The Brooklyn Nets have been busy. They traded for Julius Randle. They signed Keon Ellis and Moe Wagner. They drafted Mikel Brown Jr. and Joshua Jefferson. That’s a decent amount of work for one summer. But if you’re waiting for a big splash before the season starts, you might want to grab a seat. General manager Sean Marks is not in a hurry.
Right now the Nets have roughly $12 million in cap space left, assuming they use the room exception on Wagner. They also have nine tradable first-round picks and 18 seconds. That’s a lot of ammo. But Marks has been pretty clear that he doesn’t want to burn it all at once.
“Something we’ve always done and sort of prided ourselves on with how we’ve built is not using up all your flexibility,” Marks told reporters. “You just never know what’s going to come your way. So for us to have that optionality will be really important. At the same time, I like the roster we have. I love what I’m seeing out there. The guys are playing hard, they’re playing the right way, and they’re playing for each other. So I don’t think we’re in any immediate rush to do anything there from adding more pieces.”
The Nets owe the Houston Rockets an unprotected 2027 first-round pick swap, which is why some people thought Brooklyn might get aggressive. But the front office seems content to let this thing grow slowly. The team is young — 11 players are 24 or younger — and Marks is betting on internal development rather than a quick fix.
A lot of young guys to watch
Summer League gave Nets fans a glimpse of what Hugo Gonzalez might look like in Year Two. The former No. 8 pick averaged 21.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists over five summer games. That’s encouraging. But he’s not the only one the front office wants to see grow. Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf, Noah Clowney and Josh Minott all have opportunities to earn real minutes this season.
Randle will obviously get the most attention. The three-time All-Star averaged 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists last season in Minnesota. The Nets got him as a salary dump from the Timberwolves, which says something about how the league values him right now. But Marks sees a player with something to prove.
“I think we all know what Julius can do as a player,” Marks said. “There’s a chip on his shoulder. He’s highly competitive. He plays a position of need for us. Downhill play, a forceful, impactful player. And then you look at what he does in the locker room… Julius has won at a very, very high level.”
Randle grew up in Dallas but he’s familiar with New York, having played for the Knicks. Marks thinks that matters. “Coming back to Brooklyn, New York, where he’s very familiar with, obviously, the borough and the city, this will be great for our group, great for our organization.”
The Michael Porter Jr. question
There’s one looming decision the Nets can’t delay forever. Michael Porter Jr. is entering the final year of his contract at $40.8 million. He averaged 24.2 points and 7.1 rebounds last season. The Nets have to figure out whether to extend him or let him play it out. Porter is 6-foot-10 and can shoot. But $40 million-plus is a lot of money for a team that’s still figuring out its identity. Expect extension talks to heat up in the coming weeks.
Brooklyn is not tanking. They’re also not all-in. They’re in the middle, holding a bunch of picks and a flexible cap sheet, waiting for the right opportunity. Marks has said as much. He likes the roster. He’s just not in any rush to mess with it.
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