The Rise and Fall of Deron Williams in Brooklyn

It all started on February 23, 2011. This was the day the Nets' franchise would change for the better... or so we thought.

Billy King was coming off of a loss when it came to the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes, which was known, at the time, as the Melo-drama. Anthony was shipped from Denver to the New York Knicks after months of rumors saying he may end up in New Jersey. The Nets drove a hard bargain, but it wasn't enough as the Knicks threw half of their franchises assets to Denver. Meanwhile, the Nets had a backup plan.

Deron Williams, the star point guard from the Utah Jazz, had just run long-time head coach Jerry Sloan out of Utah. That didn't make the front office very happy, so soon after Sloan's departure, the Jazz answered a call from Billy King requesting the talents of D-Will. New Jersey sent all-star point guard Devin Harris, third-overall pick Derrick Favors, two future first-round draft picks, and $3M cash to Utah in exchange for their new face of a laughing-stock franchise.

Williams came into an awful situation in New Jersey. He had just been traded to a team trying to bounce back from a 12-70 season the previous year. Although he played just 12 games for the Nets after being traded (wrist injury), his impact was immediate. He struggled to shoot the ball because of that nagging wrist, but he averaged 15 points and 13 assists in those games before having season-ending surgery on April 11th.

His first full season with the Nets was weird. The Nets didn't make any notable additions, so they were again expected to be a mediocre team at best. The league entered a lockout that cost them 14 games from the schedule. Before coming back to the NBA when the lockout was lifted, Williams decided to play in Turkey, where his #8 is now retired. The Nets finished 22-44 in the shortened season, and Deron led them averaging 21 points and nine assists per game in his third all-star season.

Fast-forwarding to free agency 2012... There were two teams known as front-runners for the free agent Deron Williams: the NEW Brooklyn Nets and his hometown Dallas Mavericks. Williams decided to stay in Brooklyn on a 5-year, $98M max-contract. Now the Nets had their face locked up for his prime-years... right?

Wrong. Deron Williams' prime years never happened. His coach-killing continued as Avery Johnson was fired after Williams stated that he had trouble adjusting to Avery's system. Although he averaged 19 points and seven assists during the first season in Brooklyn, helping the Nets get to the playoffs for the first time since 2007, that was the last we would see of D-Will.

After getting bounced in the first round by the Chicago Bulls, Billy King decided to make a move that would give Deron the tools to lead the Nets to the promised land. He traded the bloated contracts of Gerald Wallace and Kris Humphries for future hall-of-famers Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.

After this trade, we saw Deron disappear into the shadows of the Barclays Center for good. He averaged just 14 points and six assists in what many thought would be an MVP-type season. Although the Nets made it to the second round of the playoffs, it wasn't all thanks to Williams. He would put up 0 points, a goose-egg, in game two of the second round series against the Miami Heat, who booted the Nets in just five games.

With no Paul Pierce and just 42 games of Kevin Garnett, whom the Nets traded at the deadline, Williams saw himself decline even more. His attitude got worse, and reports surfaced that he needed to be physically held back from attacking head coach Lionel Hollins. He averaged just 13 points and six assists during the season, and put on a nauseating performance in the first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks.

Now, three-months later, we come to our conclusion of the Deron Williams era in New Jersey/Brooklyn. Some say the era ended before the 2013-14 season. The Nets and Williams agreed to a buyout from the contract which he never lived up to. Rather... he never wanted to live up to. Deron Williams never wanted to be a Net. He never cared about winning, and that showed in his body language. He gave up on Brooklyn and the Nets long ago, as the fans gave up on him as well.

Now we simply say farewell, Deron Williams. Sorry we never got to meet the real you.

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