Kevin Durant

The Brooklyn Nets may have reached a detente in their relationship with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but it appears there's still work to be done in regaining trust behind the scenes.

NBA insider Marc Stein reported the Nets' recent signing of Markieff Morris was rooted in a desire to acquire a veteran voice willing to stand up to the two superstars.

"The Nets were desperate to add a veteran who could command the respect of stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving and believe Morris has the gravitas to speak up when necessary like he did in Los Angeles alongside James and Davis," Stein wrote.

The Nets front office spent all of last season dealing with a mess centered around Irving's refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Irving was limited to just 29 regular-season games due to that choice, which ultimately played a part in the Nets being the No. 7 seed in the East and James Harden's midseason trade request.

Controversy carried over into the offseason when the Nets refused to commit to a long-term contract with Irving and then reached fever pitch levels when Durant requested a trade. That months-long saga played out largely in the media before Durant rescinded his request and ultimately recommitted to Brooklyn.

Suffice it to say the Nets are understandably wary of allowing Irving and Durant to set the organizational tone moving forward.

Morris is a no-nonsense player who has never shied away from standing up to teammates when needed. It's unclear if that tact will work with Durant and Irving, who are among the NBA's most headstrong players.

That said, the culture established over the duo's first two seasons was untenable. Adding Morris to the mix and potentially trying something a little different may ultimately prove fruitful.

Marcus Smart does not seem bothered that his name came up in Kevin Durant trade rumors this offseason.

"For someone who's always talked about in trade talks, I didn't really pay too much mind to that. Until it actually happens, I don't believe it," Smart told Jared Weiss of The Athletic. "We can sit here and say this person said this, but we don't even know who said it. It's like a telephone game. By the time it gets back to you, you don't know what changed and who said what. Until it actually happens, I try to pay trade rumors no mind."

The Brooklyn Nets wanted Smart, Jaylen Brown, several draft picks and perhaps another player for Durant, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. The Celtics balked at that asking price, and Durant ultimately recommitted to Brooklyn.

It's worth noting that Smart, rather than Brown, was the piece that made Boston resistant to the blockbuster. Charania reported the Celtics offered Brown, Derrick White and a pick to the Nets but were "less inclined" to offer a package that included Smart with multiple other players or picks.

Smart is the NBA's reigning Defensive Player of the Year and became the first guard to win it since Gary Payton in 1995-96. They are the only point guards to earn the honor.

While his defensive presence on the perimeter is stellar, Smart is also a vital emotional leader for Boston. Brown and Jayson Tatum tend to be more measured, whereas Smart is expressive on the floor and behind the scenes.

“When I told those guys I love them, I meant it," Smart told reporters before the NBA Finals. "We've all been through some things individually. Al [Horford], Jaylen, couple of those guys that have been here with me. My mom passed; they flew all the way to Dallas for the funeral. That was for real. It wasn't no tactic. It was nothing. That was me being who I am and it was being true. We have a special bond outside of basketball, and to be able to go to war with those guys makes that bond even stronger.”

Smart expressed gladness that the Celtics did not shake up their core, saying he wants to "run it back" with last season's Eastern Conference champions.

How Boston's rejection of Brooklyn's blockbuster proposal is remembered will be determined by how successful these Celtics are.

When the Brooklyn Nets were exploring potential trades for star forward Kevin Durant, many had wondered if the Golden State Warriors would be interested in a reunion with him.

Golden State star point guard Stephen Curry told Matt Sullivan of Rolling Stone that the team would have welcomed Durant back, answering, "Hell, yeah!" when asked if it was ever under consideration this summer.

The Nets and Durant eventually reconciled and decided to forge ahead together. Curry said he would've had no issues if Golden State tried to convince Brooklyn to trade the 12-time All-Star.

"There was a conversation internally amongst us about 'If he was available, would you?' Every team has those conversations, and obviously in our situation, they’re gonna call me and ask me, 'How do you feel about it?' I was never hesitant," Curry explained. "The idea of playing with KD and knowing who he is as a person, from our history in those three years, I think KD’s a really good dude."

Durant starred for the Warriors from 2017 to 2019 and helped lead the team to two NBA championships and three straight NBA Finals appearances. He chose to sign with Brooklyn as a free agent, but his tenure with the team hasn't gone as he had hoped.

The Nets struggled through off-the-court turmoil last season and were swept out of the playoffs in the first round. The Warriors, on the other hand, went on to win their fourth NBA title in the last eight years, and Curry was named Finals MVP for the first time in his legendary career.

While Durant's trade request this offseason may have hurt his standing in the eyes of some people, Curry still supports his former teammate.

"I think he is misunderstood," Curry said. "I think he has had certain things happen in his life that hurt his ability to trust people around him, in a sense of making him feel safe at all times. So all of those things, I understand, having played with him and gotten to know him. I love that dude."

Phoenix Suns general manager James Jones said the Suns never came close to acquiring Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets this offseason.

Jones told Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic that there was "not much discussion, in-depth discussion" between him and the Nets.

"We had discussions with Brooklyn about their desires and what they were trying to do, but ultimately, I would say like most teams, there was nothing to it," he said.

Durant was made available this offseason after requesting a trade, but the Nets announced last month that they and KD had "agreed to move forward" together.

Durant's business manager, Rich Kleiman, told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski (h/t ESPN's Tim Bontemps) in June that the two-time NBA champion and Finals MVP had requested a trade and the Nets agreed to work with him to find a trade partner.

Wojnarowski noted the Suns and Miami Heat were on Durant's wish list.

Phoenix seemingly had a solid chance to land Durant because it could offer first-round draft picks and center Deandre Ayton.

Ayton was the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft, and he has been highly productive in four seasons, averaging 16.3 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. He also helped lead the Suns to the NBA Finals in 2021, averaging 15.8 points and 11.8 rebounds during that playoff run.

Despite that, there were question marks regarding Ayton's future with the organization, as he was a restricted free agent.

In mid-July, the Indiana Pacers signed him to a four-year, $132.9 million offer sheet.

The Suns matched it, which rendered them unable to trade him until January, and that may have ended any hope they could trade for Durant.

Had Phoenix acquired the 33-year-old 12-time All-Star, it may have become the championship favorite, as he could have joined Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Mikal Bridges.

The Suns had the best record in the NBA last season, but they suffered a disappointing second-round playoff exit at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks. Now, they are set to enter the 2022-23 campaign with largely the same team.

Meanwhile, the Nets will look to make at least one more run at contending for a championship with a core of Durant and Kyrie Irving plus Ben Simmons, who didn't play last season amid being traded from the Philadelphia 76ers in the James Harden deal.

The Nets were swept out of the first round, but Durant averaged 29.9 points and a career-high 6.4 assists per game during the regular season.

As for Phoenix, the core of Booker, Paul, Ayton and Bridges will look to get past a Golden State Warriors team that won it all last season.

Kevin Durant may be a generational superstar, but one NBA front office member has suggested there could be concerns over his personality.

The NBA executive told Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today that Durant's history of unceremoniously leaving teams led to a tepid trade market for the Brooklyn Nets.

"Teams don’t want to overpay for someone who has proven he will burn your house down," the exec said.

Durant previously exited the Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors franchises in an attempt to find his NBA Valhalla, but he did so both times within the generally accepted confines of free agency. The Brooklyn Nets were his first chosen destination that didn't already have a record-setting regular season baked in; it was his chance to carve out a legacy in the country's biggest city.

It took Durant three years to want out of that situation as well.

While the Nets were able to paper things over enough for Durant to return for the 2022-23 season, it's easy to see why teams would have some level of hesitation. If Durant was willing to demand a trade less than a year after signing a four-year extension, there was nothing stopping him from doing the same thing to them—after they'd already given up the assets necessary to acquire the 12-time All-Star.

James Harden just requested two trades in the span of 13 months; it isn't an unreasonable concern.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported the best offer the Nets received for Durant was Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and a future first-round pick. While Brown was the second-best player on an NBA Finals team last season, he's also a 26-year-old one-time All-Star. White is a solid-but-fungible role player. One first-round pick is arguably an insult in an era where the Utah Jazz got four for Rudy Gobert.

The Nets and Durant may publicly say all the right things moving forward, but KD is back in Brooklyn next season in large part because no one wanted him enough to make a palatable trade offer.

The Brooklyn Nets' best trade offer for superstar forward Kevin Durant was the Boston Celtics' reported package centered around All-Star guard Jaylen Brown.

Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic reported that news on the Rich Eisen Show Wednesday (1:10 mark).

Charania noted that the Celtics offered Brown, guard Derrick White and a first-round pick for Durant, a 12-time All-Star and 10-time All-NBA selection.

The Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat were also reportedly in the mix for Durant. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that both teams were on Durant's "wish list." The Toronto Raptors, Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors, among other teams, were also rumored to be interested in Durant.

Durant requested a trade in late June, but nothing ever materialized. The Nets announced Tuesday that KD, who is under contract through 2026, will remain a member of the team going forward:

Seven-time All-Star Kyrie Irving, who was also part of trade rumors, will remain in town as he plays out his 2022-23 option.

Brooklyn opens the 2022-23 regular season on Oct. 19 versus the New Orleans Pelicans. The Nets are looking to bounce back from a first-round series sweep at the hands of the eventual Eastern Conference title-winning Boston Celtics.

The Brooklyn Nets announced an agreement with All-Star forward Kevin Durant to "move forward with our partnership," bringing an end to the NBA offseason's top remaining storyline.

Now the Nets, who were a potential seller in wake of Durant's trade request in June, are back in the buyer category as they look to round out their roster behind the trio of KD, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons to open the 2022-23 campaign.

Let's analyze a couple possible targets for Brooklyn before it tips off the regular season Oct. 19 against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Trade: Indiana Pacers Center Myles Turner

The Nets will utilize a lot of small-ball, free-flowing lineups with Durant, Irving and Simmons sharing time leading the offense. They lack a proven center who can handle work in the post when they go more traditional, though.

A combination of Nic Claxton, Royce O'Neale and Day'Ron Sharpe would likely be called on to handle the 5 in those situations.

A trade for Turner would help fill that void and give the already versatile Nets another well-rounded option to create defensive matchup problems.

The 2015 first-round pick averaged 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.8 blocks and 1.5 threes while shooting 50.9 percent from the field across 42 appearances for the Pacers last season.

Turner recently told Andscape's Marc J. Spears the constant speculation he's faced since arriving in the NBA no longer bothers him.

"This is my fifth offseason with trade rumors going on. 'He's going to land here; he's going to do this. He going to do that.' I am finally numb to it, in a sense," Turner said.

He'd be a nice fit to fill one of the Nets' few roster holes, and that could help him find a more permanent home with less time in the rumor mill.

Free Agency: Forward Carmelo Anthony

It took awhile for Melo to find his comfort zone as a role player rather than a go-to scorer, but now that he's more accustomed to a complementary spot in the rotation, he can provide strong value for a contender like Brooklyn.

The 10-time All-Star averaged 13.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 threes while shooting 37.5 percent from beyond the arc in 69 games for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021-22.

He'd represent a great fit for the Nets' small-ball lineups, joining Durant, Irving, Simmons and Joe Harris or Seth Curry for basically a positionless style of basketball.

Anthony also brings some versatility, with plenty of experience on the wing and a couple of years recently when he's transitioned more toward the stretch 4 role.

Whether it's the former Syracuse standout or someone else from the free-agent market, the Nets are a strong bet to add a sharpshooter before the season gets underway.