Deron Williams is the man in Brooklyn. The Nets success has been determined more by the stats from the veteran point guard than anything else. However, that is exactly why a few teams have called to discuss the asking price of Williams and whether or not he is even available with the right deal. So, when Brooklyn called about Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik, the Houston Rockets requested Williams and the trade died.
According to ESPNNewYork.com's Ohm Youngmisuk, the Rockets and the Nets have preliminary discussions regarding the trade that would swap both Asik and Lin for Williams. The Rockets have been looking to get rid of both young players since the offseason signing of Dwight Howard, but Brooklyn denied the availability of Williams.
Brooklyn never took the talks seriously because they have no intention of trading off Williams. Despite the point guard suffering from multiple ankle injuries all season, he simply is not for sale. Williams is the center piece of the Nets and the main reason that both Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett signed with the team in the first place.
However, there is now an issue as Brooklyn is now in a bind after Brook Lopez was ruled out for the remainder of the season with a broken foot. The loss of the young center leaves a big hole in the Nets lineup, something that puts the team at a real loss. Could the loss of Lopez force the Nets to give up someone big in order to get a new big man?
"If there's a deal out there that we feel is going to make us a better team, we'll do it regardless of tax or the future, but we're not going to panic and do a move just to make a move because we feel we have to," GM Billy King said, via the NY Daily News. "I still believe in this group. Brook's a big part of it, but we do have other guys, that's why we have depth."
Now just because King says the team will explore the best deal, Williams is not getting traded. The Nets simply would not pull that trigger. The team does have a problem though considering they simply do not have the assets to get a player of real quality. Brooklyn does not have a first-round pick for the next five years. That eliminates rebuilding through the draft or trading a pick for another player.
Certainly a trade of Pau Gasol or Asik is the ideal scenario, but the Nets do not have a favorable package to offer. For now, they will settle with players like Andray Blanche or Reggie Evans to fill in until they figure out the best plan to take.
