NBA free agency: Nets to sign TJ Warren to one-year deal, per report

While it’s not off-season news we’ve been waiting for with the Brooklyn Nets, the team is still making moves while potential deals for franchise stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving could develop. Brooklyn signs forward TJ Warren to a one-year deal, Per Adrian Wojnarowski.

We haven’t seen Warren play since December 2020, as he was dealing with a left foot injury that forced him to miss all but four games of the 2020-21 season, and the entire 2021-22 season. It’s unclear what he is up to on his recovery journey, but we do know that when he’s healthy he can be an explosive goalscorer.

The last time we saw a healthy Warren, he averaged 19.8 points during the 2019-20 season with the Indiana Pacers. It was during the off season of COVID-19, and when the league was back in the Orlando bubble, Warren’s production only increased. During his regular eight season games in the Orlando bubble, Warren averaged 31.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and two assists, while shooting 57.8 percent from field and 52.4 percent from depth.

In the first round of the playoffs that year, despite the Pacers outplaying the Miami Heat that would go on to the NBA Finals, Warren did his best to hold this injury-stricken team, but failed.

Although that was a couple of seasons ago, if he can still capitalize on that ruthless scorer we saw become in Indiana, this could be a bargain deal for the Nets who have an uncertain future at the moment. It doesn’t look like any progress has been made yet on potential deals for Durant and Irving, so it’s hard to see how Warren fits into Brooklyn’s plans for next season.

The Nets said they want to remain competitive next season with whatever revenue they get from the KD deal, and added that Warren is consistent with that plan. But we’ll have to wait and see what Brooklyn’s remaining roster looks like ahead of next season to see what role Warren will play in his new team.