On a long-awaited 2020 NBA Draft night, the Brooklyn Nets opted to use their first-round pick as part of a package to bring two young guards with NBA experience to Brooklyn.
The Nets sent out the No. 19 pick, along with Dzanan Musa, as part of a three-way trade with the Clippers and Pistons that brought guards Landry Shamet and Bruce Brown to Brooklyn. As part of the deal, the Nets also acquired No. 57 pick Reggie Perry of Mississippi State, with the No. 55 pick, used to select Jay Scrubb, going to the Clippers.
The trade was officially announced on Thursday evening.
“Both are very competitive,” said Brooklyn GM Sean Marks about Shamet and Brown. “Love that about both of them. Very diligent in their work ethic and you watch them even in simple things as their pregame warmups and how they prepare for games and how they attack in their approach. These guys, we’ve watched since college, so it’s been nice to follow their trajectory of their career and what they add to our team.”
Shamet and Brown are both 6-foot-4 guards selected in the 2018 draft, but they bring different strengths to the Nets.
Shamet, the 26th overall pick two years ago by Philadelphia, is a career 40.2 percent 3-point shooter on 5.2 attempts per game. He got off to a fast start with the Sixers as a rookie, enough to make him an appealing trade piece in the expansive midseason deal that sent Tobias Harris from the Clippers to the Sixers in February 2019.
With the Clippers, Shamet started 30 of his 53 games this past season, averaging 9.3 points in 27.4 minutes per game as they finished second in the Western Conference with a 49-23 record.
“Landry’s played big games,” said Marks. “When you’ve played in playoff games and you’re at that age, you’re a young guy, that speaks volumes. He’s obviously been trusted in other places he’s been and doesn’t shy away from big moments. He goes back to the experience he’s already had, but also adding more of that shooting piece. I still think he’s a very versatile defender as well.”
Brown is better known for his defense. Selected 42nd overall by Detroit two years ago, he started 99 of his 132 games over two seasons with the Pistons. In 2019-20, Brown averaged 8.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while starting 43 games.
“We’ve talked about adding some defensive players,” said Marks, “a toughness, a mindset, that’s what we will certainly be looking for in Bruce.”
Perry, 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds, was last season’s SEC Co-Player of the Year as well as an All-SEC First Team selection after averaging 17.4 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists for Mississippi State.
“He’s a big man out there with a forceful nature and, as you mentioned, he can be able to step out on the floor as well as play in the post,” said Marks. “We had him much higher on our board, and to be able to have a guy like that in with us, I look forward to seeing him develop. I look forward to seeing him in camp and going from there.”
Brooklyn’s No. 19 pick ended up in Detroit, with Villanova’s Saddiq Bey going to the Pistons. He’ll be joined there by Musa, the 29th overall pick by the Nets in 2018. Over two seasons with the Nets, Musa appeared in 49 games and averaged 4.3 points. The draft rights to guard Jaylen Hands, selected 56th overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, also went from the Nets to the Pistons. Hands spent the 2019-20 season with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s G League affiliate.