The Brooklyn Nets are in the slow part of their offseason as they are finished with the 2026 NBA Draft, summer league play, and free-agency in preparation for the 2026-27 season. With Brooklyn still in the early stages of its rebuild, the team is hoping that some of the recent draft picks will show more promise, but it seems like some around the league are down on their 2025 class.
"The Nets had five first-round picks in 2025. With the exception of the outstanding Egor Demin, the Nets look as if they whiffed on this entire group," John Hollinger wrote for The Athletic when discussing the Nets. Demin received plenty of praise for how he played this summer, but the rest of the 2025 class still had some up-and-down moments in the California Classic
and Las Vegas Summer League.
"French guard Nolan Traore, who struggled mightily as a rookie (7.9 PER, -6.8 BPM), at least saved himself from further scrutiny by missing summer league with a knee injury," Hollinger continued. "The same can’t be said for Danny Wolf, Ben Saraf and Drake Powell."
Brooklyn made a big commitment in the 2025 NBA Draft when they selected five players in the first round, headlined by the aforementioned Demin, who some people also had their doubts about prior to his solid rookie season. Traore had a scope on his right knee so he wasn't able to play in the summer league, leaving Powell, Saraf, and Wolf to show how much they have improved since the 2025-26 campaign ended.
Wolf showed the ability to be a serviceable player rotation player last season and in summer league play this summer, but Saraf and Powell had their fair share of struggles, especially with their shotmaking. Ultimately, the Nets are hoping that at least one more player from the 2025 class can show some promise next season, but for now, it seems like they have some work to do moving forward.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Most of Nets' 2025 NBA draft deemed disappointing after summer league
