In 2013, the Brooklyn Nets shocked the basketball world by delivering one of the biggest trades in the franchise's history. They obtained Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry for a staggering cost by sending Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, Tornike Shengelia, Reggie Evans, Keith Bogans, and unprotected first-round picks in 2014, 2016, and 2018 to the Boston Celtics .
The KG-Pierce acquisition was so big that it only made Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov excited and proud about his team's odds of competing at the highest level.
"Today, the basketball gods smiled on the Nets," he said . "With the arrival of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, we have achieved a great balance on our roster between veteran stars and young talents. This team will be dazzling to watch and tough to compete against.”
A bold gamble
While Prokhorov and the rest of the Brooklyn organization were on cloud nine upon orchestrating this bold move, the majority raised their eyebrows at the other hand on how the Nets instantly pulled the trigger, knowing the glaring risks and consequences that may unfold against them in the long run.
Although they gained two first-ballot future Hall of Famers in both KG and Pierce , the major downside has been present from their age. The duo was already stepping at the twilight of their illustrious career as Garnett (37) and Pierce (35) have shown signs of decline in the past few seasons for Boston. Fans and experts deemed that trading for these aging former stars appeared unworthy for the Nets at the expense of blowing away their future as these unprotected three first-round selections are pivotal in the team's identity and opportunity moving forward.
But despite public negativity, Prokhorov and the Nets viewed the trade as a major victory – forming an interesting starting group of Garnett, Pierce, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Brook Lopez. They embraced a win-now approach and felt confident in their chances to contend. Going all-in mattered the most for them as they were gunning to chase and dethrone the reigns of LeBron James and the Miami Heat, who were coming off their back-to-back championship wins. Netting the ‘Big Ticket’ and the ‘Truth’ from Boston convinced Brooklyn they had a legitimate shot to win it all.
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The trade backfired against Brooklyn for worse
In the end, Prokhorov's lofty hopes of glory upon the infamous landing of KG and Pierce slowly crumbled to ashes, sending the franchise down to fallout and humiliation for the years that followed.
Although not what they were used to as two of the league's biggest stars, Garnett and Pierce were considerably serviceable as they played their first season in Brooklyn. But as a group, they relatively underachieved. They tallied 44 wins, finished as the No. 6 team in the East, and went on to be eliminated by LeBron and the Heat in five games of the Conference Semis. After that season, Pierce walked away and left for the Washington Wizards, while Garnett only remained until the 2014-15 midseason, when he reunited with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
As Garnett and Pierce's time with them was short-lived, the Nets became doomed as the huge loser of their trade with the C's. With no draft assets available, their desire for a rebuild was ruined. Brooklyn's two future picks paved the way for Boston to identify Jaylen Brown (2016) and Jayson Tatum (2017), and the rest was just history.
The Nets’ aspirations for short-term success ended in a major disaster, as it only gave the Celtics the best cornerstones they could ever ask who led them to their 18th banner this year.
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