Not saying that Sean Marks was robbed or anything. James Jones had a brilliant case for that Executive of the Year trophy himself and was a deserved winner. Fair enough. Merely saying that there does seem to be a wee hint of a pattern of Sean Marks not getting as much credit as he perhaps deserves from his peers. Even in the media he doesn’t seem to have quite as much clout as you’d expect. Of course Nets fans are only too happy to give it up to the man who delivered the franchise from laughing stock to contender status but it’s fast becoming framed as one of those typically sporting Us vs Them scenarios.

The EOTY award is voted for by the other general managers/presidents of basketball operations across the league and there are sometimes politics that come into the equation. It’s only natural. This piece from late last season examining Marks’ case for the award gets deeper on that whole idea (also it’s a single season award in a long term job so win-now teams get the rub ahead of rebuild teams, as they should). Thus that perceived mini-snub takes care of itself. As for the rest of it, it’s fair to say that Sean Marks is a man who doesn’t crave the camera and nor does he act like he feels he needs to justify decisions to outsiders. To fans, absolutely. But he doesn’t do a lot of media outside team-produced stuff. He’s not a campaigner. That’s just how he likes it.

Which probably plays into this narrative that the Brooklyn Nets are a player-run organisation. When Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving first signed with the franchise in free agency two years ago, it was painted as a decision led by Kyrie to move back to the city he grew up in and form a superstar alliance at a team that would be nice and pliant to their ideas. Kevin Durant jumped aboard. Then the pair of them also brought DeAndre Jordan along for the ride despite the Nets already having a really nice young starting centre in Jarrett Allen. Things done changed in an instant.

Definitely there’s some truth to that perception. Apparently when KD and Kyrie first signed the Nets pretty much had a blank chequebook at the ready to fund their random whims, paying for things they could clearly afford themselves just to show them how valued they were. Gotta keep the stars happy. The firing of Kenny Atkinson as coach was absolutely a player-led thing and you know that’s true because the first game after he was gone ol’ DeAndre Jordan was elevated to the starting five at the expense of Allen (who was traded the following season in the Harden deal and has since signed a massive contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers). Then replacement coach Steve Nash got the gig with no prior NBA head coaching experience but with great existing relationships with Irving and especially Durant. These things are not coincidences.

The term ‘player empowerment’ is all the rage in the NBA these days. In no other major team sport is your competitive fate more aligned to your best couple of players and after decades of pandering individualism in American sports culture (carrying on from the pandering individualism that’s existed in that country forever) the players all know it and will leverage it like any human should in that scenario. It’s up to franchises to deal with that how they choose. Sometimes teams are too indulgent. Sometimes teams are too fearful of that power balance only to see a trade request emerge in the news feed anyway. Some teams simply don’t understand the situation.

The Brooklyn Nets may be indulgent but it’s not out of fear or ignorance. They’ve been a calculated organisation under Sean Marks’ GM-ship since day one. KD and Kyrie may have opinions about things but it’s still the general manager who has to go out there and make deals happen. Just because James Harden wanted to play in Brookie didn’t mean that was an easy thing to bring into reality – there were three teams to balance in that deal. If anything, opinionated players only make things trickier (though not necessarily worse).

Sean Marks clearly digs sliding under the radar, no worries there. If people wanna act like he sold his rebuild out to sign Durant/Irving/Harden then it’s not gonna bother him. There was 100% a cultural shift that happened upon The Clean Sweep (aka the Durant/Irving FA deals) but it was one that arguably needed to happen in order to evolve from plucky underdogs to genuine contenders. The eventual sacrifice of Kenny Atkinson was part of that too. Guys like Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen, guys that the Marks/Atkinson combo had discovered and nurtured, they had to be flipped. These were tough decisions. They were also, in keeping with that shift from underdogs to contenders, necessary decisions.

Plenty of GMs have struggled to compete at the top because they’re still too attached to the journey that got them there. Marksy’s done both with no overlap. One to the next in the click of a finger. That’s the craziest thing here: the way that Sean Marks has pivoted from GM of a rebuilding team to GM of a title contender so flawlessly.

Bringing us up to the current moment. After an injury plagued Nets team came up short in overtime of game seven against the eventual NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks last playoffs there’s been no letting up. No max contract free agents this time, was news for two years ago. No blockbuster trade on the way either, that was last season’s business. These days the job calls for a sneakily efficient series of transactions and, would you look at this, Sean Marks has once again managed to tweak and improve the Nets heading into a new campaign. How about it?

Major Offseason Moves by the Brooklyn Nets (2021-22):

• Re-signed Kevin Durant on 4yr/$198m extension

• Drafted Cam Thomas at 27th overall, who went on to win co-MVP honours at Summer League

• Drafted Kessler Edwards at 44th overall (and signed him to a two-way contract)

• Signed Patty Mills on 2yr contract as a free agent

• Signed James Johnson as a free agent

• Sign-and-traded Spencer Dinwiddie to Washington Wizards as part of a five team move

• Traded Landy Shamet for Jevon Carter and draft rights to Day’Ron Sharpe

• Re-signed Blake Griffin

• Re-signed LaMarcus Aldridge after he was medically cleared to return to basketball

• Signed Paul Millsap to a veteran’s minimum deal

• Traded DeAndre Jordan (plus draft considerations) to Detroit Pistons for Sekou Doumbouya (and Jahlil Okafor)

• Re-signed Bruce Brown to a $4.6m qualifying offer

After losing to the Bucks, Sean Marks spoke about adding more defence and some frontcourt depth. The loss of Jeff Green is a big one but arguably his role last season was boosted specifically because of that lack of depth in those positions. They want shooters in the frontcourt but they also desperately need rebounding. LaMarcus Aldridge should offer enough of both while there are emerging hopes for Nic Claxton and Day’Ron Sharpe too – the rise of Bruce Brown last season shows that the Nets still know how to find a diamond in the rough and develop them. Oh and James Johnson is a role player at this stage of his career but he’s a tough man defender who’ll come in very handy in match-ups if he’s still there come playoff time. Also they re-signed Blake Griffin on the cheap.

Jevon Carter and Cam Thomas will hopefully get some minutes along the way. Both very funky young players. It’s not easy for Steve Nash to find time for his depth guards with Kyrie Irving and James Harden around but there will be injuries and others will need to step up. Players can handle lesser roles if there may be a ring in it for them at the end of it all.

Which takes us to the two major additions: Patty Mills and Paul Millsap. Patty Mills first because this one was Sean Marks through and through. The San Antonio Spurs connection filtering its way up to Brooklyn, Patty Mills could not be more perfect for this team. He’s a top notch shooter off the bench with championship experience and is a brilliant personality for any locker room. Super reliable, doesn’t get injured often, can run the offence when needed and won’t ever moan when he’s not.

Mills effectively replaces Spencer Dinwiddie as the sixth man – Dinwiddie likely would’ve been traded last season were he not injured but Sean Marks still did right by him with the sign-and-trade to get him to the team he wanted to play for (this move being part of the wider Russell Westbrook to LA Lakers move). Same as they did a solid for D’Angelo Russell with that sign-and-trade. Players (and their agents) remember these things.

And Paul Millsap. Far from his best last season but the idea that he’s all washed up at age 36 is a stretch. Millsap remains a dude with many skills. Especially defensively where he can guard multiple positions as well as offering a level of rebounding that, along with Aldridge, can hopefully fix that gaping weakness for Brooklyn without sacrificing anything in scoring or man-on-man defence. Plus the guy took a major pay cut to play for the Nets. He earned $10m last season, now is on the vet’s minimum. He wants this.

The team also saved money thanks to the DeAndre Jordan trade. Had they not worked that one out with Detroit, they likely would have had to buy him out or stretch his contract. Instead they flipped him for a bunch of second round picks (which in the NBA you can always buy a few more of) and a tidy prospect in Sekou Doumbouya. By the way they’ve already requested waivers on Okafor hence why he’s not been mentioned. Jordan may have been boys with KD and Kyrie but his fit on the court was tenuous at best (rebounding, yes... shooting, hell no) and apparently he reeeeally did not gel with James Harden. And if KD/Kyrie had to pick between DAJ and JH then let’s be honest...

Marks had said that the Nets were 90% done with their offseason about a month ago and since then he’s added Millsap, Mills, Aldridge, re-signed Griffin, traded Jordan... and they’re not quite done yet. Still gotta cut one more player and they’re also short a second two-way player. Not to mention the not so subtle priority of getting James Harden and Kyrie Irving to sign large contract extensions the same way that Kevin Durant already has.

Current Brooklyn Nets Depth Chart:

PG – James Harden | Patty Mills | Jevon Carter

SG – Kyrie Irving | Joe Harris | Cam Thomas

SF – Bruce Brown | Sekou Doumbouya | DeAndre Bembry | Kessler Edwards (TW)

PF – Kevin Durant | Paul Millsap | James Johnson

C – Blake Griffin | LaMarcus Aldridge | Nix Claxton | Day’Ron Sharpe

Something like that anyway. Bruce Brown and Joe Harris will be slugging it out for the starting three spot, depends whether Steve Nash prefers the shooting of JH or the defence of BB. That small forward position looks skint the way this chart is drawn up but to be fair it’s all flexible. Harris/Brown will play both wing positions and Kevin Durant will slide down there on occasion. Also Irving and Harden are interchangeable at the one and two. Mills can play either guard role. Griffin and Aldridge can each play the four but will mostly split minutes at the five, you’d imagine.

These are the Brooklyn Nets, 2021-22 edition. This is the roster that’s bookies favourite to win it all and it doesn’t take an NBA-experienced scout to see why. It does take a hugely proficient NBA general manager to make it happen... but we don’t need to talk about that.

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