Two years after taking him in the first round, the Nets parted ways with center Mason Plumlee on Thursday night, sending him to the Portland Trail Blazers. In exchange, Brooklyn got the Blazers’ first-round pick, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, and the veteran point guard Steve Blake.
Portland also got the rights to the Nets’ second-round pick, Pat Connaughton.
Nets General Manager Billy King held up Hollis-Jefferson as a crucial element of the deal. “He is the type of athletic wing we were looking for, and we felt he was the best defensive player in the draft,” he said.
Hollis-Jefferson, who was selected 23rd by the Blazers on Thursday night, is a 6-foot-7-inch small forward who played two years at Arizona.