Brooklyn, NY – The Brooklyn Nets acquired the draft rights to forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and guard Steve Blake from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for center Mason Plumlee and the draft rights to guard/forward Pat Connaughton, Nets GM Billy King announced tonight.
"We are very excited to add Rondae to our roster," said King. "He is the type of athletic wing we were looking for, and we felt he was the best defensive player in the draft."
"I also wanted to thank Mason for his time with the Nets and wish him the best with his new team. Mason worked extremely hard from the first time he stepped on the court in training camp last year, and I am sure he will have a long and successful career."
Hollis-Jefferson (6’8”, 220) was selected with the 23rd pick in tonight’s draft by the Trail Blazers before being dealt to the Nets. He played two seasons at Arizona and helped lead the Wildcats to two Elite Eight appearances and a 66-9 regular season record. As a freshman, Hollis-Jefferson averaged 9.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 blocks in 25.3 minutes per game in 38 games (six starts) en route to Pac 12 All-Freshman Team honors. In his second and final season at Arizona, Hollis-Jefferson posted averages of 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.8 blocks in 28.7 minutes per game in 38 games (25 starts). He was named to the All-Pac 12 First Team and garnered Pac-12 All-Defensive Team honors.
Blake (6’3”, 172) is a 12-year veteran who has appeared in 812 career games (345 starts) with Washington, Portland, Milwaukee, Denver, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State. He holds career averages of 6.7 points and 4.0 assists. Last season in Portland, Blake recorded averages of 4.3 points and 3.6 assists in 18.9 minutes per game in 81 games off the Trail Blazers’ bench.
Plumlee was originally drafted by the Nets with the 22nd pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. In 152 games (67 starts), he posted averages of 8.1 points and 5.4 rebounds in 19.9 minutes per game. Plumlee earned All-Rookie First Team honors in 2014.