Nets' laughable return and other leftovers from epic trade deadline

There was no shortage of surprises at the 2023 trade deadline, the obvious big winners being Phoenix and Dallas for their respective trades for Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. 

Rather than a list of deadline winners and losers, here are a few leftovers from the madness.

Didn't make the best of a bad situation: Brooklyn Nets

While the Durant-Irving-James Harden era will go down as one of the biggest failures in sports history, saying the Nets did well, considering their situation, is laughable. 

No matter the return, when a team trades away one of the greatest players of all time, as the Nets did with Durant, it loses the trade. Irving's trade is another story, but had they not mortgaged their future, the Nets could've held a proper fire sale at the deadline. 

The Nets had no choice but to trade for established veterans. Otherwise, the first-rounders they sent to Houston for Harden would have returned to haunt them. The first-round picks they acquired from Phoenix and Dallas will likely be in the 20s at the earliest. 

Perhaps some picks develop into solid role players, but that's best-case scenario. 

Could've, should've done more: Toronto Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets

Many thought Toronto would be a seller at the deadline, yet it opted to trade for Jakob Poeltl and did nothing else. Once again, vice chairman and president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri requested an unreasonable amount for players who might eventually leave Toronto. 

Philadelphia and Denver are in the same boat, as they handled the Durant news poorly. The East has quickly become a three-horse race, yet Philadelphia didn't take more advantage of the opportunity, only acquiring former Hornet Jalen McDaniels. 

Denver, the top seed in the West, only added center Thomas Bryant. It was a needed move, but more was needed to give the Nuggets an edge over Phoenix. 

Funniest notification to read: Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers and Houston Rockets three-team trade

Houston reacquired John Wall, which is hilarious after his recent remarks regarding how much he hated being a Rocket. That must've been quite a conversation when Wall got word of which team traded for him. 

Luckily for Wall, he'll likely be bought out and be free to sign with any team he chooses.