Nets land another first-round pick for taking on Terance Mann contract in three-team blockbuster

The Nets taking on salary dumps for draft assets was the league’s worst-kept secret.

And Brooklyn got to work Tuesday, opportunistically landing a first-round pick for taking on Terance Mann. 

In a three-team trade, the Nets received Atlanta’s 22nd overall pick in return for taking on Mann, a 28-year-old wing who was born in Brooklyn.

Terance Mann celebrates during the Hawks’ overtime loss to the Heat during the 2025 SoFi Play-In
Tournament on April 18, 2025 in Atlanta. NBAE via Getty Images

Boston received Georges Niang and a second-round pick, but offloaded Kristaps Porzingis and a second-rounder to the Hawks. 

“I was born in Brooklyn hospital,” Mann posted on X. “This is crazyyyy.” 

The deal was first reported by ESPN and confirmed by The Post.

It can’t be finalized until July 6 because the Nets will acquire Mann with cap space, but it gives the Nets five first-rounders and helps in a quest for a second lottery pick. 

Mann — who averaged 9.8 points this past for Atlanta on .541 shooting and .386 from behind the arc — still has three years and $47 million left on his contract.

For taking that on, the Nets will get a pick even better than the 28th selection that the Celtics could have offered for taking Porzingis. 

It’s precisely the sort of opportunistic move that Nets general manager Sean Marks has been looking to make. Now leading the league in both first-round picks (one sixth of Wednesday’s entire draft) and cap space (still roughly $35 million), the Nets are positioned to control the offseason. 

The Nets have the eighth, 19th, 22nd, 26th, 27th and 36th picks, and can move up by packaging picks and/or taking more salary dumps. 

“What does that get you? Does that get you into the teens again? Or can you pick up a future down the road that you can use, similar to the OKC model? I do think when you have cap space, it certainly helps as far as maneuverability,” ESPN Insider Bobby Marks told The Post. 

“Yeah, Brooklyn has the bingo board, right? Then all the future picks they have from New York, and there’s still some good stuff left in the [Kevin] Durant trade, there’s a Philly pick in there. … They have optionality. It’s just a matter of how much can you move up? They’re at [No.] 8 now. There’s three different tiers in the top 8 or 9. Certainly Cooper [Flagg] and Dylan [Harper], and then there’s five or six players in that Tier 3. It’s a matter of what you like. 

“Brooklyn controls the offseason. Just because of the sheer volume of draft picks going into Wednesday. And they’re one of the few teams that have the salary cap space to sign free agents or take back contracts.” 

Terance Mann reacts to a play in the Hawks’ overtime loss to the Heat in an NBA play-in tournament game against the Heat on April 18, 2025, in Atlanta. AP

While the possibility of Ace Bailey falling to the Nets is fascinating, likelier targets include Oklahoma point guard Jeremiah Fears, Duke center Khaman Maluach and forward Noa Essengue from Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany.

Texas scoring guard Tre Johnson or Illinois point guard Kasparas Jakucionis could be options. 

Brooklyn is believed to be looking to package lower picks to get a second lottery selection.

Tuesday’s trade only makes that easier.