Sources confirmed that Williams and the Nets are negotiating a potential buyout of his contract, greasing the skids for a possible role with his hometown Dallas Mavericks and signaling a new beginning in Brooklyn, which seems to change slogans and direction with each passing season.
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Brooklyn also tied up $100 million in Deron Williams, another contract they want to be rid of and could end up eating in a buyout.
However, attempts to trade Williams have gone nowhere.
If that $20 million figure was the number the Nets and Williams were able to agree upon, not only would it free up more than $18 million in cap space for the Nets to use next summer, but it also would drop them under the luxury tax threshold for this season – something multiple sources have indicated for months the Nets are very anxious to try and accomplish.
Williams sloshed through a down 2014-15 season, averaging just 13.3 points and 6.6 assists a game while shooting a career-low 38.7%.
The New York team is trying to shed payroll and the point guard is looking for a fresh start.
Despite their eagerness to cut salary from a roster desperately in need of a rebuild, the Nets aren’t content to simply waive Williams, preferring to reach a buyout agreement that could allow them to recoup some of the money still owed to him in exchange for giving him the right to choose his next destination. Williams, who did not have a great season, is due to make $43 million over the next two years.
Deron to Dallas is alive yet again, and this time the feeling is mutual.
The Mavericks may be motivated to sign Williams after being spurned in free agency by DeAndre Jordan, who backed out of his verbal commitment and re-signed with the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday. With this The Nets could have nearly 72 Million saved and plus they would not be taxed under luxury Tax.
The Utah Jazz selected Williams with the third overall pick in the 2005, spending six plus seasons there before he was traded to Brooklyn in February 2011. The offense in Dallas is set up to fit his style of play and with players like Wes Matthews and Chandler Parsons, his assists can rise back to what it was earlier in his career.
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The easiest scenario for Williams to get from the Nets to the Mavs would be for the teams to agree to a trade. This Nets team could represent a good overall 2-3 seed for many years. Brooklyn will do what it takes to get out from under this contract.
