Will the Brooklyn Nets trade Cam Johnson for a SECOND top-10 pick? with Bob Windrem of NetsDaily

Will the Brooklyn Nets trade Cam Johnson for a SECOND top-10 pick? with Bob Windrem of NetsDaily

coming up could the Nets trade Cam Johnson for a second top 10 pick i’ll answer that question after [Music] this You are Locked on Nets your daily Brooklyn Nets podcast part of the Locked On podcast network Your team every day Welcome in to the Lockdown Nets podcast right here on the Lockdown Podcast Network It’s your team the Brooklyn Nets every single day I’m Eric Slater Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for clutchpoints.com Thank you for making me your first listen of the day This show is 100% free on all those great platforms And today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel Right now new customers can get $200 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins And on today’s show I’m going to be joined by Bob Windham of Nets Daily to talk about Brooklyn potentially using Cam Johnson to move up in the draft what that move would signal for their rebuild timeline and whether they should do it And I’m joined now by Bob Windrum also known as Nets Daily to all of you who follow on Twitter and also follow his work online for many years And Bob we’re here to talk about a report that you put out and um some intel surrounding the Nets draft plans some potential deals they could be looking to swing Uh you had a tweet that you put out earlier today saying that the Nets were exploring potential frameworks involving Cam Johnson and the 19th pick in the draft to move up to number nine or 10 which are owned by the Toronto Raptors and Houston Rockets respectively Just what can you tell us about what you reported and how that could potentially shake out well I think as we all know there’s been plenty of discussion on the Nets trying to get a second lottery pick and this would be a vehicle um for that Um as we know they have the number eight after um dropping during the draft lottery So the idea of getting a second pick um was to a certain degree um accelerated um by by that um and I think part of the reason is because there is a great deal of talent up top and there’s some discussion of a drop off after number eight Um so what I was told by a source who I’ve known for a long time and somebody I trust is that the framework that is preferred um is that they move up to um either nine which as you noted is held by the raptors or 10 which is held by the rockets And in that case what would happen would be um again according to this source um Cam Johnson would go to one of those two teams and in return along with the along with the uh the 19th pick and in return the Nets would get the ninth or the 10th pick Uh in addition the Nets would have to take on a bad contract quote unquote Um this has some certainly has some resonance because again we’ve seen all of this happen um or we’ve heard all of this happened over the last several weeks about the Nets wanting to move up Um the the possibilities um I would think are probably pretty good because it does fit uh both teams needs Um the Raptors are tired of um of being uh a rebuilding team They have uh according to a number of sources stated that they want to you know find a uh you know a number of players who can get them out of that rebuild and into contention again Um and the rockets of course are building you know um incrementally but very very dramatically over the last couple of years helped indeed by some of the net’s picks Um so I think that it has it has some it has some um resonance Um and again it may very well be that this is not the um the way that this goes Um it may be that there’ll be some other picks that they’re interested in Um the 14th pick perhaps from the Spurs but again this scenario does make a lot of sense And again it was told to me by a source who I’ve known for a long time Now the Nets are are are are pushing back on this um pushing back on the specifics Nobody is pushing back on the possibility of the Nets moving up No one is pushing back on the possibility that Cam Johnson who’s probably their best trade asset other than their picks um being included So and again we’re three weeks away from the draft I believe today we’re three weeks away So you know there’s plenty of time to do that but at the same time um this is around the time when things start to start to move Um most of the time what we have seen particularly with the Nets is that it’s the last two or three days where things really come together Um I think I’ve noted that in eight of the nine drafts that uh Sean Marx has run um he’s made a deal um within days two days uh either side of of the draft um including some big ones last year’s uh trades with the Knicks the the the Bridges trade and with the Rockets the exchange of picks Um you know that that that came within two days Um and there have been trades um on draft day Um they got the pick that they used on uh Cam Thomas um the day of the draft Um they got the pick that became Caris Levert the day of the draft Um so you know there’s going to be a lot of there’s going to be a lot of permutations um between now and then And I think the Nets have an interest again in doing this because there’s a lot of talent Um there’s a lot of talent you know around this around this place in the draft Uh and you know there’s a lot of discussion of of players moving up If players move up somebody’s got to move down Um and it could be I personally believe that there’s going to be a lot of surprises on on uh on draft night and this deal that you know you’re alluded to a potential framework of CJ and 19 for um 9 or 10 and a bad contract to your knowledge based on what you heard Is this something that the two sides have already been discussing or was this more something that was floated as a potential framework and that could potentially be visited down the line let me put it this way the source made it appear that it’s more than a framework and the Nets are pushing back Um so um has there been an offer made um I don’t know that But I do know that um this this information was volunteered um to me by my source and I don’t want to get into sourcing Obviously you don’t either Um but it’s um but let’s put it this way It was volunteered to me Um it was not something I asked about Um and it was it was done with as as the tweet indicated um a number of specifics and I would say that um you know it’s not surprising obviously as you alluded to before that the Nets would be looking to move up in the draft I think it’s been somewhat expected given the fact that they have 8 19 26 27 36 that volume of picks that they could look to consolidate and move up into this draft or potentially even seek a future asset whether that be in the 2026 draft or anywhere beyond I think them doing so by including Cam Johnson in such a deal is very noteworthy and I think that that would signal something in terms of their rebuild you know because the Nets have obviously had reported interest in Giannis They’ve had interest in stars for the last couple years And if you’re making a move like this where you’re trading your veteran the guy who has been you know the respected voice in your locker room your most productive player uh this past season I definitely think that would signal something about the direction that they’re going to head So coming up after a quick break we’ll dive into that and what a potential trade up in the draft including Cam Johnson could mean for the Nets moving forward Coming back from the break here with Bob Windrum of Nets Daily talking about the Net’s potential plans to move up in this draft and particularly their plans to potentially package Cam Johnson with the 19th pick to move into the lottery and acquire a second lottery pick alongside number eight and Bob and I was talking earlier about how I feel the inclusion of Cam in such a deal would signal a little bit of a turning of the page for the Nets because Cam is their best player He’s a veteran He’s kind of the last you know remnants of that last era some of the previous trades that were made to kind of put the Nets into this transitional period And the Nets acquired their 2025 and 2026 first round picks from the Houston Rockets last summer giving them the ability to tank and go into a rebuild But we haven’t seen them commit to a full rebuild yet There’s still been a lot of rumors obviously about Giannis their potential to get into those sweep stakes In my eyes their potential inclusion if they were to include Cam Johnson in a deal like this and move off a veteran like that in favor of a 19-year-old rookie while also taking on a bad contract To me that would signal them committing to a full rebuild this being a tank next season as opposed to them looking to fasttrack the timeline Would you agree with that assessment yeah I think you know I think that that if you go back and I did this yesterday um if you go back to the um the press availability um whatever you want to call it that um Sean and Jordy had uh after the end of the season I mean there’s no doubt um in in looking at the at the at that at that interview or that media availability that we were both at um that they signal that um we don’t want to be speeded up was one line that Sean had Um absolutely and automatically has to change you know uh the direction of of the franchise was how they described somebody who might change their mind Um I mean these were all very carefully constructed comments I thought by uh by Sean And you know the the deeper you get into it the more you the more you sense that And I mean first of all the one key thing was an aversion completed aversion to um to going the super team route And you know if you look and this is one of the reasons I was looking at it If you look at the Thunder if you look at uh the Pacers they’re they went the opposite direction And there was a quote the other day that Brian Lewis had from Miles Turner saying “The era of the super team the era of stacking is over.” Um and I think all of that you know all of that as you point out you know gives you a clearer picture of what they’re planning next year And it’s going to be a tank And you know my feeling is that that last year the criticism of criticism of them last year and I don’t want to get into the lottery and the permutations of that was that they didn’t move that they didn’t move Dennis Schroeder and Dorian Finny Smith quickly enough and they didn’t move Cam Johnson at all Um but at the same time they had 27 players under contract at one point or another last season the most they’ve ever had Um that’s an indication of a of a serious rebuild in a tank if you want to call it that Um they also they also had the second most games lost to injury and illness last year of any NBA team Um in fact a franchise record So you know they did they did their part last year in terms of in terms of the rebuild Um and I think that that’s you know that’s going to probably be you know um more so this season And I mean the same source and and and others you know like Bobby Marx um has said publicly that they do not think that the Nets will quote roster unquote five picks I mean first of all it’s a it’s it’s a development it’s a development dilemma I mean trying to develop five players at the same time is virtually impossible And one of the big problems with it is you may miss somebody you may not be developing somebody I mean that that happened for example with Joe Harris and uh in Cleveland Um you know they dumped him too early and he became a very very productive player for the Nets So you know that’s one issue Um and on the other hand if you listen to the if you listen to the to the scout uh docu series there’s there’s nothing in there in where where anybody says you know we may trade these picks It’s all about wow we have this generational draft We have picks in every section of this draft I’m really excited about this etc etc Um do I think they’re going to um they’re going to do that they’re going to roster uh five picks probably not I think it it would be controversial In fact Jonathan Gavone in one of his most recent I think the most recent uh mock draft that ESPN posted said virtually there’s no chance that number 27 will be uh will be used by the Nets Now I don’t know if he has inside information and that’s basically all he said but that is the type of of of pick that that might very well be moved And if we’ve been we’ve been hearing about obviously the you know the capability that they have to package some of these picks and the opportunities I want to focus still on the potential of including CJ and moving up from 19 and what that would signal because you know as you said like you were talking about the rebuild last year them doing their part in the tank I don’t think there was any I never had any you know debate about whether or not the Nets were tanking They were definitely tanking I think there might be some people might have their quips about whether or not they did it properly and things that they would have done differently That’s that’s fine and good whatever But this coming season I think there’s been more of a conversation about will they go to another tank or would they potentially try to go the Giannis route and try to fasttrack the timeline I said obviously I think CJ being included in a trade would signal them going towards another tank And it sounds like you think that that’s the direction that this is headed We’ve heard a lot about their interest in Giannis Uh Brian Lewis who you alluded to friend of the pod colleague on the Nets beat has reported extensively about their interest in him but it seems like you think that this is heading in another tank direction and another rebuild direction which would be in line with you know the report you put out about them potentially packaging CJ to move up Yeah I I think I mean there’s there’s something else here which is it may very well be that what we’ve seen and heard in the last week with regard to Giannis is not advancing the possibility of him going anywhere I mean he seems to be or you haven’t heard directly from him but what we keep reading is that he is not yet convinced that he wants to leave He’s not somebody who’s going to blow it up he has a real commitment to Milwaukee Um a family commitment to Milwaukee and he may be willing to stay So he may not be available for you know the Nets the Raptors the Rockets etc In terms of Cam what you said earlier I think is true which is it’s not just that he’s the last vestage of the attempt to win while rebuilding which is what they were doing before the bridges trade Um he is the he was he’s the voice of experience in the in the locker room Um he’s the anchor on which they base their professionalism Um and you know he was very helpful for a lot of the younger players and there’ll be a lot more younger players next year uh for him to mentor So yeah it’s it would be a it would be a big change whether he’s moved in in in the scenario that I was told about or whether he’s moved in another scenario But again you know going back to that going back to that press conference that we both attended in April there was nothing there that that that suggested to me that there was there was any plan to go down that super team road again you know at this juncture I mean yes I mean and and also you know with the one caveat that Sean kept talking about you know we have to we have to be ready for any eventuality Um but that was almost that was secondary to the main point I think that he made repeatedly which was if we got somebody they would absolutely and automatically change the direction of the franchise Um and that’s a high bar Um that’s that’s a I think some would say that’s a Giannis bar That’s that’s sort of what I I mean that was that was my question that I asked at that press conference that he responded to And I interpreted that you know the same way that I think you did and a lot of other people did of you know they’re not going to go for one of these secondary stars I did think that if there was going to be a guy who could change you know the kind of guy that Sean would be referring to there would be Giannis but that obviously didn’t mean that they were going to go after him And you know I think that it’s obviously still unclear whether or not he’s going to ask out of Milwaukee And even if he did to me analyzing this I’ve thought that the tanking direction and building through the draft makes a lot more sense And Sean and the Nets have a lot smarter basketball people than me who know about the CBA all the trends of the NBA and where it’s going And I would think that they’re going to come to that uh conclusion But I also asked during that press conference about the possibility of trading Cam Johnson And Shawn replied uh very glowingly talking about CJ said that you know he is everything that the Nets want to be about that they’re in no rush to trade a guy like that And while I’ve said numerous times that you can never take anything you know an executive says as gospel or anything along those lines I thought it was somewhat telling and it led me to question whether they would trade CJ this off season But it seems like the opportunity in the draft presents itself that they they would be open to it right and of course you know since since that press conference they dropped to eighth um you know they dropped they were hoping obviously for higher than six and they wound up lower than six So does that factor into it as well um you know is there somebody they’ve fallen in love with i mean that happens all the time in the NBA You know you have somebody in for a workout and it’s oh my god you know this guy is much better than we thought We really need to get this guy That may have happened as well It’s all you know it’s all so fluid and it gets more fluid the closer you get to the um the closer you get to the draft Uh and you know I think that he let’s put it this way I think the Nets would like to keep Cam Johnson but I think if there’s if there’s something that they really think they need whether that’s two picks in the draft or somebody higher than number eight that they would seriously consider it Um and I know they’re very sensitive to um rumors about about him Um because they they want to keep him informed He talked again at that same press conference we were at Um because he spoke before them He talked about how they had how he trusted them how they had kept him how they had kept him informed during you know particularly the trade deadline Um and he talked about how they trust him but he also was you know he also talked about how he understands it’s a business because he’s you know he’s already been traded once Um do I do I do I think that he’s going to be here you know by July 6th i would think probably less likely than than 5050 Um you know and I’m a big fan of his I think I think he’s I think he’s what Sean said about him was absolutely right He’s the kind of guy you want He’s you know he’s the anchor Um and the other question to me is how much longer is this going to go on how much longer is the rebuild go going to go on i mean my sense is it’s got it’s got another two years And if you look if you look at the first rebuild from 2016 to 2019 that’s exactly what happened They won 21 games They won 28 games and then they took the big leap uh into contention which made them attractive to Kyrie and KD and ultimately to to James Harden So that part of that part of his first rebuild worked worked very well And you know doing the same things that that you know we hear they may do now You know trying to get trying to get more picks um you know using salary dumps um to to uh not just improve their um not just to improve their draft position but adding to it Um you know there was a number of those that we saw um back then And you know and if if I’m the Nets I I’m happy to follow that model because that model worked up until 2020 2021 Um you know uh and it and and this time unlike then you know Shawn has 31 draft picks um going forward you know back in 2016 he basic he didn’t have any picks until 2019 Um none in 2016 17 or 18 And the first pick that became available was was um for for them uh looking forward at that point was 2019 And you know they filled it in here and there um by doing salary dumps um you know and and and also the other thing is development um you know they had a they did a very good job with development back then um and they’re very proud of that uh and with performance and they’re very proud of that So you can look at you can look at from 2019 forward and and you know have a lot of criticism of what they did Um but if you look at 2016 to 2019 in terms of a rebuild you know with no picks in 2016 and the toughest rebuild job in the NBA to 2019 when they signed two of the top 15 players in the in the NBA Um And they got that because they had because they had built because they had impressed because they had impressed um superstars And that’s you know that’s the thing that I’ve said about you there’s been a lot of fans who are angry about how things ended with you know the big three era and how he had to be torn down but said to them you know if we’re going into another rebuild if you look at the way that Shawn was able to navigate that first rebuild he had a lot of success He’s in a much better position now And I think if he ultimately is to include Cam Johnson in a trade to move up it would be a signal and it would be setting them up if they’re able to get a second top 10 pick It would be setting them up very nicely uh with a lot of things moving forward and I think that’d be very encouraging But Bob I appreciate you taking the time Uh we all appreciate the work that you’ve been doing for you know a very long time and maybe we’ll circle back around draft time and uh talk more about what the Nets end up doing Thank you Coming up next to close out the show I’ll talk about whether I think the Nets should pull the trigger on a Cam Johnson trade if it means a second top 10 pick Closing out today’s Locked on Nets episode talking about whether Brooklyn should trade Cam Johnson if it means another top 10 pick The framework that has been floated is CJ and number 19 for either number nine from the Toronto Raptors or number 10 from the Houston Rockets along with a bad contract So a salary dump a player that wouldn’t mean too much to the Nets long term And when you’re talking about whether or not the Nets should do this I think it’s a framework that makes a ton of sense for both sides When you look at Toronto they’ve there’s been some noise around them potentially trying to make a big move They just acquired Brandon Ingram uh at the trade deadline and extended him They could have some Giannis dreams but they clearly want to make a step towards being competitive You talk about the Rockets they’re a team that fizzled out offensively in that first round series against the Golden State Warriors Could they look to upgrade some of their end of the bench guys by you know putting those guys together and train his trade for Cam Johnson could they look to move on from a guy like Dylan Brooks who’s a good defender but struggles offensively in some playoff settings for both of those teams I think there’s a strong case to do this from the Nets end I also think it’s a deal that makes a lot of sense because if you’re looking at what is first what’s the right time to move off of a guy like Cam Johnson Cam we saw what he did last season He’s coming off the best season of his career He averaged 19 points per game near 50 40 90 shooting splits 48 39 89 He and Desmond Bane were the NBA’s only players to average at least 19 points on such efficiency last season He’s also on a reasonable contract that descends into the final two years So I think that will be viewed favorably I just don’t think that Cam’s value is ever going to be higher than it is right now So if you’re going to move off of him I think this is the time especially if you’re keen on moving into a rebuild and you’re not you know viewing him as a piece that’s going to be here in the near future for you know a jump towards contention whether it be a Giannis move or something like that If the rebuild is the preferred route if a tank next season is the preferred route I think that it makes a lot of sense You cash in on his value where it’s highest And also removing him from the roster should improve the tank this coming season Something we thought that you know if CJ was off the roster last year that it would have resulted in the Nets losing more games and having a better lottery position than sixth And while we saw teams like the Mavericks and the Spurs jump into the top two the lottery odds it’s unpredictable the teams that finish worse with worst records in the Nets are all picking ahead of the Nets So I think that is important to note If you have the worst record in the league you’re going to be fifth If you have the second worst record in the league the lowest you can be is sixth So that’s always important So not only would the Nets be cashing in on CAM at his highest value and getting a lot back they’d be improving their tank next season And if you talk about the Nets being able to pull off this deal and having two top 10 picks on the roster next season that’s really significant That’s something that we haven’t seen really in the history of this Nets franchise certainly since they’ve moved to Brooklyn Then having two top 10 guys in the same draft in a draft that is extremely highly regarded That would be extremely exciting And then you would also have another top 10 pick presumably possibly even top five the season after when there’s three guys at the top of that draft in Darren Peterson AJ Debansa and Cam Boozer who are extremely exciting So you know that those are three top 10 guys potentially If the Nets hit on a couple of those picks they’d have several young building blocks They’d have a healthy cap sheet They’d have an NBA leading arsenal of draft picks all in the New York market And that’s something that just has to be enticing If you’re looking at the way that the Nets have built historically the way they built certainly since coming to Brooklyn it hasn’t been in that mold And when you’re looking at this new CBA everything that I’ve talked about with the you know Giannis versus build through the draft conver conversation this new CBA building out having you know cost controlled homegrown talent the importance of that the importance of having depth sustainable success that’s been the term that Shawn Marks in the front office has used continually You know I just think that this would be a very good start to that assuming that the Nets hit on the draft picks which you would you should never assume because the draft’s unpredictable but everything’s unpredictable Nothing’s a sure bet Giving yourself three top 10 picks in two highly regarded drafts with you know a clean cap sheet with draft picks with all these things I think it would be an extremely good start to the rebuild I think that it’s extremely realistic You know I just outlined it from Toronto and Houston’s perspective and I think that it makes sense for both of those teams I mean if they’re trying Houston no doubt is trying to be competitive next season They’re a team that’s going to try to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference The Raptors based on the moves they’ve made I think a lot of people would say that they haven’t been the most competent franchise in terms of their moves in recent years letting guys you know go out walk out the door like OG Anobi Pascal Seakum even Fred Van Fleet in return for what they have now But they made the move for Brandon Ingram They’re going to try to be competitive and if that’s the route you’re going flipping you know looking at the guys that they could potentially be salary dumping it might be an RJ Barrett like that might be a guy coming back But getting Cam Johnson inserting him into that equation for really just moving back from 10 to 19 that would be a good move for them on the surface you know as a precursor to whatever big kind of move that they have coming So I just think it’s a realistic deal I think it’s a deal that makes sense for both sides and I think it’s a deal that the Nets are going to seriously consider based on what we heard from Bob and the reports that are coming out So it’s really interesting I think there’s going to be a lot of draft trade possibilities whether it be moving up from 19 whether it be what the Nets do with 26 and 27 whether they also try to move up from there whether they try to trade those picks for you know a pick in a later draft whether 2026 when they have less firstrounders I think it’s all really interesting and I think it all points to some things that we’ve never seen the Nets do uh since they’ve been in Brooklyn So the rebuild could be trending up if they’re able to execute this the right way And you know from a fans perspective where the Nets were with the big three collapsing going into the male era going into able to you know being able to pull off that deal with the Knicks and set themselves up for this opportunity I think it’s trending in a direction that is really favorable for them So excited to see how it plays out and I’ll have more coverage of that here on Locked on Nets and on Clutch Points leading up to the draft and after But that does it for today’s episode of Locked on Nets You know I appreciate all of you for tuning in If you want to support the show be sure to like comment subscribe Anything you can do to engage is much appreciated I’ll be back tomorrow talking more Brooklyn Nets basketball

Erik Slater and Bob Windrem of NetsDaily discuss the Brooklyn Nets exploring a trade that would send Cam Johnson and the 19th pick to the Toronto Raptors or Houston Rockets for a second top-10 selection. They analyze the implications of such a move and the pros and cons of trading Johnson.

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