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3 biggest free agent mistakes in Brooklyn Nets history

Jan 21, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams (8) waves during the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. The Nets won 103-100. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 21, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams (8) waves during the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. The Nets won 103-100. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
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Mar 15, 2021; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets center DeAndre Jordan (6) reacts after being called for a foul during the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2021; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets center DeAndre Jordan (6) reacts after being called for a foul during the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Brooklyn Nets biggest free-agent mistakes: 1. Deandre Jordan 

To keep Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving happy, the Brooklyn Nets signed Deandre Jordan to a four-year, $40 million deal. At this point in his career, Jordan was past his prime and only got a big deal with the Mavs because it was one year deal. He was then packaged in a trade with the Knicks as a part of a salary dump.

Jordan was put in the starting lineup and then started to lose minutes, as he was quickly replaced with Jarrett Allen. Eventually, the Nets decided to bench Jordan altogether. Going into the deal, the Nets knew that Jordan was aging and scaled his contract in reverse order due to that fact. Part of the deal of getting Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving was signing DeAndre Jordan as well.

If the Nets were able to get something notable out of the KD and Irving era then this contract would not seem so bad in retrospect. But the Nets never made an Eastern Conference Finals in the 7/11 era, and it is very hard to ignore this contract as one of the worst contracts in Nets’ history.

After two seasons, Jordan was bought out of his contract. He is still in the league due to him being a very good guy in the locker room. He is currently in the NBA Finals on the Denver Nuggets.

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