Cam Johnson, Nets blocking out trade rumors as deadline approaches

League executives expect the Nets to continue a roster teardown as they angle for a top draft pick. After moving on from impact veterans in Schroder and Finney-Smith, Cam Johnson is the team’s top remaining trade piece.

Cam Johnson blocking out Nets trade speculation leading up to deadline

Johnson is among the NBA’s most sought-after trade targets amid a career-best season. The 6-foot-8 sharpshooter, who is currently sidelined by a nagging ankle injury, has averaged 19.4 points on 49/42/90 shooting splits over 35 appearances. Brooklyn is seeking multiple first-round picks for his services, league sources told ClutchPoints.

While several teams — including the Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers — continue to be linked to Johnson, the 28-year-old is doing his best to block out the noise.

“I keep my head down. I just try to emotionally disconnect from that. I have to, for the sake of myself, and invest all that energy into the present and to the team that we have,” Johnson told the New York Post’s Brian Lewis. “No matter what happens, the Nets have invested a lot of resources in trying to make me a better player. So my job is to compete for the city, for this team, for this organization, for my teammates. And that’s what I’ll do. And if I get traded, then that objective shifts to wherever I’m going. But for now, this is where I’m at.”

D’Angelo Russell has no shortage of experience with the volatility of the trade deadline. The 28-year-old has been part of three midseason trades (and five total) during his career, the most recent of which sent him from the Los Angeles Lakers back to the Nets for Dorian Finney-Smith.

Like Johnson, the veteran point guard is focused on what he can control, a message he’s spreading throughout Brooklyn’s roster.

“I never care. I never let my mind go to that. The only time I think about it or talk about it or talk about it is when y’all ask me,” Russell said of trade uncertainty. “I really take pride in keeping my mind away from things like that, things that I can’t control. I try to spread that message to the younger guys as well.”