Sean Marks hints Celtics trade acquisition will return to Nets after breaking out ‘on 1 leg’

The Brooklyn Nets embraced a youth movement this season. While their five rookie first-round picks dominated the discussion surrounding the team, Josh Minott forced his way into the conversation after joining the team at the trade deadline.

Despite battling an ankle injury, Minott impressed after the Boston Celtics salary-dumped him to the Nets. General Manager Sean Marks indicated that the 6-foot-8 forward, who has a $2.58 million team option for next season, will be back in Brooklyn in 2026-27.

“We’d followed Josh for a while. He’d been a little banged up with an ankle that he injured in Boston, so we knew he was hurt [coming in],” Marks said. “But having an opportunity to see him in your gym, things that stood out to us for sure were his confidence and his great attitude about work. I think the shooting probably surprised me slightly. But I look forward to seeing him healthy. He was playing on one leg with us for most of the time here, so it’s nice to get that ankle taken care of and then have another big summer for a young man like that. But he’s excited, and he’s incredibly motivated. I love the competitive nature and the competitive fire that he has.”

After spending the first three years of his career with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Minott had an encouraging stretch early this season with the Celtics. However, the 23-year-old was a midseason cap casualty as Boston dumped several minimum contracts to duck the luxury tax.

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The Nets took advantage of the situation and acquired Minott for cash considerations. He continued to turn heads with his two-way production after joining Brooklyn’s rotation.

Minott averaged 10.8 points on .491/.395/.800 shooting splits in 19.3 minutes per game across 16 appearances with the Nets. He finished the season shooting 41.8 percent on 9.2 three-point attempts per 100 possessions. While he has a ways to go as an on-ball creator, he was highly efficient as a finisher this season, shooting 48-of-61 (78.7 percent) at the rim.

Meanwhile, his defensive playmaking was evident, as he averaged 3.5 stocks (steals + blocks) per 36 minutes with Brooklyn.

“[He offers] positional size, shooting, and he’s a very, very good teammate. [He’s showing] all those things right now, so he keeps seeing more minutes, and he keeps taking advantage of them,” Jordi Fernandez said of Minott during the breakout stretch.

Minott’s impact was so evident that the Nets benched him during the final week of the season to preserve top-three draft lottery odds. If he can remain a respectable three-point shooter, his floor spacing and defensive aptitude should offer him a long-term role with Brooklyn.

July 15 is the deadline for Brooklyn to exercise Minott’s $2.58 million team option for next season. The Nets could also opt to decline the option and extend Minott to a multi-year contract.

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