Earlier this month, NBA fans were sent to a frenzy when reports of a trade talk surfaced on the Internet. However, the rumors that said the Hornets and the Nets were discussing the trade of Hornets guard Lance Stephenson and Nets center Brook Lopez quickly died down.
Now, though, it would appear that the two teams are attempting to seal a trade deal once again. This time, however, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo, instead of Lopez, the Nets are interested in trading guard Joe Johnson for Stephenson, Marvin Williams, and Gerald Henderson.
The Brooklyn Nets were on a losing streak this season, having lost eight of their 10 games. It is because of this standing that the team found themselves outside of the Eastern Conference's top eight spots. They are reportedly going to deal all of their top players, as reported by the International Business Times.
According to NJ.com, Michael Jordan, the owner of the Hornets, has been very intrigued with Johnson and his skills. He has managed to play the game so well, despite his recent struggle with tendinitis, which is the irritation or inflammation of the tendons, as defined by Mayo Clinic.
The report also mentioned that this recent trade move is the Nets' attempt to shed contracts. For instance, the International Business Times states that Johnson is owed $24.9 million during the final year of his signed contract, which will be next season. However, the trade deal did not offer the Nets any salary cap relief.
Johnson used to have one of the Association's worst contracts ever. He was getting an average total of 15.5 points on 42.7% shooting, which would be his lowest scoring average since the 2002-2003 season. From 2005 to 2009, he has been averaging a minimum of 20 points per game in every season.
Majority of the fans of the Hornets just cannot wait to get Stephenson off the team as they do not see him as a good fit for their team anyway. However, Swarm and Sting has reported that Johnson might not be the right person the Hornets should be asking for in exchange.
Apart from his constant battle with injuries, he is also 33 years old and is believed to be "on the decline." Plus, Swarm and Sting has also placed him under fire because of his "LeBron James type of money, definitely not Joe Johnson type of money."
However, according to the website, there is one obviously positive thing about the trade. With Henderson and Williams heading off for the Nets soon, it means that rookies Noah Vonleh and PJ Hairston get to have more playing time.
