The Brooklyn Nets have made various moves this offseason in which they appear to be turning the team around from the one that finished the 2025-26 NBA season with a 20-62 record. Brooklyn has been communicating that flexibility is still important to the rebuild, but after adding players like Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle via trade, is that still the case?
"The Houston Rockets own the right to swap 2027 first-round picks with the Nets, so Brooklyn entered the summer with motivation to take a big swing," ESPN's Ben Golliver wrote when discussing the Nets and what has been learned from their offseason thus far. Golliver writes that the Nets are still buying time despite adding players like Randle and guard Keon Ellis and the ESPN reported
explains his reasoning.
"If the Nets' ongoing youth movement was unlikely to deliver a lottery pick next June, why not dangle some of their future draft assets in trades that could help them be more competitive after a dismal 20-win campaign," Golliver asked. "Although Brooklyn acquired Julius Randle in a deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the 31-year-old forward isn't talented enough to carry a contender or young enough to shepherd the Nets' next era."
Throughout this rebuild, Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks has made it clear that the team is prioritizing flexibility as they head into a future that hopefully will get them the franchise player(s) they need. As it stands right now, the Nets' future includes Mikel Brown Jr., Egor Demin, Michael Porter Jr., Randle, and Day'Ron Sharpe just to name a few.
BetMGM currently is not showing an over/under for the Nets' amount of wins next season, but they currently have the lowest odds to emerge as Eastern Conference champions so it's safe to assume that most don't expect Brooklyn to be much better this season. There is a possibility that the Nets could finish next season with 25 wins, but as far as whether they're buying time or not, there is a valid argument for Golliver's position.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Are the Nets still buying time after roster moves this offseason?
