clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Deals Done: Woj and Stein report Lopez, Young will remain Nets

By Net Income
Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

The Nets' successful, if boring, off-season continued early Wednesday morning with both Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc Stein reporting the Nets had deals with their two big off-season targets, Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young. Combined, the deals will cost Nets ownership close to $110 million.

Later, Young himself tweeted how happy he is to return to Brooklyn.


The deals follow the NBA Draft, where the Nets got among the highest grades for their success in drafting Chris McCullough and Juan Pablo Vautel, their trade for Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and signing of the undrafted Cliff Alexander.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, Lopez's $60 million deal over three years has several protections for both the team and player.

Lopez, 27, will receive a three-year, $60 million maximum contract that includes some protections for the Nets should a recurrence of Lopez’s foot issues sideline him again, sources said. The deal is expected to incude a player option after the second season, which would allow him to re-enter free agency once new television money raises the salary cap.

The Young deal, while not a max contract, is also lucrative, Woj added.

Young, 27, who opted out of $10.2 million owed him next season, will sign a four-year, $50 million deal, sources said.

However, Howard Beck and others are reporting there is no player option, which conforms to what NetsDaily has been told.


Sources told NetsDaily that the two players will earn almost exactly $30 million in the upcoming season -- $18.8 million for Lopez and $11.2 million for Young. That's nearly half the salary cap.  Combined, the two also averaged about 30 points per game for the Nets. McCullough and Hollis-Jefferson will make $2.4 million combined and Steve Blake, acquired in the RHJ trade for Mason Plumlee $2.2 million.

Billy King, Mikhail Prokhorov and team chairman Dmitry Razumov had all said the re-signing of the two 27-year-olds were the franchise's top priorities. In recent days, there was increasing confidence that both could be accomplished and rather quickly after free agency began at midnight. The Nets are the only team Lopez has played for, even though the team tried to trade him away multiple times. Young joined the team from Minnesota at the deadline in a deal for Kevin Garnett. His addition helped Lopez gain offensive freedom he didn't have working with KG.

In the only surprise of the morning, Tim Bontemps tweeted that the competition for Mirza Teletoivc may be broader than just the NBA.


And Ken Berger of CBS Sports reports the Nets other free agent, Alan Anderson is "said to be seeking $3-$4 million a year from a contending team." With Brooklyn so high on Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, it's unlikely they will go that high for Anderson, who made $1.3 million and is 33 years old.

Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post said the Wizards may be that team.


The big question for the rest of free agency is what the Nets will do, if anything, with the contracts of Joe Johnson, who will earn $24.9 million, and Deron Williams with $21 million on the book for this year and another $22.3 million player option in 2016-17.

In the only other Nets free agency rumor around the deadline, ESPN Chris Broussard reported Brooklyn could be among those teams interested in signing Carlos Boozer, the veteran power forward and former Williams teammate in Utah.

More From NetsDaily