The Brooklyn Nets had a clear strategy during their first offseason of the post-Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving era: take multiple chances on young, versatile free agents with upside.

Among the players who fit the bill was Lonnie Walker IV, and no Net has presented a more pleasant surprise for Brooklyn early this season.

An elite bench scorer

After signing for the minimum, Walker has emerged as one of the NBA's top bench scorers while being thrust into an expanded role amid injuries to Cam Thomas, Ben Simmons, Cam Johnson and Nic Claxton. His 15.9 points per game lead the NBA among players averaging 26 or fewer minutes, while his 35.1 points per 100 possessions rank 19th overall.

The 24-year-old has offered Brooklyn an efficient three-level scorer off the bench, shooting 63 percent at the rim, 48 percent from the midrange and 48 percent from three, per Cleaning The Glass. Walker can score from any spot on the floor using his blend of ball-handling, efficient jump shooting and athletic finishing ability.

The first-year Net's driving ability has provided a much-needed boost for a Brooklyn team that ranked 29th in shots at the rim last season. Walker gave Nets fans the highlight of the year Sunday vs. Philadelphia, going coast-to-coast for a vicious transition slam over the entire 76ers team.

With Simmons (back-nerve impingement) and Thomas (ankle sprain) sidelined for the last six games, the Nets rank 15th in offensive rating, averaging 115.3 points (13th) while shooting 46.4 percent from the field (19th). Each number would be considerably lower without Walker's added offense off the bench.

Room to improve

Walker is leading a Nets bench unit that ranks 10th in the NBA this season. His ball-handling and scoring ability will continue to play a vital role in Brooklyn's offense, especially with Simmons and Thomas sidelined. Playmaking has been at a premium without the aforementioned duo, with Brooklyn posting a 1.62 assist-to-turnover ratio (25th) in their absences.

While Walker has posted a career-high 14.1 assist percentage this season, he recently said he feels he can improve as a playmaker in an expanded role with Brooklyn.

“I think I need to start adding more of just the playmaking aspect,” he said after scoring a team-high 26 points during Sunday's loss vs. Philadelphia. “I had a couple bad shots where I could’ve dropped it off to Nic, corner passes and whatnot. So I think just kind of broadening that aspect of playmaking rather than just trying to score first and understanding that they’re gonna playing me a lot harder and my teammates are gonna be open.”

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A future in Brooklyn?

Walker showed flashes of brilliance throughout his first five NBA seasons. The Pennsylvania native averaged 10.6 points on 54 percent shooting during the Lakers' second-round series against Golden State last playoffs. That included a 15-point fourth quarter in Game 4 to give Los Angeles a 3-1 series lead.

The Nets will continue to lean on the minimum signing offensively with two of their top players sidelined. Brooklyn recently announced Simmons will be re-evaluated in 7-10 days while Thomas has made significant improvement and will be integrated into team activities next week.

Regardless, Walker has done more than enough to solidify a significant role with the Nets for the rest of this season and likely into the future.