The Brooklyn Nets fell again Wednesday night, losing to the Atlanta Hawks and dropping to 0-5 on the season. The winless start marks a difficult stretch for a team focused less on short-term success and more on developing its young core for the future.
Brooklyn selected five players in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft, aiming to stockpile talent as part of its long-term rebuild. Egor Demin, the first of those picks at No. 8 overall out of BYU, entered the year as one of the most intriguing rookies in the class. While he scored 14 points in his debut and totaled 23 points across his first two games, his production has declined since. Over his last two appearances, Demin has scored just seven combined points.
Part of the issue lies in his shot selection — or lack of variety. Through four games (he missed one), Demin has logged 82 minutes of action without attempting a single two-point field goal. In other words, every one of his shots this season has come from beyond the three-point line, despite averaging more than 20 minutes per game.
Head coach Jordi Fernández addressed the concern postgame: “He’s gotta figure it out. Obviously, I want him to touch the paint. Everybody will figure out that he’s a threat from the three-point line, but he cannot play just behind the three.”
The Nets will have three days off before returning to action Sunday, hoping to snap their five-game skid.
More NBA news:
