If the Brooklyn Nets are going to make a big trade in an attempt to upgrade their roster for next season, don’t expect Mikal Bridges to be involved in the deal.

According to The Athletic’s Fred Katz, the Nets have “expressed zero interest” in trading Bridges and haven’t engaged other teams in talks because their long-term plan involves him being the “costar to whichever big name it can trade for down the line.”

Bridges’ name continues to show up as a popular trade candidate, but there has never been any indication the Nets want to move him.

The Nets are so dug in on Bridges as an essential part of their future that they reportedly turned down an offer from the Houston Rockets before the trade deadline involving Jalen Green and multiple first-round draft picks for the veteran wing player.

While it’s unclear what the first-round picks being offered were, that could have solved so many problems for the Nets. The Rockets own multiple future picks from Brooklyn as part of the James Harden trade.

One of those picks turned out to be the No. 3 selection in the 2024 draft. The Rockets also have swap rights on the Nets’ pick next year and an unprotected pick in 2026.

The Nets did help themselves in the long term by trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Those deals have given them a total of eight future first-round picks between 2025 to 2030.

Brooklyn could try to package those picks together as soon as this summer if the right star becomes available.

Bridges is owed a total of $48.2 million over the next two seasons. His two-way versatility would make him one of the most sought-after players in a trade if the Nets made him available.

Instead, it seems like the Nets will be content to go into another season with Bridges on the roster and hope they can upgrade around him. The 27-year-old averaged 19.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game in 82 starts this season.

The Nets finished 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 32-50 record. They missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2017-18 season.