Nets pick up third-year contract options for all 5 2025 1st-round picks

The Nets picked up third-year team options for all five of their 2025 first-round picks despite three of them being out of the rotation.

The Brooklyn Nets exercised third-year team options on all five of their 2025 first-round picks — Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf — on Thursday. That decision comes ahead of the Nov. 2 deadline for teams to exercise rookie scale options for 2027-28.

Head coach Jordi Fernandez was asked about the front office decision.

“We brought [those five guys] in for a reason. Obviously picking up options is part of the [team's] management, but there's belief in development and the type of people that we bring in,” Fernandez said. “Now we've been together for a little over a year and we believe that every single one of them has a future in this league. Everybody's got different paths to get there, and that's okay. But so far I think that just proves that we believe in the process.”

Demin was one of the Nets' few bright spots during last year's tanking season. The 6-foot-9 guard/wing averaged 10.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists on .399/.385/.831 shooting splits in 25.2 minutes per game across 52 appearances (45 starts). He was one of three rookies to average over 10.0 points and 3.0 assists with a true shooting percentage above 56.0, alongside Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel and San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper.

Meanwhile, Brooklyn's other four rookies showed promise in spurts but collectively underwhelmed. Outside of Demin, Traore is the Nets' only sophomore who opened this season in the rotation.

Following a sporadic rookie season, the French floor general has performed well during his early opportunities. Traore has averaged 16.0 points and 4.0 assists on 12-of-20 shooting from the field, 3-of-5 from three and 5-of-7 from the free-throw line over the Nets' last two games. He replaced Keon Ellis in Brooklyn's starting lineup during Tuesday's overtime loss to the Boston Celtics.

Meanwhile, Powell, Saraf and Wolf have been on the outside looking in for rotation spots this season. The trio got its only playing time in the closing minutes of Sunday's 136-109 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Following underwhelming rookie campaigns, Powell and Saraf struggled at this year's Summer League. Powell averaged 5.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.0 assist on 8-of-44 (18.2 percent) shooting from the field and 4-of-25 (16.0 percent) from three across six appearances. Saraf averaged 10.0 points on 19-of-51 (37.3 percent) shooting from the field and 5-of-15 from three with 3.3 assists and 2.0 turnovers per game.

Both sophomore guards will face an uphill battle to earn NBA minutes this season. The Nets have three young guards — Demin, Traore and Mikel Brown Jr. — in the backcourt rotation alongside Ellis. Veteran guard Terance Mann hasn't played yet but also has a case for minutes.

“Just to be ready when their number's called and do whatever it takes to help the team win,” head coach Jordi Fernandez recently replied when asked what players like Powell and Saraf need to do to earn NBA minutes.

Wolf has a more convincing case for minutes. The former Michigan star averaged 11.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 48.6 percent from the field at this year's Summer League. He followed that by averaging 5.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists on 8-of-16 shooting in 12.5 minutes per game across four preseason appearances.

Wolf has been behind Noah Clowney and Chaney Johnson in Brooklyn's second-unit forward rotation. However, Clowney has struggled to make an impact, averaging 6.3 points and 4.0 rebounds on 37.5 percent shooting while attempting just 4.0 field-goal attempts per game.

Powell, Saraf and Wolf each practiced with the Nets' G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, this week, along with 2026 first-round pick Joshua Jefferson. All three could see action when Long Island opens the G League season on Nov. 6.

The Nets' decision to pick up all of their five third-year options doesn't guarantee all five players will be on the roster next season. Brooklyn recently picked up their third-year option for Dariq Whitehead, the No. 22 pick in the 2023 draft, before waiving him ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

The Brooklyn Nets exercised third-year team options on all five of their 2025 first-round picks — Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf — on Thursday. That decision comes ahead of the Nov. 2 deadline for teams to exercise rookie scale options for 2027-28. Head coach Jordi Fernandez was asked about the front office decision.