For the second consecutive season, sportsbooks are projecting the Brooklyn Nets to complete in direction of the underside of the NBA. The group’s over/beneath win projection for 2025-26 opened at 20.5, tied for the second-lowest within the NBA, per FanDuel.
NBA insider Tim Bontemps referred to as tanking a necessity for the Nets whereas giving his over/beneath prediction.
“I’ll take the beneath,” Bontemps stated on ESPN’s The Hoop Collective. “It will not shock me in the event that they go over. Clearly, Jordi Fernandez did an incredible job final yr and confirmed he can actually coach. However this group must be within the prime 5 [of the draft] subsequent yr. I think this yr is gonna go like Utah did final yr, the place they’ll do the whole lot they will to be sure that they’re, if not the worst report within the league, proper there as a substitute of being someplace in the course of the lottery the place they have been final yr.”
Brooklyn’s win complete projection was as little as 18.5 getting into final season. The group bought off to a shock 9-10 begin, finally surpassing 18 wins with over two months left within the common season.
Nevertheless, there’s motive to imagine the Nets will get off to a slower begin subsequent yr.
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Veterans Dennis Schroder, Cam Johnson and Dorian Finney-Smith fueled the Nets’ shock begin final season. Normal Supervisor Sean Marks traded all three over the past yr. He changed Johnson and Finney-Smith with Michael Porter Jr. and Terance Mann.
In the meantime, the Nets enter this season and not using a veteran level guard on the roster. Brooklyn’s rotation will characteristic three rookie ball-handlers in Egor Demin, Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf. Whereas all three boast intriguing potential, rookie level guards usually wrestle whereas making the bounce to the NBA.
“They’re going to be enjoying a ton of rookies a ton of minutes. A whole lot of these rookies are attention-grabbing gamers, nevertheless it’s plenty of ball-handlers who are usually not good shooters. They’re gonna be enjoying plenty of younger guards on the whole,” Bontempts stated. “Egor Demin, the eighth total decide, I’m certain he might be beginning at level guard. I’m certain he’s gonna have the ball in his palms a ton. That’s gonna be good for his improvement, and it’s gonna be good for shedding video games and attempting to get a top-five decide, which they actually need to do.”
Solely the Utah Jazz (18.5) have a decrease win complete than the Nets subsequent season. The Washington Wizards are tied with Brooklyn for the NBA’s second-lowest projection.