Big mystery continues: How long the rebuild?

ESPN thinks the Nets don’t want a long rebuild but “SCOUT, the team’s new documentary raises questions.

ESPN, in its latest draft feature, think the Nets should take Tre Johnson if they remain at No. 6 — and somebody else doesn’t move on the fast-rising 6’6” Texas sharpshooter. That’s speculative, of course. ESPN’s Jeremy Woo doesn’t contend he knows the inner workings of the Nets draft process. (In fact, in Brooklyn’s newest video on the team’s scouts, the team’s big board is purposedly blurred.)

However, Woo does offer some intelligence from around the league on what the Brooklyn Nets might be thinking.

What we’re hearing on the Nets: The buzz from rival teams has been the Nets aren’t planning for a true long-haul tank, even after reacquiring their own picks last summer. The Nets have the most salary-cap space in the league this offseason, but with a top-heavy 2026 draft on the horizon and a roster in need of major modifications in order to compete for a playoff spot, patience is still a virtue here.

Brooklyn, currently lacking a centerpiece-caliber player, is in position to swing for upside with this pick regardless of where it falls in the lottery as it figures out what the next iteration of its team will look like. The Nets can afford to wait until the right star becomes available to shift gears.

Does that hint that the Nets would use some of their five picks next month — four firsts and a second — to make a big splash this summer with the acquisition of, say, Giannis Antetokounmpo? According to Howard Beck, IF he decides to leave Milwaukee, he would prefer a new perch in New York, Los Angeles or Miami.

“The initial thing I got from one person was just, like, rumblings that it’s already just the big cities,” said Beck on Zach Lowe’s new show, citing the two teams each in New York and Los Angeles as well as the Heat.

Speculation abounds.

Sean Marks has talked about being opportunistic but not going to do anything rash. In his off-quoted media availability three weeks ago, he laid down the rationale for diverting from a homegrown, organic rebuild.

“If you’re going after max-level talent, they have to automatically and absolutely change the trajectory of your team. This can’t be like let’s go get this [guy] and lock ourselves into being a 6-7 seed. When we go all-in, you’re going in to compete at the highest level and contend.” [Emphasis ours]

Indeed, in the first episode of SCOUT, the Nets internal content team’s documentary, B,J. Johnson, Marks’ No. 2 and the man in charge of the Draft for Brooklyn, suggested that the Nets plan is a long-term one.

“To get this draft right and to really nail it — not only for the talent level that’s in it, but the type of people that we really want,” said Johnson. “We don’t look at it as a one time thing. This could set us up for the next 10 years of this organization. So to me personally, we get these next three years right, we’re in a really good position.” (Emphasis ours again.)

It should be noted that the quote is from a Nets senior staff meeting back in September so it’s more like two years at this point, but both the Marks media availability and first episode of SCOUT suggest the Nets default position is indeed, as Woo noted, patience.

As for Johnson, Woo wrote about what would appeal to Marks & Co. about the 19-year-old and wonders about the similarities between him and Cam Thomas, who is after all a restricted free agent:

Johnson has elevated his draft stock after a season that showcased his scoring prowess, albeit at the expense of some efficiency. While the Nets have leaned heavily the past couple of seasons on Cam Thomas — another 2-guard who can be similarly ball-dominant — Johnson’s size, youth and offensive upside make him worth consideration for a team that owned the third-worst offensive rating last season.

Johnson’s tendency to take tough shots and bouts of overaggressiveness make him polarizing for scouts, but he is one of the draft’s more talented scorers in an offense-driven league. He’d be a player worth developing who could step into a big role right away in Brooklyn.

How often has Brooklyn scouted Johnson? How about every game! One of the Nets scouts featured in their new documentary is Eddie Oran, who’s been with the franchise for 17 years, the last 12 as a scout. During all that time, Oran has also been color analyst for Texas Men’s Basketball.

As we noted in this week’s Off-Season Report, back in November they got a very close-up view of him. Texas, in the New York for a game at the Garden, practiced at HSS Training Center, a frequent stop for top college teams playing in the city…

Speaking of Sean Marks, the Nets GM finished eighth in the annual Executive of the Year vote (by fellow NBA GMs.) remarkably ahead of Brad Stevens of the Celtics and Leon Rose of the Knicks, Marks got only one vote but it was a first.