Nic Claxton was one of the few bright spots during a very disappointing Brooklyn Nets season, but now it’s unclear if he’ll be back with the team or become a casualty of their financial constraints.
It was originally reported last month that Brooklyn had intended to match any offer to the restricted free agent, but now there could be some exceptions to that. The Houston Chronicle reported on Sunday that the Nets “are considered unlikely to match a mid-level offer” to Claxton.
The report did not offer any more details, but it did follow similar reporting from earlier in the week that suggested that Claxton’s future with the Nets was a little more unclear. Heavy.com’s Sean Deveny had written in May that one NBA GM had said to him that Brooklyn would match any offer to Claxton.
If the Nets can get a deal done before June 30, they can offer Claxton as high as a four-year, $55 million contract to stay in Brooklyn. Claxton averaged a career-best 8.7 points per game and shot 67.4% from the field during the regular season.
In the postseason, Claxton was a big contributor as well. He averaged 10.5 points a game and averaged 24.5 minutes against the Boston Celtics in the Nets’ first-round loss.
The big man’s time in Brooklyn has been filled with ups and downs due to injury and the team did reportedly speak to the Toronto Raptors about trying to trade Claxton.
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The potential change in posture highlights the tough position that Nets general manager Sean Marks is in this offseason with little flexibility. Claxton is one of several players that need new contracts this offseason, as well as the likelihood of Kyrie Irving renegotiating his contract this offseason.
