Linsane idea
Nets reportedly eye swapping PG for Carmelo — then buying him out
LAS VEGAS — After The Post reported last month that the Nets had quietly fielded calls about trading Jeremy Lin this offseason, now comes a report linking him with a deal for Carmelo Anthony and draft picks. Lin — who hasn’t played since rupturing his patellar tendon on opening night last season — has since been linked to Orlando and Phoenix. Now add Oklahoma City to the list, even if Lin himself doesn’t think a deal is going down. Anthony and Lin were Knicks teammates during the days of Linsanity. Now, according to Sirius XMNBA Radio host Mitch Lawrence, the rebuilding Nets are talking to the Thunder about trading Lin for muchneeded draft picks and the aging Anthony, whom they would then buy out. For his part, the 29-year-old Lin said this week that if any trade talks were real and substantive, general manager Sean Marks or coach Kenny Atkinson would let him know.
And as of Wednesday, Lin said he hadn’t gotten that call.
As a matter of fact, the only call he had received was from his agent, Jim Tanner, saying nothing was brewing.
“I didn’t [get a call]. My agent called me just to clarify,” Lin said. “But no, I don’t think there’s any. I don’t think that has any truth to it.” Several things should be noted: 1) The Nets would have to do some other fiscal gymnastics to even make the deal work.
2) The Thunder are said to be looking to move Anthony and take back the least salary possible.
3) The Nets can’t get a Thunder pick before 2021.
Both Marks and Thunder boss Sam Presti are detail-oriented Spurs disciples, meaning plenty of calls get made before any moves do. This could be due diligence. Lin opted in to the final $12.5 million season on his three-year deal, and has a 10 percent trade kicker, while Anthony is making $27.9 million on his expiring deal.
With the Nets just about $10.5 million under the cap, the trade wouldn’t work unless Brooklyn sent back other pieces the Thunder might be loath to take.
Another issue is that the Thunder traded away their 2019 firstround pick, and therefore can’t give Brooklyn their 2020 selection, either.
The Nets getting more than $5 million back from Dwight Howard’s buyout made taking salary dumps more possible. That’s still the case, either with any Anthony trade and buyout, or other moves the Nets have looked at.
“We’ll figure out how much cap space we have, and when that’s fully determined, we’ll move forward with how we use it,” Marks said.
“We’ll use it strategically whether it’s on players or whether it’s on trades and acquisitions from other teams. We’ll figure that out.”
Lin started going one-on-one with contact five weeks ago, and said he hopes to move up to three-on-three, but admitted he’s still not as explosive as he was.
The Nets also have point guards D’Angelo Russell, Spencer Dinwiddie, Caris LeVert and Isaiah Whitehead, as well as last year’s two-way, Milton Doyle — who had a game-high 21 points in Wednesday’s summer-league game.
Marks previously had stated he’s not set on trading Lin.
“If you look at the team now, that’s what we’ve got and that’s what we’re planning on,’’ Marks said. “We’re planning on going into the season with that team. Anything can happen.
“All I know is Jeremy’s rehab is progressing really well and our expectations are that he’ll be good to go and on the court 100 percent by training camp.
“It’s been handy to have a couple of extra point guards. There’s absolutely no need for us to rush and go out there to do any particular deals … to solve the so-called glut at point guard.”