The Nets finally exercised the amnesty clause on Travis Outlaw — freeing up $28 million in cap space over the next four years — and completed a low-risk move by signing forward  Shawne Williams to a deal reportedly worth $6.1 million over two years.

They are still pursuing starting forwards, namely Andrei Kirilenko and Kris Humphries, but long-term deals seem to be a non-starter now when negotiating with the Nets.

They need that precious cap space to either trade for Howard or acquire him as a free agent next year.

“I guess maybe as I’ve gotten older and wiser, you can be a little more patient and understanding,” King said. “And the great thing about it is, the relationship Avery (Johnson) and I developed with Deron (Williams) and our team, we’re all on the same page.

“We all understand where we’re trying to get to, and that’s where the confidence comes from, I guess. We all understand where we’re trying to get to and don’t want to make a mistake.”