In a surprising turn of events, the Brooklyn Nets have successfully acquired shooting guard Ochai Agbaji as part of a multi-team trade involving the Toronto Raptors and Los Angeles Clippers, a deal announced on Wednesday afternoon. This transaction not only brings the 6’5” Agbaji, who was a lottery pick in 2022, but also secures a second-round draft pick for 2032 from the Raptors, along with $3.5 million in cash considerations provided by the Clippers—all of this without giving up much in return.
To facilitate this trade, the Nets sent the Clippers their rights to Vanja Markinovic, a Serbian shooting guard aged 29, who was previously acquired during the Kevin Durant trade with the Phoenix Suns in 2023. Markinovic, unfortunately, was not viewed as a viable NBA prospect even before suffering a knee injury last week that has resulted in the end of his season in Serbia. Additionally, as part of this trade arrangement, the Raptors received veteran point guard Chris Paul from the Clippers, who is anticipated to be waived shortly, allowing him to join any team except the Clippers.
The initial report of this trade came from Shams Charania, while ESPN's Brian Windhorst indicated that the Nets are far from finished with their roster adjustments. "Brooklyn is likely to engage in multiple deals within the next 24 hours," Windhorst stated on ESPN shortly after Charania's announcement.
Agbaji, now in the final year of his rookie contract valued at $6.4 million, is a promising 25-year-old player hailing from Milwaukee. He was selected as the 14th overall pick in 2022, following an impressive collegiate career at the University of Kansas alongside current Nets forward Jalen Wilson. His accolades include being named a consensus first-team All-American and earning the title of Big 12 Player of the Year in 2022. Notably, he played a pivotal role in leading the Jayhawks to a national championship, where he was recognized as the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.
Originally drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers as a potential 3-and-D player, Agbaji was traded to the Utah Jazz prior to playing a single regular-season game in Cleveland and was later moved to the Toronto Raptors in February 2024.
Throughout his career in the NBA, spanning 243 games with 108 starts, Agbaji has averaged 7.3 points per game, showcasing shooting splits of 45% from the field, 34% from three-point range, and 75% from the free-throw line. His standout performance came two seasons ago when he posted an average of 10.4 points in 64 games, achieving impressive shooting statistics of 50% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc, along with registering 1.0 "stocks"—a term that encompasses both steals and blocks.
Once this acquisition is finalized, the Nets' roster will expand to 16 players, necessitating that they release someone before their upcoming game against the Orlando Magic on Thursday.
Yossi Gozlan from capsheets.com, along with insights from the Third Apron podcast, has delineated the Nets' current salary cap situation and their assets in the draft. However, Bobby Marks noted that the specific details of the deal might undergo minor adjustments.
Essentially, the Nets can incorporate Agbaji into their league-high cap space of $15.3 million, while still retaining $8.9 million. Alternatively, if they utilize the remaining cap space to acquire more expensive contracts before Thursday, they could use their $8.8 million Room Mid-Level Exception to bring Agbaji onboard, according to Gozlan.
In the meantime, Cam Thomas remained in New York while the team traveled from Newark to Orlando for the match against the Magic. Michael Scott reported that Thomas is attracting trade interest from teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Milwaukee Bucks. After opting for his qualifying offer in October, Thomas is set to earn $6.0 million this season as an unrestricted free agent, meaning he must consent to any potential trade.
This marks the fifth salary dump the Nets have engaged in since the previous summer. In these trades, they have acquired:
* Michael Porter Jr. along with an unprotected first-round pick from the Nuggets in 2032 in exchange for Cam Johnson;
* Terance Mann and an unprotected first-round pick from the Hawks in 2025 (which turned into Drake Powell) from Denver for $1.1 million in cash considerations;
* Haywood Highsmith and an unprotected second-round pick from the Heat in 2032 for a heavily protected second-round pick in 2026 from Miami;
* Kobe Bufkin for $110,000 in cash considerations from the Hawks.
Except for Bufkin, all other players acquired remain with the team.
