Are Brooklyn Nets Better Off Avoiding Andray Blatche?

Give Blatche’s size and past stat lines, the big man has drawn surprisingly little to no interest. At the same time, his penchant for underachieving, poor conditioning and lackadaisical effort overall, make it fairly obvious as to why he is still a free agent.

Well, he may not be much longer.

According to Howard Beck of the New York Times, the Brooklyn Nets are scheduled to meet with the wildly inconsistent power forward.

The Nets’ ongoing search for frontcourt depth has led them to Houston and a meeting with Andray Blatche, who was cut this summer by the Washington Wizards.

Blatche, 26, has been working out in Houston with a number of other N.B.A. players, under the guidance of John Lucas. He was set to meet with Nets Coach Avery Johnson sometime this weekend, according to two people with knowledge of the meeting. It was not clear whether the Nets were prepared to make Blatche an immediate offer or were simply exploring their options.

Though it remains unclear as to whether the Nets are prepared to make an immediate investment, their interest does make sense. Brooklyn has completely re-invented its roster, but it has done so at the expense of cap flexibility. Therefore, exploring the avenue that leads to signing a 6’11” Blatche, who put up a gaudy stat line of 16.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game a few seasons ago, isn’t unwarranted.

But is he a good fit?

Brooklyn’s team is currently constructed to run, to thrive in transition, which Blatche has never been amenable to. Conditioning issues have plagued him since Day 1 and even when he was playing at his supposed peak, you were always left wondering if he was holding something back, refusing to tap a prolific source of potential.

That said, this is a risk the Nets can afford to take. Their rotation is not set in stone, but they hardly need Blatche to be a star. They simply need him to be a competent big man who can stay healthy enough to play actual minutes.

Blatche’s best chance to succeed lies with a team who doesn’t need him to play an integral role in their two-way attack. He needs to enter an environment where the expectations are low, so that any effort or additional production he provides is merely a bonus.

The days of hoping that Blatche can turn into a franchise cornerstone are over. He’s simply not motivated enough. But he can still make a sizable impact, as long as said impact isn’t being counted on by his prospective team.

And the Nets could very well be that team. They’re a newly formed powerhouse who have plenty of other in-house options.

Which, somewhat ironically, makes them a near-perfect option for Blatche himself.