The Brooklyn Nets and Sacramento Kings have discussed a trade that would send point guard Deron Williams to Sacramento, according to a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. According to the report, the Kings are also attempting to acquire Mason Plumlee in a potential deal.
The Kings would reportedly send a package of players back to Brooklyn. Darren Collison, Derrick Williams and Jason Thompson are among the players included in the talks, according to Wojnarowski. The Nets have balked at including Plumlee in a deal.
Although Wojnarowski reports no deal is imminent, discussions between the sides remain active. Let's take a closer look at the discussed deal.
Why it makes sense:
It's no secret the Nets have been shopping several players on the roster, with Brooklyn appearing content to ship out salary and try to rebuild the roster. Although Williams has struggled with injuries and isn't currently playing up to his previous All-Star form, he has proven to be among the better point guards in the league when healthy. Whether he'll ever get back to that level remains a serious question, but the Kings would be dealing mostly spare parts and hardly mortgaging their future on a gamble that Williams returns to form.
Williams has ties to Sacramento, having played under interim head coach Ty Corbin when the two were in Utah. If Plumlee is included in the deal, it would give Sacramento another piece and an insurance policy in case Williams never regains his form. The Nets wouldn't land a major haul but would shed a significant contract, with Williams owed more than $43 million on a deal that runs through the 2016-17 season.
Why it doesn't make sense:
In the rumored discussions, the Kings would send Collison back to Brooklyn. The 27-year-old Collison is three years younger than Williams and playing just as well, if not better, than Williams this season. The Kings would be taking on significant salary despite possibly not getting an upgrade if injuries continue to plague Williams. The Kings are 11-15 and hardly a contender in the Western Conference. Taking on a 30-year-old player seems like a curious move at this stage of their rebuild. The addition of Plumlee would be another nice, young piece, but there is no guarantee Brooklyn would be willing to include him.
The Nets would be selling low on Williams, who is producing well below his career averages. There is the benefit of shedding salary while getting useful players in return, but getting rid of salary may not be worth having to sacrifice Plumlee. Brooklyn is reportedly trying to trade Brook Lopez as well, and trading Plumlee would leave a major hole at center.
Likelihood:
The chance of a deal happening appears to depend heavily on Brooklyn's willingness to include Plumlee. He would give Sacramento some long-term value for taking on the contract and risk that comes with trading for Williams. Brooklyn, however, doesn't have a lot of cheap, young talent and dealing Plumlee would leave the Nets without very many long-term building blocks. Is shedding Williams' salary worth giving up a promising young player? We'll peg this at a 6 out of 10 because while it may not make a ton of sense for either side, the Nets and Kings are among the most unpredictable teams in the league, so who's to say what they might do.
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