The Brooklyn Nets are currently one of the worst basketball teams in the 2023-2024 NBA season. They have poorly underachieved, fired their head coach and botched the trade deadline. General Manager Sean Marks is responsible for this poorly constructed Nets roster and failed coaching staff. The Nets 2023-2024 roster is flawed but the team problems date back as early as three years ago. Sean Marks problems as General Manager began in January 2021, the year he traded multiple first round draft picks, future All Star Jarret Allen, role players Carris Levert and Taurean Prince for Super Stars James Harden. The future first round draft picks would go to the Houston Rockets, preventing the Nets from owning their own picks in the future. Just one year later, Sean Marks traded a disgruntled James Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers for former multi All Star Ben Simmons. Marks could have kept the Nets big 3 of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden in tact for the 2022 playoffs. He would listen to Harden’s trade request, ending the Nets short lived big 3 of 16 games. Ben Simmons was expected to be the Nets third best player during their 2022 playoff run. Marks traded for Simmons, knowing that he had experienced back injuries. The plan was for Simmons to rehab his back and return at the end of the regular season. Simmons did not return, missing the remaining regular season games and the 2022 playoffs. Simmons would experience more injuries, limiting him to only playing in 42 and 17 games in 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 seasons. Simmons is the Nets highest paid player, owed 38 and 40 million dollars in the current and following NBA season. Sean Marks would later trade Super Stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving at the 2023 NBA trade deadline, ending all Championship expectations. Draft picks and role players Dorian Finey Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson would be the return to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. The Nets were still able to make the 2023 playoffs, finishing as a 6 seed in the Eastern Conference. They showed progress from Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson in the months of March and April but were swept by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round. Sean Marks preached a goal of improving the team during the 2023 offseason. His goal was to keep the Nets competitive and build on the team’s regular season success. Marks first offseason move was overpaying Cam Johnson, in hopes that Johnson would take his game to the next level as a second leading scorer. He would follow the overpay by signing minimum level exception role players Lonnie Walker, Dennis Smith Jr and Trendon Wattford. Marks had the opportunity to trade for Super Star Damian Lillard but turned down the trade idea. He essentialy ran back the same Nets team from the end of 2023 regular season season. Marks felt that his Nets team would built to compete for the 2024 playoffs. He went into the season with the hopes that Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and Ben Simmons could lead the team back to the playoffs. Everything Sean Marks has hoped for has backfired. Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges have regressed after showing success from the previous season. The Nets are 13 games under .500 and stuck as the 11 seed the Eastern Conference. The team lacks any star power, being refered to a team of only role players. The Nets did not make any significant moves at the 2023 trade deadline and are expected to give a lotttery pick to the Houston Rockets during the 2024 NBA Draft. Marks has also fired four different head coaches during his 8 years as Nets General Manager. Lastly, the Nets have only won 1 playoff series during Marks tenure, as they were swept by the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers during the 2020, 2022 and 2023 playoffs. The list could go on but the question about his future remains. Is it time for the Brooklyn Nets to move on from Sean Marks? Can Sean Marks rebuild a championship caliber roster? The clock keeps ticking like in a basketball game and Sean Marks days on the clock should be numbered.
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