The Brooklyn Nets’ 2025 draft haul raised eyebrows across the league — and not in a good way.
According to a report by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, relayed by Larry Brown Sports’ Steve DelVecchio, several NBA executives and player agents privately mocked Brooklyn’s draft decisions. The backlash reportedly began shortly after the first round concluded.
“I’ve got people saying to me, executives and agents, they’re like, ‘Man, I was watching them play three two-way guys this year so that they could clap for taking guys in the 20s,’” Windhorst said on ESPN.
The criticism stems from the Nets selecting four players in the first round: Egor Demin (No. 8), Nolan Traore (No. 19), Ben Saraf (No. 26), and Danny Wolf (No. 27), as well as Adou Thiero with the 36th overall pick.
Despite holding significant draft capital, some league insiders are questioning the return Brooklyn got in a class perceived as deep at the top but less so in the mid-to-late first round.
Windhorst said that the sentiment among peers was not just skepticism, but ridicule. “People are making fun of this draft group,” he added. One anonymous source reportedly compared the Nets’ newly drafted players unfavorably to their own two-way talent from last season.
Demin, the Russian-born point guard from BYU, was seen by scouts as a high-upside developmental project. Traore, a French guard from Saint-Quentin, impressed in international play but was considered by some analysts as a reach at No. 19.
Saraf and Wolf, both hailing from Israel’s national program, come with unique skill sets but were viewed as late-first to early-second round talents by several draft boards.
The Nets are coming off a 26–56 campaign, finishing 12th in the Eastern Conference and missing the postseason for the second consecutive year.
With no All-Star talent on the current roster and limited cap flexibility, the franchise’s path forward appears rooted in long-term player development.
