No word on Haywood Highsmith return but Nets happy with him anyway

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The Nets do not traditionally provide return dates for injured players. They may hint at it, with Jordi Fernandez noting a player is making progress or has begun 5-on-5 play. Then, finally, the player won’t

be listed on the status report for an upcoming game.

At this point, Haywood Highsmith seems to be somewhere between making progress and playing 5-on-5. The Nets traded for him (and an unprotected Heat second in 2032) in a salary dump back on August 15. At that point, he was eight days into a rehab following surgery to repair a meniscal tear in his right knee that he suffered while training in his hometown of Baltimore. The prognosis, released by the Heat, was that he’d be ready within eight to ten weeks — two to four weeks into training camp.

Then, on Media Day at the end of September, Smith surprised beat writers by saying he planned to be ready for the Nets opener on October 22 a nice surprise and ahead of schedule. Alas, a couple of days before that planned debut, on October 18, the Nets had to update things, noting that he has suffered a setback, marked by swelling in his knee. So, the Nets announced, that he would require :a modified rehab program and be reevaluated in eight weeks.“

When that time frame arrived two weeks ago, reporters asked about his progress and Fernandez talked about how while he hadn’t progressed to 5-on-5 drills or even contact drills, he was “making making progress” and promised he’d let the media know when there was a change.

On Wednesday, the last day of the year, C.J. Holmes wrote that while things were indeed going slow, Holmes was contributing nonetheless. The Daily News reporter recounted what he saw at the end of a recent practice.

After a late November Nets practice, as players trickled off the court, Haywood Highsmith stayed behind. The veteran forward, still stuck on zero minutes this season and still rehabbing the same right knee that hasn’t let him debut in Brooklyn, grabbed rebound after rebound as rookie Drake Powell shot free throws.

Highsmith bounced the ball back time after time with a smile, whispering guidance only Powell could hear. It wasn’t staged and it wasn’t requested. It was simply who he is, a player who can’t yet contribute on the court but remains determined to help in any way he can.

“Just a true vet,” head coach Jordi Fernández said of Highsmith, Holmes reported. “You see him right now, he’s passing the ball to Drake and we’re not asking him to do it. So that shows you the type of veteran he is, his leadership. He holds him accountable and he wants him to get better. So that’s very important for us. That leadership is priceless and we’re very happy with him… He’s doing his job every single day.”

Highsmith is a few months younger that the Nets oldest player, Tre Mann having turned 29 on December 8. That makes him a full decade older than the Nets four youngest draft picks – Nolan Traore, Ben Saraf, Egor Demin andPowell. One reason Sean Marks added him was so he could help mentor them and the rest of the youngest roster in the NBA. Fernandez says he’s been a presence there already, as Holmes wrote.

[T]he Nets have leaned into his presence rather than his production. Highsmith was brought in to offer two-way glue: a switchable defender, a 37.4% career 3-point shooter and a player hardened by Erik Spoelstra’s system and postseason demands. His 74 appearances and 42 starts with the Heat last season made him one of the more reliable 3-and-D rotation wings on the market for a team like Brooklyn, which has stocked up on developmental forwards.

Once he gets healthy, he can help the Nets on the court, considering his rep as a solid 3-and-D player who filled in last season for Jimmy Butler when the mercurial Butler had his difficulties with Miami’s management. And depending on what he can show before the February 5 trade deadline, he could be a trade asset. Even back in August, the punditry was that the Nets could move him before the deadline for some future draft assets or other value. (It should be noted the Nets already have 19 seconds through 2032.)

In any event, Fernandez is thrilled to have him around.

“He’s been doing great. He’s an extreme pro. He’s the ultimate pro,” Fernández said. “Great example for everybody else… We just don’t have any update, but he’s doing very well.”