The NBA offseason was eventful for the Brooklyn Nets. After making an NBA-record five first-round picks in June's draft and executing four trades, the team has a revamped roster entering year two of its rebuild. However, the Nets' moves have not been universally praised within NBA circles.
Bleacher Report recently released an article ranking every NBA General Manager's offseason. Sean Marks ranked 23rd, mainly due to a C+ grade for Brooklyn's draft.
“Brooklyn was widely panned for using all five of its first-round picks this summer,” wrote Andy Bailey. “There was a lot of criticism on the overlap in skills between those five players, too. Egor Demin, Nolan Traoré and Ben Saraf are all lead playmakers. Even Danny Wolf has a little bit of that in his game. But the Nets aren't likely to be good for a while. They have time to experiment with pass-heavy lineups. They have time to see how many (if any) of the above hit. And giving themselves more chances at star talent is understandable.”
The Nets' draft left many analysts scratching their heads. Aside from their using all five of their picks, their decision to select point guards drew criticism. Brooklyn's top pick, Egor Demin, was named the draft's biggest reach in a poll of 20 anonymous scouts and executives by ESPN's Jeremy Woo.
Nets offseason ranked towards bottom of the league after historic draft
The Nets inquired about numerous trade-up opportunities in the lead-up to the draft. However, the price was too steep, as illustrated by the New Orleans Pelicans trading an unprotected 2026 first-round pick to move up 10 spots. While Brooklyn's ball-handler-heavy draft was the butt of jokes, it's understandable for a team that has not had a high-level, homegrown point guard in decades.
Many draft analysts believe Demin, who stands 6-foot-9 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan, could spend significant time on the wing if his outside shooting develops.
Beyond their draft, the Nets' most significant move was trading Cam Johnson to the Denver Nuggets for Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick.
“Michael Porter Jr. isn't as versatile a forward as Cameron Johnson. His salary is almost twice as high, too. But the Brooklyn Nets snagging an unprotected 2032 first-rounder from the Denver Nuggets could potentially be huge,” Bailey wrote. “Nikola Jokić will be 37 then, and Denver could be lottery-bound. The other major offseason addition (outside the draft) is Terance Mann, and his contract feels primed to be flipped again ahead of the deadline.”
Ultimately, the Nets' offseason grade should be marked as incomplete for now, given that they have the largest rookie class in NBA history. Time will tell whether Marks' unorthodox draft strategy pays off.
