Summer League is officially in the books for the Brooklyn Nets, and while the season is still a long ways away, all parties were given a good hint into what they plan to do with their big batch of rookies. Or, more specifically, what they plan to do with No. 8 pick, Egor Demin.
Demin played well enough to catch multiple eyes during his Summer League stint. CBS Sports' Cameron Salerno graded his play at a B- relative to the rest of the rookie class, and Jazz insider Ben Anderson, of all people also gave Demin a shoutout. Of note to both was Demin's shooting — the rookie went from a very poor 27 percent from 3 during his lone season at BYU to a scorching 43% on nearly 8 attempts per game. While Anderson went on to contrast his perimeter scoring to his zero presence inside the arc, Demin's shooting is a nice confirmation of the rumors that his form and pre-draft workouts were more important than whatever his time at BYU indicated.
Shooting was one of the weaknesses on Demin's draft profile, and concerns surrounding it feel more than unfounded as the season proper comes around.
That said, Demin's playmaking left much to be desired. Tough on primary ball-handlers as Summer League tends to be, a negative assist-to-turnover ratio is not a good look for someone who many viewed as the best and craftiest passer in the 2025 class. The cognitive dissonance was strongest against the Orlando Magic, when Demin went 4-of-8 from 3 and yet committed six turnovers. If he's to be Brooklyn's supersized point guard of the future, Demin's got a long road ahead of him.
But Egor Demin isn't a point guard, at least not for Brooklyn
Now, yes -- Demin was drafted as a guard, is labeled as a guard on multiple sources, and his draft profile has all the looks of a 6-point-9 playmaker. ESPN even projects him to lead the Nets' depth chart at the point guard position for the upcoming season.
But if we can guess anything from the way the Nets drafted, it's that they don't even want Demin to run the point for them, at least full-time. In fact, they might not want a true point guard at all. Jordi Fernandez loves a European-style offense, and Brooklyn drafted to prep him for it. Even as big of a black hole as he is, new acquisition Michael Porter, Jr. sort of fits as a primarily two-dribble catch-and-shoot player. No one on the Nets' current or projected roster is diametrically opposed to playing in motion, with the exception of Cam Thomas (cross your fingers, Brooklyn fans). And if he does stay, this Euro-style offense with one go-to shot creator should be exciting if nothing else.
If that's the case, Demin's primary position would, could, and should be at the three. An overlooked part of his draft profile is his off-ball playmaking, with which he distinguished himself during his time with Real Madrid. Demin follows the European stereotype of high basketball IQ, and could be devastating as a wing with veteran levels of positioning and angles. This would allow for other Summer League rookie standout Nolan Traore to slide into the starting lineup for the rebuilding Nets, and into a three spot that has substantially less competition for minutes. 6-foot-9 still makes for a wing that can easily see over most defenders at the position, and a wing with Egor's level of vision could devastatingly warp defenses.
And if Jordi Fernandez is going to commit to the European offense he clearly wants, that's where Egor Demin is going to thrive.