Josh Minott was a bright spot for the Brooklyn Nets during the latter half of their otherwise forgettable 2025-26 campaign. The Nets liked what they saw enough to re-sign Minott to a two-year, $9 million contract this summer. That commitment makes his exclusion from Brooklyn's rotation at the start of this season a head-scratcher.
Despite Minott's limited playing time, head coach Jordi Fernandez insists the fifth-year forward has done nothing wrong.
“[Josh has] done nothing wrong. He works really hard. He's a great teammate,” Fernandez said before Monday's 103-90 loss to the New York Knicks. “You could see him [supporting his teammates] yesterday on the bench [in Indiana], which I think is very, very important, especially when you play on the road. The energy that you can have and being selfless and supporting the rest of the group and then being ready when your number's called. I think his number has been called two or three times. He's tried to help the group. Right now, he's got others ahead of him.”
Fernandez's response won't clear up the confusion surrounding Minott's limited playing time amid the Nets' early struggles.
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Minott averaged 7.4 points and 3.4 rebounds while shooting 62.6 percent on twos and 41.8 percent on threes in 17.0 minutes per game across 49 appearances with the Nets and Boston Celtics last season. He was the NBA's only player to post steal and block percentages above 2.5 while shooting over 40.0 percent from three. His 4.7 deflections per 36 minutes ranked 17th among 322 players who played over 800 minutes.
Despite this, Minott's been stuck behind two-way forward Chaney Johnson and fifth-year forward Noah Clowney in Brooklyn's rotation this season.
Johnson has impressed with his defense but struggled offensively, averaging just 5.9 points on .359/.316/.875 shooting splits with 1.0 assists and 1.4 turnovers per game. Clowney has struggled on both ends, posting a -14.8 net rating swing (team points scored minus team points allowed per 100 possessions with a player on vs. off), the second-worst on the team, ahead of only Moe Wagner (-20.2).
The Nets rank 28th in offense (104.2 rating), 18th in defense (112.9) and 24th in net rating (-8.6) during their 1-6 start. And yet, Minott hasn't cracked the rotation.
His only extended playing time came late in the Nets' 136-109 loss to the Pacers on Oct. 25. The 23-year-old played 21 minutes during the defeat, posting 15 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals on 4-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-10 from three.
Minott said during training camp that he was hungry to solidify a role with the Nets after spending much of his first four NBA seasons on the bench.
“I don't really think I had a mental shift [after signing the new contract]. It’s kind of the same hunger I’ve had,” he said. “At the end of the day, there’s so much to prove. From top to bottom, everybody in here knows how we’re perceived, and we’re trying to exceed expectations by a ton… One thing I've learned in my four years, going on five, is that you're never settled in. I would never get complacent. You can never be complacent. I feel like that's advice to everybody in any profession. You guys, there's a young reporter trying to take your job. I'd say just never get too complacent; always stay competitive. It's a competitive job.”
Following a difficult seven-game slate to open the season, the Nets will face a softer stretch of schedule in the coming weeks. If the team continues to struggle, fans' calls for Fernandez to put Minott in the rotation will only grow louder.