Nets’ youth excited to go from the weight room to summer ball

The Brooklyn Nets have landed in Sacramento, gearing up for the California Classic with a squad of rookies, sophomores, and fringe NBA players looking to make an impression during this extended summer showcase. This means that Nets fans are dying to get their first look at Mikel Brown Jr. and Tyler Bilodeau (but mostly Mikel), as each officially signed his NBA contract on Thursday night…

Bilodeau, as previously reported, accepted a two-year contract, while the #28 overall pick, Joshua Jefferson, cannot officially sign with Brooklyn until July 6 at the earliest, when the Minnesota-Brooklyn trade is finalized. This also means Jefferson will not play in the California Classic on July 4, 5, or 6.

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Unfortunately, you may want to temper expectations for the other guys as well.

“We’re not going to do anything that will put their health in danger,” said Jordi Fernández before the team headed out West. “I think that we’ve proven that over and over. We have very good medical and performance staff, and right now, I don’t envision them playing all three games, because I think it’s back-to-back-to-back.”

Indeed it is…

Fernández did not comment on any specific young Net, though Nolan Traoré isn’t on the roster because he recently had his right knee scoped (and is expected to be ready for training camp.) Meanwhile, Grant Nelson, the leading candidate for Brooklyn’s final two-way spot, is rehabbing from an offseason procedure and won’t play in either league. Ultimately, it would not be surprising if Mikel Brown Jr. does not play in Sacramento at all — or if he only plays one game — and we miss out on the potential Brown Jr. vs. Darius Acuff showdown scheduled for July 4th.

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But Egor Dëmin is still looking forward to a bright and productive future next to his new backcourt mate: “I met him in the very first day, right, I was at the draft, and he seems like he’s a very good guy, you know? I think we have a pretty good connection already, and it’s going to be built up throughout the whole summer, the summer league, the California tournament, and throughout training…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nets-youth-excited-weight-room-085413190.html

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Publish date : 2026-07-03 08:54:00

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