On January 8, the Brooklyn Nets appeared to have finally found their stride as championship contenders, with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the team to 18 wins in a 20-game span.

A month later, the Nets are now starless and retooling around a collection of young players.

Nets general manager Sean Marks issued a statement Thursday night addressing the franchise-altering decision to trade Kevin Durant, less than 24 hours after dealing him to the Phoenix Suns for Mikal Bridges, Cam Thomas and four first-round picks.

"After thorough evaluation of the best path forward, we believe making this trade now positions the franchise for long-term success," Marks said. "Mikal and Cam are elite, ascending, versatile wings, plus the draft capital provides us additional avenues to continue to acquire talent. We remain steadfast in our commitment to building the team Brooklyn deserves.

"We are excited to welcome Mikal, Cam and their families to Brooklyn and thank Kevin for the moments and memories he delivered our fanbase."

The move ends a brief whirlwind of an era for Brooklyn that began with acquiring Durant and Irving during the 2019 offseason.

Despite great expectations and countless storylines – including the acquisition and departure of James Harden, the firing of coach Steve Nash and multiple trade requests – Durant and Irving won a total of seven playoff games together with the Nets, never advancing past the second round.

Irving was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and a variety of draft picks.

Late Wednesday night, reports surfaced of the blockbuster deal that sent Durant to Phoenix, one of his preferred destinations included in his trade request before the start of the 2022-23 season.

Durant joins Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton on a Suns team that is sure to be one of the favourites to win the Western Conference.

"This gives Kevin an opportunity to go in and continue on that quest for a championship in Phoenix as their window opens up," Marks told reporters ahead of the Nets’ game against the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.

"My goal here, and our goal from ownership all the way down, is to put something out on the floor that everybody can be proud of, you can see consistent effort, you can see availability, and you can see competitive spirit."

Kyrie Irving's apology is a "step in the right direction" but he must do more to prove his contrition, according to Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks.

The NBA star was suspended indefinitely by the Nets in light of his initial unapologetic response to widespread backlash for allegedly endorsing an antisemitic film.

Irving belatedly issued an apology after NBA Commissioner Adam Silver had expressed his disappointment at the lack of one, and the Nets had responded later on Thursday with a press statement confirming the player would be suspended for a minimum of five games with no pay, adding he is "currently unfit to be associated with the Brooklyn Nets".

Around four hours after that announcement, the seven-time All-Star posted an apology on Instagram: "To all Jewish families and communities that are hurt and affected from my post."

Speaking to reporters about the situation on Friday, Marks said: "I think after anything like this, you would always hope that there's a change in feelings, a change in attitude. And you know, I think per his apology last night, that's a step in the right direction.

"But again, as we've sort of stated, actions speak louder than words and so he's had some time and there'll be some more time to reflect on this.

"The apology is a step in the right direction [but] that's certainly not enough."

In terms of further steps expected of Irving, Marks elaborated: "There is going to be some remedial steps and measures that have been put in place for him to obviously seek some counselling, designated by the team from dealing with some anti-hate and some Jewish leaders within our community.

"He's gonna have to sit down with them, he's gonna have to sit down with the organisation after this and and we'll evaluate and see if this is the right opportunity to bring him back."

When asked if the Nets had considered waiving or releasing Irving, Marks said: "No, not at this particular time."

Just hours after reports came out detailing how Kevin Durant gave the Brooklyn Nets an ultimatum about his future with the franchise, team owner Joe Tsai has sensationally thrown his support behind general manager Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash.

In a report from The Athletic's Shams Charania, it states Durant had a meeting with Tsai on Monday where he reiterated his trade request, as well as the bombshell that he will refuse to remain with the team unless Marks and Nash are both fired.

Durant, 33, is about to enter the first year of his four-year, $198million contract extension with the Nets, meaning there is no way for the two-time NBA Finals MVP to literally force his way out. To leave Brooklyn, the team will need to trade him, and there is no guarantee that is in their plans, despite Durant's requests.

In a clear statement of where his loyalty lies, Tsai tweeted: "Our front office and coaching staff have my support. We will make decisions in the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets."

The Athletic's report also revealed the Nets "engaged in conversations with almost every team in the league" after Durant's initial trade request, but no team has been able to meet their asking price, which is said to be one of the biggest in NBA history.

The Boston Celtics, the Toronto Raptors and the Miami Heat are mentioned as the three teams most likely to aggressively pursue a trade, with 25-year-old Celtics wing Jaylen Brown considered the best player being included in negotiations.

The Brooklyn Nets went "all in" on James Harden, general manager Sean Marks says, making the decision to trade the former MVP "not easy".

After 80 games in just shy of 13 months, Harden has left the Nets for the Philadelphia 76ers in a blockbuster trade involving Ben Simmons.

The 76ers had been looking for a superstar in exchange for Simmons and were able to put together a package to tempt the Nets when it became clear Harden was open to moving on.

Harden had last January forced his way out of the Houston Rockets to move to Brooklyn and team up with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

But the Nets' 'Big Three' played just 365 minutes together across 16 games in the regular season and playoffs.

Although the Nets went 13-3 in those games, Harden and Irving were each absent for three games of the seven-game series against eventual champions the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020-21 postseason.

The injury issues that dogged the trio last year have continued this season, while Irving has played just 13 games due to a refusal to be vaccinated.

The Nets, on a 10-game losing streak, are now moving in a new direction, but Marks insists their commitment to Harden up until Thursday's trade could not be questioned.

"Make no bones about it: we went all in on getting James Harden and inviting him to the group," Marks said on Friday.

"And these decisions to move on from a player like that, of that calibre, are never easy ones. I just want to be clear that this is not something that you think, 'great, let's just make a split decision and move on from that'.

"I give James a lot of credit for having open dialogue, open discussions with me and with the group, [Nets coach Steve Nash] and [owner] Joe Tsai and everybody over the last 24, 48 hours.

"Again, I said they're not easy, but I think that's something we pride ourselves on is being open and honest. James was honest with us and we were honest with him.

"I think it's a move that enables him to have a fresh start, enables this team to have a fresh start, without trying to push things to make things work.

"If we realise this is not going to work, short term or long term, then it's time to say for, both parties involved, this is better off."

Harden, whose 76ers debut is likely to be next week, will be warmly received in Philly.

Second-year point guard Tyrese Maxey welcomed the 10-time All-Star, who is set to shine alongside MVP candidate Joel Embiid.

"It's going to be great. It's two MVP-calibre players on top of what we have here already," Maxey said, adding: "It's going to be great, and I just can't wait."

Kyrie Irving will not play or practice with the Brooklyn Nets until he is allowed to be a full participant, general manager Sean Marks has said.

The 29-year-old remains unvaccinated against coronavirus and is therefore ineligible to play in home games due to New York City mandates.

Under the city restrictions, people in New York must have at least one coronavirus vaccine to enter indoor arenas such as the Nets' Barclays Center home.

Irving – who would not be paid for missed home games – would have been available for most road games, but the Nets have decided to overlook the seven-time All-Star until he is cleared to play every night.

"Given the evolving nature of the situation and after thorough deliberation, we have decided Kyrie Irving will not play or practice with the team until he is eligible to be a full participant," Marks said in a statement on Tuesday. 

"Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose. Currently, the choice restricts his ability to be a full-time member of the team, and we will not permit any member of our team to participate with part-time availability. 

"It is imperative that we continue to build chemistry as a team and remain true to our long-established values of togetherness and sacrifice. 

"Our championship goals for the season have not changed, and to achieve these goals each member of our organisation must pull in the same direction. 

"We are excited for the start of the season and look forward to a successful campaign that will make the borough of Brooklyn proud."

Irving has played just 74 regular season games in two years since joining the Nets, missing long stretches due to injury issues and personal reasons.

Last year, on the same team as high-profile team-mates Kevin Durant and James Harden, Irving scored 26.9 points per game. That dropped to 22.7 points in the playoffs as he was again restricted.

Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks is confident Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden will gel as they work towards a "common goal".

The Nets confirmed on Thursday they had completed a blockbuster trade to land eight-time All-Star Harden from the Houston Rockets.

Questions have been asked over whether Durant, Harden and Irving can work together, but Marks is confident.

"These guys have given us the right answers. They've said hey, they want to play together, they can see this fitting," he told a news conference.

"They're at a time in their careers – I don't want to speak for each one of them because I let them have their own their own voice and their narrative around this – but I think they understand that there's without a doubt going to be some nights where one or two need to sacrifice for the other and so forth. But I think they're all looking for a common goal.

"We’re all looking for that common goal, as I've said before, is to be the last team standing. I think when you have a group that is willing to sacrifice, and play hard, play together on the court, and they already have a relationship, a prior relationship to this, so I think that will help."

Harden, Durant and Irving all rank in the top 10 in the NBA in scoring average since the latter's rookie season in 2011-12 (minimum 500 games).

Durant or Harden have won seven of the past 11 NBA scoring titles. No Brooklyn qualifier has ever finished higher than fifth in the league.

Marks said the opportunity to land a player like Harden came at a good time for the Nets.

"The timing was right for us. And fortunately, any time you get an opportunity to acquire or try to acquire a player of this calibre it's something you do look hard at [and] is something we did," he said.

"The process sped up very, very rapidly and very quickly over the last 48 hours."