The Detroit Pistons are among the teams who have had interest in acquiring Spencer Dinwiddie from the Nets, per SNY sources.
ESPN reported that the Nets are ‘shopping’ Dinwiddie, who is currently recovering from surgery to repair a partially torn right ACL.
It is unknown if Dinwiddie will be able to return this season. The Nets have said in the past that it would be unlikely.
Dinwiddie has a $12.3 million player option for 2021-22.
If he is traded before the deadline, it seems that the team who acquires Dinwiddie would have plans to sign him to a new contract if he opted out of his current deal. Detroit is among the teams that would have the cap space to offer Dinwiddie, 27, a new deal.
While it may seem like a risk to commit to signing a player who suffered an ACL injury, it’s worth noting that players generally make full recoveries from the injury.
Dinwiddie also has experience with the injury. He tore his left ACL as a junior at Colorado.
Clearly, he rebounded well from that injury because Dinwiddie has been one of Brooklyn’s best players since joining the club in 2016.
Last season, Dinwiddie started 49 games while Kyrie Irving was sidelined due to injury. He averaged 20.8 points and 6.8 assists for the Nets.
Outside of Joe Harris, Dinwiddie is probably the best asset Brooklyn can offer teams at the trade deadline to try to improve their roster.
Most of the Nets’ assets were traded away in the deal to acquire James Harden; that deal, obviously, has put Brooklyn on the short list of teams with a legitimate shot at a trip to the NBA Finals.
Rather than executing a trade, the Nets can wait to see which players become available via the buyout market. Brooklyn has the roster spots to add players.
It will be interesting to see how the Nets proceed with Dinwiddie at the trade deadline. If the guard opts out of his current deal, Brooklyn would likely have to incur an expensive luxury tax bill to re-sign both Dinwiddie and Bruce Brown. Brown has played a key role for Brooklyn this season.
So if the Nets didn’t think they’d be able to re-sign Dinwiddie, it would make sense for them to explore trade opportunities for the seven-year veteran. Dinwiddie spent his first two seasons in the NBA with Detroit.