Nets, Kings Complete Trade for Marcus Thornton

Marcus Thornton is the newest Brooklyn Net, according to various sources.

Nets, Kings complete trade of Marcus Thenron for Jason Terry and Reggie Evans. No picks involved.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) February 19, 2014

With this trade, the Nets acquire a solid scorer off the bench and free up a roster spot – perhaps best of all, they free up some dead weight at the end of the roster. Jason Terry and Reggie Evans, who will don the purple uniforms in Sacramento, have PERs this season of 7.6 and 9.0, respectively – the only Net with a lower PER is Marquis Teague.

Thornton is scoring just 8.3 points per game this season, but is only a few years removed from averaging about 20 points per game over two seasons. The reason for his fall in production? His minutes were cut from about 36 per game to just 24.2 after coach Paul Westphal was fired.

The 26-year-old shooting guard makes $8.05 million this year and will make $8.57 million next season before his contract expires.

Notably, the move also frees up a roster spot. Rumors have been rampant this week that Brooklyn has been trying to acquire Jordan Hill from the Los Angeles Lakers. To do so, the Nets would have to pay about $17 million in taxes and it would push the team's already historically high payroll over $200 million:

With Sacramento deal and absorbing Hill into Disabled Player Exception, Nets payroll and tax would reach $210 million or so.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) February 19, 2014

As the Nets struggle to remain in contention for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, general manager Billy King seems dedicated to making this squad as effective as possible before the trade deadline. Owner Mikhail Prokhorov proves again with this trade that money is of little or no consequence for him. The 6'4", 205-pound guard adds depth to the Brooklyn backcourt, which was manned by a combination of Terry, Teague, and Alan Anderson.

What's your opinion, Brooklyn fans? Good trade? Let us know in the comments.

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