This season, the Brooklyn Nets have struggled in close games. The team has faced numerous changes, including player trades and injuries. Despite these challenges, the franchise has managed to stay in the playoff race, being only two games away from 10th place in the Eastern Conference for a play-in tournament spot. After news broke this morning that Bojan Bogdanovic would undergo season-ending foot surgery, it is now reported that he will be waived.
Nets Forward Bojan Bogdanovic Waived After Season-Ending Injury
Bogdanovic returned to the Nets as part of a blockbuster trade that sent Mamadi Diakite, Shake Milton, five first-round picks, a pick swap, and one second-round pick to the Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Keita Bates-Diop, and a second-round pick. He has journeyed through the NBA, playing for the Nets, Detroit Pistons, Washington Wizards, Indiana Pacers, Utah Jazz, and New York Knicks. In 2014, he began his NBA career with the Nets and signed a three-year, $10 million contract after several years of playing in Europe. He was in the final season of a two-year, $39 million contract he signed with the Detroit Pistons.
Although Bogdanovic, 35 and considered past his prime, may not have been in the Nets’ future plans, they hoped he would bring his veteran experience to the team this season. People have recognized him throughout his career for his three-point shooting and ball-handling. However, despite his on-court success, injuries, including wrist and foot issues, have disrupted his career, notably, he hasn’t played a game all season.
Bojan Bogdanovic Is Being Waived
ESPN’s Shams Charania broke the story that the Nets are waiving Bogdanovic to clear roster spots in order to sign Killian Hayes and Tyrese Martin. Nets reporter Sharif Phillips-Keaton shared Nets’ head coach, Jordi Fernandez’s, comments about Bogdanovic:
“He’s done a great job showing up here every day, trying to get healthy. Unfortunately, he couldn’t get to that point, and he made the decision to get surgery. We fully support him.”
Killian and Martin join the Nets, who have a 20-34 record and are in 12th place. Before the All-Star break, the Nets secured three straight wins, putting them in contention for a play-in tournament spot. However, over the past week, fans have voiced their anger and concerns, urging the franchise to continue tanking to secure top prospects in the upcoming draft. Potential draft candidates include Cooper Flagg from Duke, Ace Bailey, and Dylan Harper from Rutgers.
Cam Johnson, who competed in the All-Star three-point contest, shared his thoughts on Nets fans and their comments about tanking.
“We don’t care. We do not care what they say about that,” Johnson said. “Listen, at the end of the day, the 15, 18 guys on his team have a job to do, and our job is to not try to get a draft pick. Our job is simply to win basketball games, the basketball games that are in front of us, and that’s what we’re going to put our full effort towards. We don’t care about all that other noise.
Johnson continued, “If that’s what they think, then they’re not really a fan. They don’t want us to succeed. You’re going to ask our own players to lose? We’re not going to do that. We’re out there to compete, to win every game.”
Johnson passionately spoke about the Nets winning at this point. However, these words are not what the fans want to hear. Fans hold little confidence in the team advancing in the playoffs. Therefore, they prefer losing and focusing on the future.
The Future
The news that Bogdanovic is being waived comes a week after the Nets and Ben Simmons parted ways. Simmons played three seasons with the franchise but fell short due to injuries. The Nets aim to complete the season and ideally land a high pick in the lottery. As of today, they hold 31 draft picks for the upcoming years.
Bogdanovic becomes a free agent this summer and could be a great veteran for a championship-contending team. His career average is 15.6 points per game. However, it is unclear if he will retire after the surgery. He has also had knee issues in the past two seasons. As for the Nets, only time will tell how their season ends and the choices they’ll make.
Photo credit: © Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
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