The Brooklyn Nets have planned a celebration for 1 p.m. Friday at Brooklyn's Borough Hall Plaza, but it's probably not the one they had in mind.

With the team's efforts to acquire Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard ending Wednesday, Brooklyn's backcourt duo of Deron Williams and Joe Johnson will headline the event.

Reports surfaced throughout Monday and Tuesday suggesting the Nets were on the verge of a multi-team deal that would have snagged Howard, but by Wednesday evening the deal was dead and both teams were moving in other directions.

Dwight Howard (12) is not coming to Brooklyn, but Kris Humphries could return. Associated Press

The Nets officially signed Lopez to a four-year, $60.8 million contract after he had been the centerpiece of the team's proposed sign- and-trade deal for Howard. This came after Orlando general manager Rob Hennigan told media Wednesday afternoon that the offers he fielded weren't good enough.

"The talks we've had to this point, as currently constructed, there's not much there," Hennigan said.

The biggest story on Wednesday may have been the player the Nets didn't get, but the silver lining for general manager Billy King was a host of other moves that became official.

Williams signed a five-year, $98 million deal; Gerald Wallace followed by making his four-year, $40 million deal official; and six-time All-Star Johnson was acquired for five players and two picks. And then there's the deal for the Euroleague's reigning scoring champ, Mirza Teletovic, who signed for three years at the luxury tax-paying mid-level exception of $3.09 million per season.

By not trading for Howard, the Nets kept any draft picks that would have been dealt to Orlando and second-year swingman MarShon Brooks.

They also leave the door open to re-signing Kris Humphries, who finished fifth in the NBA with 11 rebounds per game last year and was mentioned as a possible piece in a trade for Howard.

By retaining Lopez, who now cannot be traded until Jan. 15, the Nets will continue to feature one of the premier scoring centers in the NBA.

Lopez averaged 20.4 points per game to lead the New Jersey Nets in scoring in 2010-11, and even though a broken foot and a sprained ankle limited him to five games last season, he still had impressive performances against playoff teams such as the Dallas Mavericks (38 points) and Boston Celtics (28 points).

Of course, Lopez can't match Howard's presence in the paint.

Howard has led the NBA in rebounding four times and blocks twice while Lopez has averaged a modest 7.5 rebounds per game and a respectable 1.6 blocks per game for his entire career. But as one NBA assistant coach said, Lopez is "not great, but not terrible" at defense.

"I don't think you can compare anyone to Dwight Howard," he said, adding that "Lopez has big upside" and "in a lot of ways, he's better than Dwight offensively."

Specifically, Lopez is a much better free throw shooter than Howard (79.6% from the line for his career compared to Howard's career mark of 58.8%) and that benefit will be felt at the end of games when opponents typically foul Howard intentionally.

And Howard's absence won't kill the positive vibe among the Nets. Reporters on Monday asked Williams about the trade talks, and while he said Brooklyn would be "a better team" with Howard, he made a point of saying that he'd be "happy" with Lopez, whom he considers a "promising young player."

Maybe the Nets would be more formidable with Howard on board, but more draft picks and younger players gives the team long-term flexibility. Plus, as the team is currently constructed, the Nets are capable of "a lot," the assistant coach said.

"You have one of the top four point guards in the NBA," he said, referring to Williams. "You have one of the top [shooting guards in Joe Johnson], and with Gerald Wallace you have a wild card. He's good at times, but he can be all over the place defensively. He's not a team defensive player, but at the same time, I think he can guard LeBron James."

The Nets haven't been to the playoffs in five years, so the challenge of defending the league's elite in high-pressure situations is a victory in itself.