The rebuilding Brooklyn Nets added another crucial piece, acquiring versatile small forward DeMarre Carroll from the Toronto Raptors, who have been trying to shed some contracts to avoid paying a huge luxury tax bill. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Raptors also shipped their 2018 first- and second-round picks to the Nets and got forward Justin Hamilton in return.
Carroll has two years remaining in the four-year, $58 million deal that he signed with the Raptors in 2015. He was scheduled to make $14.8 million this season and $15.4 million in the 2018-19 season.
Injuries derail Carroll’s stint with Raptors
In his first season with the Raptors, Carroll was limited to just 26 games after suffering a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery. He returned in the playoffs but sustained a wrist injury in their second-round series against the Miami Heat. In 26 outings, Carroll averaged 11.0 points and 4.7 boards. Last season, Carroll played 72 games, averaging just a shade under nine points and 3.8 boards per game but shot just 36 percent from three-point range. He struggled in the playoffs, averaging just 4.2 points on 31 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
With the Hawks, Carroll will be reunited with head coach Kenny Atkinson, who he played under during his stint with the Hawks.
He will also have a chance to play with D’Angelo Russell, the former Los Angeles Lakers point guard who was traded before the 2017 NBA Draft. A 27th overall pick by Memphis in 2009, Carroll bounced around in his first three years with the Grizzlies, Houston Rockets, and the Denver Nuggets.
Carroll played for two seasons with the Utah Jazz before finally finding his niche with the Hawks.
He signed a two-year, $5 million deal with the Hawks in 2013 where he emerged as a starter. In his first season, he averaged 11.1 points in 73 starts and followed it with a career-best output of 12.6 points per outing the next season.
Raptors can fit Kyle Lowry’s $100 million contract
With the trade, the Raptors can now fit the three-year, $100 million deal signed by All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry without being saddled with the luxury tax.
However, Carroll’s departure will leave the Raptors with a gaping hole at small forward, which will be occupied by young reserve Norman Powell. The Raptors also signed power forward Serge Ibaka to a three-year deal worth $65 million.
A former second round pick, the 27-year-old Hamilton averaged 6.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game last season. He will provide frontcourt depth to the Raptors behind Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas.
