced jolt of energy may be needed to make a significant difference and, recently, Fan Nation's Ben Stinar proposed the idea of the Nets swapping their injury-plagued guard for the likes of future Hall of Famer, Chris Paul.

Brooklyn Nets urged to trade for veteran point guard Chris Paul

Though both are currently sidelined due to health-related ailments, with Paul rehabbing a fractured left hand, Stinar believes that a switch of the bruised and battered former All-Stars could wind up being an underrated positive move for both ball clubs once they return to action, especially for the Nets.

"Right now, the Nets rank 15th in assists (26.1 APG), and Paul has experience playing with star forward Mikal Bridges (the two were teammates on the Phoenix Suns). Paul, who is a future Hall of Famer, could give the Nets a big boost as the team's pass-first point guard and bring significant experience to a young locker room. "

- Ben Stinar

A 12-time All-Star and five-time assists champion, the veteran has become a legend of the game and, more specifically, at the point guard position throughout his 19-year NBA tenure. Even during these twilight years of his career, Paul has still proven capable of providing quality backcourt production from a shooting and table-setting standpoint, both are attributes these Nets desperately need.

When just taking the back end of his career into context, the Point God has still found himself producing at a rather high level, sporting impressive per-game averages of 13.2 points, 9.3 assists, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.6 steals while shooting 46.1 percent from the floor and 35.2 percent from deep over the last three seasons.

Even this season, prior to his hand injury the 28-year-old Paul was still showcasing his abilities to serve as a quality floor general, posting averages of 12.7 points, 7.5 assists, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.4 steals on 48.0 percent shooting from the floor and 51.0 percent shooting from deep through 11 starts.

On the year as a whole, the debut Dubs guard is boasting 8.9 points, 7.2 assists, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.1 steals on 36.1 percent shooting from deep.

No matter which way you look at it, Paul's upside and production throughout this campaign far surpasses any of the options the Nets have rolled out at the one thus far.

As Stinar alluded to, adding him to this lineup would not only provide them a much-needed boost in the talent department but would also provide their youth-filled rotation with some highly valuable veteran leadership and wisdom that could only stand to benefit this Brooklyn squad looking to claw their way up toward a top-eight seed in the Eastern Conference standings.

Of course, Paul is expected to remain out for another three to five weeks while he nurses his hand fracture, so striking a deal for him now wouldn't do the Nets any good from an on-court standpoint. However, with the deadline coming on February 8, this aforementioned timeline coincides rather well if they were to try and strike a deal during the final seconds of trade season.

Assuming it's not much more than a straight-up swap (perhaps Brooklyn could even get second-round compensation added into the mix), the concept of switching out Simmons for Paul could be a highly intriguing move worth considering over the next few weeks.

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