BNBrooklyn Nets

Franchise history

The Nets left New Jersey for Brooklyn's new Barclays Center in 2012, the first major pro sports franchise based in the borough since the Dodgers left in 1957. Owner Mikhail Prokhorov pushed for immediate contention, and in a July 2013 trade the Nets acquired aging stars Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from Boston at the cost of four future first-round picks — a deal that fueled Boston's later rebuild around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown while Brooklyn's roster aged out after one deep playoff run in 2014.

A second star-chasing era followed: Brooklyn signed free agents Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in 2019, then traded for James Harden in January 2021 to form a touted "Big Three." Injuries, chemistry problems, and Harden's own trade request unraveled the group quickly — he was dealt to Philadelphia in 2022, and both Irving and Durant were traded away in February 2023, to Dallas and Phoenix respectively, without the trio ever reaching a conference final together. Under owner Joseph Tsai, the Nets have since turned to accumulating draft capital and developing younger talent.

Sources

• Brooklyn Nets — Wikipedia
• A comprehensive look at everything the Nets got in return for Durant, Irving and Harden — CBS Sports