Nets forced to swap 2nd-rounders with Clippers, will pick 55th in 2016 draft
The Brooklyn Nets' future prospects somehow continue to grow dimmer.
Already out a first-round pick in this summer's draft, the Nets will now lose their second-rounder in a swap with the the Los Angeles Clippers, thanks to the Clippers failing to secure a top-five record in the NBA this season (they'll finish sixth). That means all the Nets will have to show for their miserable season is the 55th pick in the draft.
The Nets traded swap rights for this year's second-rounder in a deal for Reggie Evans way back in 2012. The swap was protected in the event the Clippers' pick fell between 56 and 60, meaning that if Los Angeles had finished with a top-five record this season, the Nets would've gotten to keep their own second-round pick - which is currently slated for 33rd overall.
Instead, the Nets will flip that pick to the Clippers, and, barring a draft-day trade - like the one they swung to get Rondae Hollis-Jefferson last year - sit out the first 54 selections.
The Nets' first-round pick - projected to land in the top three - is earmarked for the Boston Celtics, stemming from the disastrous trade for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett in the summer of 2013. They owe their second-rounders outright until 2020 and don't own the rights to their own first-rounder until 2019.
Pray for Sean Marks.
- With h/t to The Brooklyn Game