Brooklyn Nets are all-in on positional size … with a European touch

The Brooklyn Nets are getting bigger without getting slower. At least that’s how it appears Sean Marks and Jordi Fernández will build in Brooklyn.

Say it with us: No more small ball!

The Nets have spent the past year finding and adding players who can handle the rock, shoot the three, pass and create from “positions” that traditionally haven’t demanded all of those skills. They believe that maintaining size — and versatility — without sacrificing some skill or athleticism can give them an advantage.

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At Media Day, Fernández offered a glimpse into how that could look with Mikel Brown Jr. and Egor Dëmin in the backcourt this season:

“You guys know that I don’t like to give you my secrets, but I’m pretty sure we’ll see that,” the third year coach said when asked if the two high picks will be starting together. “Going back to the skill set, right? Like, you know, the ability to shoot from both of them, real ability to create, and the positional size… They have been brought here for a reason.”

Surrounding those two ball-handlers, Brooklyn’s roster construction shows a clear prioritization of positional size, versatility, skill … and quick decision-making. Emphasis on quick decision-making. We constantly circle back to this quote from Sean Marks in June 2025:

“It’s 0.5-second basketball, you catch and make a decision. You don’t hold the ball… It’s also where the NBA is going: guys who can play multiple positions, guard multiple positions, and make it hard on the defense,” said the Nets GM.

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On the cloudy Monday in Brooklyn, NetsDaily’s Lucas Kaplan asked Marks if Brooklyn’s positional size represented an organizational shift, a goal shift, or simply a case of the players fitting a certain type of mold.

“It’s a combination of all the above,” answered Marks.

“What becomes available, where you’re picking in the draft and so forth, I do think positional size is a factor we look at. Jordi and I are hand-in-hand in that when we discuss who we want to bring in, and what position, and what needs we look for. Sometimes size can make up for some other deficiencies. It’s certainly a factor.”

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/brooklyn-nets-positional-size-european-225008421.html

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Publish date : 2026-10-01 22:50:00

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