Nets Mid-Term Grades Won’t Be Displayed Proudly
Somehow, Nets fans must endure another 41 games of this miserable season.
When the first quarter of this dreaded 2024-25 campaign started out a little too good for the organization’s tanking taste, it made decisions to ensure a course correction. The result: The most lopsided loss in franchise history, 126-67, at the Clippers on Wednesday night to send Brooklyn to a 14-27 record at the season’s halfway point, “good” for seventh place in the reverse NBA standings for the most optimal 2025 NBA Draft lottery odds.
More trades, buyouts, and injury holdouts are on the table, making some of the exercise below potentially moot. Still, I wanted to hand out mid-term grades not on the basis of what was expected of each player going into the season, but more of a true merit-based assessment, one that could be applicable to evaluations as to their future prospects for when the program builds back its basketball relevance. For this purpose, forget that Player X “is doing fine because he’s a (choose one: Second-round pick, two-way player, guy I never heard of).” Think more like, “How close is he to being a long-term keeper?”
Here are the grades, with some links to past posts that dive deeper into the analysis:
Cam Johnson (A): Previously regarded as mainly a heady spot-up shooter, Johnson has expanded his game to include shot creation off the dribble and scoring at all three levels. Was averaging 19.5 points per game on a nearly 50/40/90 shooting split before a freak ankle injury late in a Nets upset at Milwaukee on January 2. Brooklyn didn’t win another game until he returned in Portland on Tuesday night, where he scored another 24 points. It should take a Godfather offer for General Manager Sean Marks to move him (Johnson’s Value Too Rich For Nets To Just Give Away In The Name Of Tanking).
Can Thomas (B-plus): Limited to 19 games due to injuries, Thomas has filled up buckets when he has suited up, averaging a career high 24.7 ppg. His efficiency is marginally improved, as has his playmaking and defense. While any growth is a good thing, he’s still considered a polarizing player by many around the league. For instance, he’s averaging a career high 3.7 assists per game; for the amount of time he has the ball in his hands, shouldn’t that number be closer to five apg by accident? A restricted free agent after the season, Thomas should be highly motivated to go on a contract run in the second half—if he can stay healthy.
Noah Clowney (B): The above average three-point shooting on high volume is certainly a major plus factor, but I was hoping to see development in other areas from the sophomore stretch big. Instead, he has the worst net rating on the team. Clowney, 20, needs several summers in the gym to become more effective in interior battles defending the rim and with rebounding. He also has ways to go with his ballhandling and passing skills so he can be more versatile in driving closeouts. Still, Clowney and Thomas are head-and-shoulders Brooklyn’s most promising young players on the roster.
D’Angelo Russell (B): Has played four games since coming over from the Lakers in the Dorian Finney-Smith trade. The Nets won two of them. So, despite the small sample from his missing five games with a shin contusion, we know enough about DLo to avoid an incomplete. As he was during his prior Nets stint, he’s a combo point guard with average efficiency who can help a team reach mediocre heights when asked to carry it. Defensively, he remains a disaster on and off the ball. However, he brings what the Nets most desperately need--assuming they’re trying to win games--a player who can create offense for himself AND others. (First Impression Of Russell’s Second Nets’ Run: Still Might Be Too Good To Tank) A pending free agent, I personally can’t see how he fits into Brooklyn’s future plans, but it’s not for lack of production.
Ziaire Williams (B-minus): With Williams, it all comes down to shooting, because his in-your-face defense is in line with Head Coach Jordi Fernandez’s demands. Unlike, say, Keon Johnson, there is achievement with all that activity. With his athletic 6-foot 9 frame, Williams leads the team in steals and deflections per 36 minutes (minimum 10 games played). Ah, but the stroke—after making 8-of-12 three-pointers over the first four games, he went into a DEEP slump, shooting a hideous 18.5% until a left knee sprain sidelined him on December 1. Since his return a month later, he’s leading the Nets with a 42.5% three-point conversion rate. One of many pending free agents, Williams is a player who I believe can find a role on a good team.
Nic Claxton (C-plus): What a perplexing first half of the season for the Nets big who signed a 4-year, $100 million extension in the summer. (Depleted Nets Sure Could Use The Old Claxton) His substandard performance makes it a bit sketchy to project how he’d fare in a better situation. He’s well below the level from just two years ago when he led the NBA in field goal percentage. He’s shooting 43.4% from the floor over his last 12 games. That three botched dunk/layup sequence during Wednesday’s second quarter when the game was still within reach was flat-out embarrassing. Claxton can still switch 1-through-5 with the best of them, but he needs to be more of an anchor without chasing blocks that leave offensive rebounding gifts for his man. When he’s not blowing his top, Claxton often seems to be moping out on the court. This is a problem for Brooklyn management.
Tosan Evbuomwan (C-plus): There’s something to be said for a player being able to “slow the game down.” It sure works for Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, and even a lesser light like Kyle Anderson. The Brit from Princeton has made some plays for Brooklyn since signing a two-way deal on January 1 with that more deliberate style, but is it only because he simply lacks the necessary quickness to maintain an NBA career? After struggling with his perimeter shooting in college, Evbuomwan has hit on 6-of-17 (35.3%) in his seven games this season. Anyone who can knock down 3-point shots without giving it all back on the other end has a place in the league, so that’s what the “plus” is for.
Day’Ron Sharpe (C): I will be kinder here than in my prior post on Brooklyn’s pending restricted free agent. (Will The Nets Make A Sharpe Turn By The Trade Deadline?) He’s played as advertised—an offensive rebounding demon with underrated passing skills who has usually helped keep the team afloat when he steps on the court. Until he develops his shooting, however, his ceiling is as a Tristan Thompson type, though significantly less active defensively. Those players, though, find NBA jobs. I just think the Nets should think hard about expending cap space to extend him.
Trendon Watford (C): I remain somewhat a believer in Watford despite a disappointing season on many fronts. He’s been in-and-out of the lineup since the preseason with hamstring issues, limiting him to 13 games. And when he has suited up, the results have been…meh. The Nets have gotten crushed in those smaller sample size minutes (minus-12.3 net rating, per NBA.com) and Watford hasn’t exactly helped the cause with individual stats. He was barely above 30% from 3 and even his mid-paint floaters have been more miss than hit. Maybe the Nets give the 24-year old another minimum deal next season, maybe not.
Tyrese Martin (C-minus): Again, if you grade Martin purely on what one should expect of a two-way player, it would be much higher. Unfortunately, his bad for Brooklyn has often outweighed the good. Maybe it was the auspicious start, when he averaged 7.2 points on a 50/51.5/80 shooting clip for his first nine games, including a stellar 30-point performance with 8-for-10 three-point shooting in a November 27 upset in Phoenix, that made people look for something that isn’t quite there. Take away that outing and he’s just another one of those 30% three-point shooters with a green light he wouldn’t have on a better club. I am guilty of jinxing him earlier this month after he was credited with 11 assists, several of them next level, without a turnover over three-plus games. I hoped Fernandez would give him more on-ball opportunities. Except Martin has been a gaffe machine since, owning the 12th-worst turnover ratio in the league since my poorly-aged tweet among the 173 players with at least four games played at an average of 20 minutes per game, per NBA.com. The reality is that he’s not all that strong a shooter, ballhandler, or defender. To this point, he’s really been a one-hit wonder.
Ben Simmons (C-minus): He’s played better of late, but he’s too unreliable due to, A) Poor health, which is out of his control, and B) erratic decisions on the court, which absolutely is in his purview. At his best, Simmons pushes the pace and threads needles with his passing while contributing steals and boards on the defensive end. Here’s a stat: Among the remaining Nets who have played at least 10 games this season, the team’s three-point rate has been at its highest when Simmons was on the court (38.6%, per NBA.com). It’s just all the usual stuff that has accompanied Simmons since he got here in the 2022 James Harden trade has reared its ugly head too often this season, and I’m not even talking about the absences. It’s the lazy passes, nonsense fouls, and the second half disappearing acts, including all the times he’s passed up shots in the restricted area out of an apparent fear of getting hacked, even though he's shooting a career-best 69.6% from the line this season. Simmons’ most valuable asset going forward might be the approximately $40.3 million in cap space he’ll create when he departs next season.
Jalen Wilson (D-plus): Exhibit 1 as to why tanking is bad for player development. Wilson, already 24, has been put into numerous positions for which his skillset just isn’t prepared. I don’t want to say he’s losing confidence—he’s still jacking up quick-release 3s like they’re going out of style and the constant rejections in the paint hasn’t deterred him from attacking trees one bit—but it has to be a concern, especially during his extended shooting slumps He’s still good for a few broken/hustle plays a night, but they don’t obscure 39% field goal shooting, Including 31% on 3s. Not that ESPN’s Player Efficiency Rating is the end-all of stats, but it has Wilson’s statistical production rated 327th out of 344 NBA players. The only times I’ve seen Fernandez perturbed at him is over his defense, yet Wilson is often tasked with guarding speedsters like Atlanta’s Trae Young who can blow past him with relative ease. Here’s what this season has done to Brooklyn’s 2023 second round pick who was thought through this Summer League to have potential as a steal: It has exposed Wilson’s flaws—too small, too slow, too unathletic, and too inconsistent when shooting from the perimeter.
Keon Johnson (D): So many times this season I’ve wondered what Johnson has on Fernandez. Injuries create opportunities, but usually one can tell when a player is in over his head. (Fernandez’s Troubling Blind Spot In Nets’ Rotation) The Nets’ record when Johnson sees over 21 minutes: 5-18. All other games: 9-9. I get it a little: Johnson really does try hard. However, it’s one thing for Fernandez to look to Johnson when he has no one else available; but to then give him so much offensive responsibility is nuts. If Fernandez was in on the tank, I’d say, “Bravo.” But that seems doubtful. Johnson has started 20 games despite more encompassing metrics that label him as one of the worst players in the league. His PER is four places above Wilson’s, thanks to a 36.5/30.5/75.6 shooting split with a minus-10.8 net rating. The effort is usually there, but at some point you can’t ignore the results.
Reece Beekman: (D-minus): Not much to say here, other than he’s a two-way player acquired as a throw-in from Golden State in the Dennis Schroder trade. He plays smaller than his 6-foot 3 listing and can’t shoot a lick. He was a steal hound at Virginia but here he’s been more noticeable getting picked on after switches. He isn’t supposed to be ready to play NBA rotation minutes, so it’s not a downer that he hasn’t been good when called upon.
De’Anthony Melton (Incomplete): Purely salary filler in the Schroder trade, he had already undergone ACL surgery and was known to be out for the season. A pending unrestricted free agent who will likely never wear the No. 14 Nets jersey to which he was assigned.
Bojan Bogdanovic (Incomplete): Another injured salary filler case, this time courtesy of the Knicks in the offseason Mikal Bridges trade. The preliminary guess as to when he could return from offseason surgeries on his left foot and wrist was around now. The Nets appear to be in no rush.
Maxwell Lewis (Incomplete): A sadder injury story as he collapsed on the court in his 65th second for Brooklyn after his inclusion in the Finney-Smith trade. He had just knocked down a three-pointer in Toronto and then his knee buckled as he turned to transition back on defense. Lewis’ return to play timeline is unknown and his contract for next season is not guaranteed.
Dariq Whitehead (Incomplete): Still not all the way back after a series of lower body injuries, Whitehead should have been using this season to build his confidence back up at G League Ling Island. Unfortunately, Brooklyn’s long list of walking wounded has forced the organization to call Whitehead up numerous times mostly to sit on the bench. The Nets were down by 50 points midway through the third quarter yet Fernandez didn’t call on hum until there was 9:28 remining in the game. That brought him up to 41 minutes of NBA garbage time this season, which doesn’t really give you enough on which to base a grade. His option for next season was picked up, so all the pressure is off. Still, getting him to show some progress in the second half would be a rare, nice development in an awful season.