Brook Lopez is on the trade market, but the price is steep: two first-round picks, according to ESPN's Marc Stein. This might seem laughable in an age where draft picks are only getting more valuable -- it will be easier to re-sign young players under the new CBA -- and huge, low-post-oriented centers aren't in high demand, but it's understandable because of the position the Brooklyn Nets are in.

Brooklyn is 8-27 and it's not because the team is tanking. There is no incentive to finish with a poor record for the next couple of years because its picks are going to the Boston Celtics. The Nets want to be competitive, then, and Lopez gives them a player who can get buckets in one-on-one situations, draw the occasional double-team and -- as of this season -- stretch the floor. In 32 games, he has averaged 19.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.7 blocks, shooting 46.6 percent and making 36.1 percent from 3-point range.

With Lopez on the court, Brooklyn has been outscored by 5.8 points per 100 possessions, but without him, it has been outscored by 10 points per 100 possessions. When he's out there, the Nets can play through him, and in the locker room, he's one of their leaders. Should they trade him, it will be difficult for the team to be stay positive and competitive.

All of that is to say that Lopez has value for Brooklyn as it goes through the processes of culture-setting and rebuilding. Two draft picks, however, have more value, since general manager Sean Marks came into a situation where he was at a disadvantage by not having them. The Nets have to hope that they can pull off what the Denver Nuggets did two years ago with Timofey Mozgov: make a deal with a team that has a glaring need and is willing to overpay to address it. Otherwise, it looks like they could just keep him for the rest of the season and explore the trade market again before he goes into the last year of his contract.