The Brooklyn Nets have been looking for answers to their defensive woes this season, and before their signing of Iman Shumpert, the Nets looked into Andre Roberson and former Net Kenneth Faried, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Roberson, who made the All-Defensive Second Team in 2017, looked healthy in workouts with the Nets after missing the majority of the last two seasons, as Roberson played in seven games for the Oklahoma City Thunder down in the bubble. Before his trip to the bubble, Roberson last appeared in an NBA game on January 27th, 2018, as he suffered a ruptured patella tendon that day.
Faried, on the other hand, last played for the Houston Rockets in the 2018-19 season after a short stint with the Nets. In about 25 minutes per game, the 6’8″ forward averaged 12.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, providing the Rockets with much-needed hustle on both sides of the ball. Because Faried doesn’t really boast a three-point shot, he hasn’t had much success finding a new home following a nice run down in Houston.
Roberson and Faried would’ve been nice flyers for the Nets to take, but at the end of the day, Shumpert may have made the most sense given his relationship with Kyrie Irving and past experience playing with James Harden. Shump also has been a part of multiple Finals’ runs, so any time you can bring in that kind of experience, that’ll help you in the most hostile moments of those types of games.
