when brooklyn nets must Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in 2019, he was widely considered the biggest winner of this Free Agency. Brooklyn had completed a quick rebuild and looked to be in position to challenge for multiple championships with Durant and Irving signed to long-term contracts.
Four years later, that Nets era can only be seen as a tragic failure.
A few days after shipping Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericksthis week Kevin Durant traded to the Phoenix Suns. These moves were made at its expiration first anniversary of James Harden’s transfer to the Philadelphia 76erswhich happened in February 2022.
Further: NBA transfer market 2023: The winners and losers of the deadline
Durant, Irving and Harden shared only 16 games on the team, counting the regular season and playoffs. They left Brooklyn with just one win in their Playoff series.
As ESPN’s Zach Lowe put it, these Nets were the “best team on paper” ever. How did they go from title contenders to disaster?
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Brooklyn Nets timeline of disaster: how the big three of Durant, Irving and Harden fell apart
July 2019: Nets sign Kyrie Irving and acquire Durant via waiver deal. mark-and-trade with the Warriors.
March 2020: Brooklyn fires coach Kenny Atkinson and replaces him with interim coach Zach Vaughan. Atkinson had Brooklyn in position to make the playoffs despite Durant missing the entire 2019-20 season due to injury.
September 2020: Steve Nash becomes coach of the Nets. Irving causes a stir when he says this “You don’t really see it [los Nets] he has a coach.”
December 2020: Durant makes his Nets debut, scoring 22 points in a win against the Golden State Warriors.
January 2021: Harden forms a “Big Three” with Durant and Irving after being traded to Brooklyn as part of a four-team trade. The Nets trade Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, Rodions Kurucs, Taurean Prince, three first-round picks and four trade picks to acquire Harden.
June 2021: With Irving and Harden limited by injuries, the Nets fall to the Bucks in a hotly contested Eastern Conference semifinal series. Milwaukee is later declared NBA champion.
August 2021: Durant signs four-year extension with Nets. Harden and Irving do not reach a deal with Brooklyn before the start of the 2021-2022 season.
October 2021: The Nets announce that Irving will not be a member of the team due to non-vaccination.
December 2021: The Nets reverse their decision and announce that Irving will return as a part-time player, available only for road games.
More | NBA 2023 transfer market: All deals, signings and news on the closing date of the moves
February 2022: The Nets trade Harden and Paul Millsap to the Philadelphia 76ers for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks.
April 2022: The Boston Celtics sweep the Nets in the first round of the Playoffs. Boston advances to the 2022 NBA Finals, losing to Golden State in six games.
June 2022: Irving picks up his player option for 2022-2023 after a deal fails, and Durant tells the Nets he wants a trade.
August 2022: Durant and the Nets announce they have “He agreed to move forward with our partnership.”
October 2022: Irving tweets a link to a movie with anti-Semitic messages. Nets cut Irving for no “to state unequivocally that he has no anti-Semitic beliefs, nor to identify specific hate material in the film.” Irving later apologizes for his tweet and returns to the team after serving his suspension.
November 2022: The Nets fire Nash after a 2-5 start to the season. Vaughan takes over as interim coach before winning the job permanently.
February 2023: Just days after Irving’s trade request, both Irving and Durant are traded. The Nets trade Irving and Durant to the Mavericks and Suns, respectively.
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