Once seen as a 3-and-D possibility, Council IV was waived last week by Philly
While everyone has been focusing on either Cam Thomas’ restricted free agency, Michael Porter Jr.’s adjustment to New York and/or the team’s five rookies, the Brooklyn Nets are signing Ricky Council IV, an athletic 6’6”, 23-year-old wing to a one-year deal, Council was waived six days ago by Philadelphia 76ers.
Shams Charania of ESPN was first with the news…
Free agent guard/forward Ricky Council IV will sign a one-year contract with the Brooklyn Nets, his agent Adie von Gontard tells ESPN. The former 76ers wing appeared in a team-high 73 games last season, averaging 7.3 points and 2.9 rebounds.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 1, 2025
Shams did not detail how the Nets will sign Council IV but a league source tells NetsDaily, Council will get a partially guaranteed, one-year deal.
With the signing, Brooklyn currently has 10 standard guaranteed deals, five standard non-guaranteed deals (now including Council,) three unsigned restricted free agents and two two-way deals on the books, giving them 20 players. NBA Teams can bring 21 players into training camp which is the Nets case will open the last week of September. Council will turn 24 on Sunday, making him the 11th youngest player of the 20.
He went undrafted out of Arkansas in 2023, but impressed at the NBA Combine, registering a 37.5” max vertical to go along with his 6’9” wingspan. RC4, as he’s known, was signed to a two-way deal with Philly before the 2023-24 season, playing most the year with the Delaware Blue Coats, averaging 23.4 points in 11 games on shooting splits of 47/35/80. His numbers with the 76ers were also promising, putting up 5.4 points a game in 32 games all off the bench. He registered shooting splits of 48/38/75, leading the Sixers to convert his deal to a standard but non-guaranteed at $7.4 million and four years in April 2024.
Here’s some highlights from his rookie season:
With the 76ers the league leader in injuries this past season, Council IV’s numbers picked up more minutes but his numbers dropped off. Playing 1,000+ minutes more in 2024-25 than he had his rookie season, he averaged 6.7 points in 73 games, 12 of them starts. However, his shooting dropped off dramatically with splits of 38/26/80. In two games on assignment with the Blue Coats in January and March, however, he put up 29 and 40-point efforts shooting 38.9% from deep.
The 76ers waived him to open a roster spot. In describing the move, the Philly Sports Network predicted he wouldn’t remain a free agent for long:
While Council IV’s time is ending with the Sixers, it does not mean that his time in the NBA should come to an end. He still may have some untapped potential, and many teams could look to add Council IV with the intent of developing him into a serviceable 3-and-D player for the future either on a minimum deal or a two-way deal.