The NBA Combine is over. Agents’ pro days too. Chicago is in the past. Next come workouts and interviews which are likely underway. The process has a long way to go with the 2026 NBA Draft still five weeks away at the end of June. In meantime, all we have is mock drafts which at this point are mainly entertainment.
All that said, there is a creeping belief that the Nets have at least some interest in Mikal Brown Jr., the 6’5” Louisville combo guard whose prospects have gotten better with both a solid
performance in Chicago, particularly at his pro day workout Thursday. Also concerns about his back injury which laid him low this past season have dissipated.
The Nets level of interest of course is a closely held secret or more likely still forming. The Nets despite the devastating drop in the Lottery five days ago, have a lot of options: they can move up, move down, add another first or in the most unlikely scenario move up into the top four where the franchise-changers they crave reside.
Brian Lewis on Friday suggested that indeed things remain unsettled but Brown has to be considered. Indeed, in the most recent mock, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman has the Nets taking the 20-year-old Orlando native.
Whispers going around the combine suggest Nets general manager Sean Marks is open to moving up or down from the No. 6 spot. But if he stands pat, with the Nets having failed to land a top-four pick, there is a chance Brown — who dealt with a back injury as a freshman — has as much untapped talent as anybody else in the class.
Brown likes the possibility of moving to Brooklyn which has a basically a blank canvas.
“It would be a great opportunity right there,” Brown told Lewis. “Just continuing to build relationships with them as the time goes on and continue to talk to my family and my circle and my agent and the people behind me.
“It’s something that we’re definitely interested in, and looking forward to building a relationship with [the Nets].”
He noted that he met with the Nets contingent in Chicago but has yet to set up a meeting in Brooklyn.
What about the Nets surplus of guards? After all at one point or another last season, the Nets played their No. 8 pick, Egor Demin; their No. 19 pick, Nolan Traore; their No. 22 pick, Drake Powell; and their No. 26 pick, Ben Saraf, at the lead guard position.
“I feel like I can adapt to any situation, whether that’s being a guy or just being somebody that has to play off of somebody else, I can do that,” Brown said in a very typical response, adding. “Definitely just creating for others,” Brown said. “Obviously, I can shoot the ball well, but … I think I do a really good job of trying to get a feel for where my teammates like the ball at, where certain players like the ball at, and try to get to them right in that spot. So I think that’s what separates me.”
There are of course other guards in the mix at Nos. 5 through 10. Lewis describes them this way: “Illinois’ Keaton Wagler has the shooting, and Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr. has the craft and the polish. Arizona’s Brayden Burries has the height, and Houston’s Kingston Flemings has the defense and speed.“
Each also has a downside: Wagler’s lack of high level athleticism, Fleming’s size, Acuff’s lack of defense and Burries lack of a single elite skill. For Brown, it’s his injury. He says he feels fine.
“I feel amazing,” Brown said. “I was just focused on getting back to where I was before the season started. … I feel better than I have in a long time. I think teams got a good sample size of when I’m playing and what I can become. The medical stuff is going to come up, but I feel great right now. Honestly, I learned a lot with the injury on what I have to prioritize. So it helped me in a sense, the learning process of it. … It’s only going to get better from here.”
No matter what the Nets decide, don’t expect much news for a while. Last year, the first pre-Draft trade — the Pelicans’ decision to cast caution to the wind and trade up 10 spots to take Derek Queen — took place during the NBA Finals (a rarity.) In NetsWorld, Marks has a history of waiting till near the last minute to make his moves: In nine of the 10 Drafts he’s run as GM, he’s made a deal within 48 hours of the Draft. Last year, it was acquiring the 22nd pick which became Powell in a salary dump. Two years ago, it was the two trades with the Knicks and Rockets.
So, in the meanwhile, there will be a lot of speculation and likely a lot of movement around the league. As Brown told Lewis, “I honestly don’t pay attention to the mock drafts,” Brown said. “You never know where you’re going to go on draft night.” Probably smart.
