Egor Demin is predicted to make his Nets debut in Friday’s preseason finale in opposition to the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Enviornment.
Demin, the eighth general choose within the 2025 NBA Draft out of BYU and the centerpiece of Brooklyn’s historic five-rookie class, had been recovering from a plantar fascia tear suffered after Summer season League that sidelined him for many of coaching camp. He missed the Nets’ first three preseason video games however was cleared for full 5-on-5 contact whereas the staff was in Macao final week.
The 6-9 Russian guard final suited up in Las Vegas, the place he averaged 11.3 factors, 4.3 rebounds and one steal over three Summer season League video games whereas taking pictures 43.5% from three on 23 makes an attempt. Head coach Jordi Fernández didn’t specify what number of minutes Demin will play in opposition to Toronto however stated he’s desirous to lastly see the rookie return to the courtroom.
Fernández stated his message to Demin forward of his debut will likely be easy: benefit from the second. The Nets coach doesn’t need the 19-year-old feeling stress or attempting to do an excessive amount of in his first style of NBA motion, although he’ll nonetheless anticipate him to satisfy the identical requirements as everybody else.
“I don’t want him to try to analyze everything and to just go out there and have fun,” Fernández stated.
With Demin lastly wholesome, Fernández now faces the duty of mixing him right into a rotation that already options three rookie ball handlers in Nolan Traore, Drake Powell and Ben Saraf. He stated it’s about steadiness — giving veterans the suitable ramp-up whereas additionally giving his younger guards the area to develop, compete and show themselves.
“I don’t have a crystal ball so I don’t know if I can answer the question,” Fernández stated of his rookie guards. “What I’m excited about is to see how the process is going to go. They’re all going to fight for some of the same minutes. They’re all going to fight for some of the wing minutes. But right now, for sure, the starting point guard and backup point guard [spots], those three are fighting for those minutes, and that’s great, because we’re going to see a lot of the young talent we’ve drafted playing real NBA minutes.”
How these minutes are divided in opposition to Toronto will rely largely on the move of the sport. Brooklyn will start with its deliberate construction round its starters and backups however might alter primarily based on circumstances. In preseason, Fernández stated, nothing is scripted. The aim is to remain adaptable and let competitors information the method.
“You go into the game with a plan, but then it depends on how the game goes, you have to pivot one way or the other,” Fernández stated. “We’re initially going to follow the plan based on stars and backups. But then if, depending on how the game goes, we may pivot different ways. So, you never know with these preseason games, it’s hard to predict what’s going to happen.”
