The Brooklyn Nets acquired five first-round picks in the 2025 NBA Draft and just ... made all of them. For a team in the nascent stages of its rebuild, that is mostly understandable. Brooklyn is taking a bunch of swings and slow-playing its developmental timeline, which is smart. The Nets should be in prime tanking position again ahead of a very strong 2026 draft.
That said, the who matters just as much as the why in this situation. And who the Nets used those five picks on merits some second-guessing.
BYU's Russian point-wing Egor Demin was Brooklyn's selection at No. 8 in the lottery. Then the Nets sprung for French point guard Nolan Traoré at No. 19. In the No. 22 slot, Brooklyn selected defensive-oriented wing Drake Powell. At No. 26, it was another international point guard in Israeli playmaker Ben Saraf. At No. 27, the Nets rounded out their haul of rookies with Michigan's Danny Wolf, who essentially operated as a 7-foot point guard for the Wolverines.
Brooklyn took a lot of ball-handlers. A lot of genuinely high-feel passers, yes, but also several subpar shooters on the perimeter with complicated offensive projections at the next level. It's hard to imagine the Nets actualizing the potential of all five rookies here, but I guess that's why you take multiple bites at the proverbial apple. If a couple of these prospects hit, the Nets might not look so foolish a few years down the line.
Here's how the depth chart shakes out ahead of free agency and Thursday night's second round.
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Projected Brooklyn Nets depth chart after drafting five rookies
PG | SG | SF | PF | C |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Nolan Traoré | Cam Thomas* | Cameron Johnson | Egor Demin | Nic Claxton |
Ben Saraf | Keon Johnson | Drake Powell | Danny Wolf | Day'Ron Shapre* |
Tyrese Martin | Dariq Whitehead | Jalen Wilson | Drew Timme |
* Players with an asterisk on free agents Brooklyn is favored to re-sign
This is an utterly confounding mix of players. Brooklyn is probably going to pay Cam Thomas an uncomfortable amount of money to take all the shots for this team. On the surface, surrounding Thomas with a collection of high-feel, selfless playmakers who elevate their teammates is a smart gamble. But man, none of Brooklyn's rookie guards (Powell obviously notwithstanding) are going to be high-level NBA defenders. Saraf has some length and gets after it, but he's going to struggle against NBA physicality. Demin and Traoré are similarly inhibited despite solid measurements. Thomas is flat-out bad on defense.
None of Brooklyn's guards can really help with the scoring either. Troaré loves to get out in transition and play at full speed, but he's an inconsistent 3-point shooter and a bad finisher in traffic. Demin can't generate separation or consistently win at the point of attack, which leads to a lot of tough jumpers — made worse by the fact that he's not exactly a good shooter. Saraf has a nice package of mid-range moves and he's a creative finisher inside, but the 3-point shooting — especially pulling up off of screens — just really isn't part of his diet right now. Not in a meaningful, dependable way, at least.
The modern NBA rewards size and multiple ball-handers, which Brooklyn certainly has now. There is a version of this plan that works out. But Demin was the lowest-ranked prospect of Brooklyn's haul on the FanSided big board. They whiffed in the lottery, then followed it up with players who overlap and cancel out, rather than elevating Demin's unique attributes.
Brooklyn also has the 36th pick in tonight's second round, so don't be shocked if a sixth rookie is on the way.