We won’t know for sure until later Thursday whether Egor Demin will be healthy enough to take the court Friday in Toronto vs. the Raptors. The 6’9” Russian point guard suffered a tear in his plantar fascia
at the end of Summer League back in July and has been recovering ever since. But as Erik Slater pointed out Wednesday, Demin had been participating in 5-on-5 drills last week in Macao. There was also a couple of seconds of him taking a fall in a video the Nets tweeted out…
For Nets fans and the team’s front office, a debut even if only a few minutes will be tantalizing. After all, Demin (the 11th youngest player in the NBA this season) was the franchise’s first lottery selection since the New Jersey Nets took Derrick Favors in 2010. then summarily traded him to the Jazz for Deron Williams. Moreover, his selection was controversial. Most mock drafts had the BYU freshman going later, from the late lottery to even the second round in one case.
But Sean Marks & co. remain happy with their selection and while Brian Windhorst may have said on Draft Night that rival GMs were laughing at the Nets picks, others think the Nets did well. Thunder GM Sam Presti was a big fan, according to reports, even inviting Demin to dinner after his pre-draft workout. (Some reporter should ask the Nets new player personnel director about him. Acie Law IV was the director of scouting for the Thunder last year.)
Another NBA type well-versed in the 2025 Draft told NetsDaily that he sees Demin having a long and productive career.
“Egor will be a stud,” the source told ND. “Very very good basketball player. People who don’t understand the game won’t get it.
“You’ll see development sooner than year’s end. But in three to four years, when you have actual players around him, you’ll really see.”
He was penciled in as the Nets starting point guard after being selected at No. 8 but with him out, the Nets two other teen-aged point guards got some run. Ben Saraf, taken at No. 26, playing better than Nolan Traore, taken at No. 19.
His performance in the Summer League didn’t really give fans much to evaluate. As a Nets coach told Keith Smith of Spotrac after the league ended, the Nets don’t plan to use Demin during the season the way they did in Las Vegas: as a point forward more that a point guard.
One aspect of his game that had to be very encouraging to the team was his 3-point shooting. Critics cited his 27.3% rate at BYU as a reason to question his being taken so high. But in Las Vegas, he shot 43.5% on 7.7 shots per game, arguably making him the top 3-point volume shooter in the Summer League. He had previously shown off his shooting at the Combine and in a pro day where he hit 16 straight threes in 35 seconds. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony called it, “one of the most impressive pro day performances we’ve seen in some time.”
In discussing him, Nets officials said they were particularly impressed by his toughness and poise and point to how in the Nets lone Summer League win vs. the Magic, he hit three straight threes to win the game … after making two sloppy turnovers.
Assuming that he does play, it’s likely that Saraf will get the lion’s share of minutes and after his performance against the Suns in Macao — 11 assists, including the last five on 3-point shots, in 21 minutes — why not?
But whatever minutes he gets Friday night or next week when the season opens will be analyzed and over analyzed. That’s what fans do.
- Nets’ Egor Demin nearing return from foot injury as regular season approaches – Erik Slater – Clutch Points
