As the Nets gain respect, they lose pieces. The latest was assistant general manager Trajan Langdon, who agreed to become New Orleans’ new GM.
Langdon, the G League Executive of the Year, also had been interviewed by Minnesota and Washington, the latter’s interest in him longstanding. Now he reached a deal with New Orleans — first reported by The Athletic and confirmed by The Post — that makes him the third member of the Nets to leave this offseason.
First G League coach Will Weaver led Long Island to the G League finals, only to leave and go back to Australia — where he’d coached with the National Team — and take over powerhouse Sydney.
Then Nets assistant coach Chris Fleming — instrumental in their offense — got a promotion as the lead assistant in Chicago.
Now Langdon gets a promotion to leave for New Orleans. And even though he’ll be working alongside veteran David Griffin, the Pelicans’ new president of basketball operations, who won an NBA title as Cleveland’s GM, it’s still a deserved step up for Langdon.
Griffin spoke earlier this season in glowing terms about the Nets’ rebuild, about how much respect he has for Brooklyn sharpshooter Joe Harris and how the Nets’ culture would appeal more to star free agent Kyrie Irving than the Knicks’ upheaval.
“[The Nets are] the fit that’s better for him in terms of his mindset,” Griffin said on NBA TV in February, adding, “I think he likes what they’ve done there, culturally.”
Griffin’s addition of Langdon is no surprise.
The 43-year-old Langdon has extensive contacts throughout Europe, speaks five languages and — as a former Spurs scout — was responsible for scouting the top 35 to 40 prospects on the Nets’ board. He also served as Long Island’s GM, winning G League Executive of the Year.
Langdon will be getting in as the GM on the ground floor of a rebuild, but one that should be far easier than Brooklyn’s was. While the Nets had no assets, the Pelicans will enjoy hugely valuable ones.
On Tuesday, New Orleans won the No. 1 overall pick in the lottery and the right to draft generational talent Zion Williamson. They also have superstar Anthony Davis, whom they can either convince to stay or trade for a king’s ransom to turbocharge their rebuild.
It’s unclear who could replace Langdon, or Fleming for that matter.
The most logical to step-in for Langdon is director of global scouting Gianluca Pascucci. But the well-respected veteran — whom coach Kenny Atkinson credited with finding Latvian second-round steal Rodions Kurucs — has been reported as a candidate for the GM job at Olimpia Milano. Could he leverage outside interest into a promotion?
Former Knick coach Jeff Hornacek — fired in April 2018 with a year and $5 million left on his contract — has been around the Nets in training camp, practices and occasionally on road trips, but was never hired in an official capacity. Could that change with Fleming’s departure creating an opening on the staff?
The Post reported two weeks ago that Nets minority Joe Tsai’s right to buy a controlling interest in the team from Mikhail Prokhorov would be for the entire remaining 51 percent. The Alibaba co-founder confirmed The Post’s figures to The Times on Sunday.