Nets may be planning to tank - but Brooklyn’s still a team to watch

Yahoo Sports senior NBA analyst Kevin O’Connor is joined by Kenny Beecham to discuss governor Joe Tsai’s comments about the team’s approach to this season and why Brooklyn may still be worth keeping an eye on. Check out the full conversation on “The Kevin O’Connor Show” and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen.

Video Transcript

The Brooklyn Nets, uh, even their own team owner Joey had a strange quote last week where he said, we have one pick in 2026, and we hope to get a good pick, so you could predict what kind of strategy we will use for this season, but we have a very young team.

The owner of the team is basically saying, we’re gonna tank.

We’re gonna tank after having 5 picks last year, only one pick this year.

I’ll tell you what, the reason why I have them as a league pass darling, even though this is gonna be a tanking team.

It’s cause they just have so many fun players.

Danny Wolf, a seven-foot center.

Nolan Traore, a speedster point guard, and you know, the existing guys on the roster.

I really like Nick Claxton as a versatile defender.

I really can’t wait to see how Noah Clowney develops this year.

And a lot of interesting players across positions, and so I think the Nets belong as a league pass darling this year, Kenny, because of just the amount of youth they have on this team that is fun and weird and exciting to watch.

And then there’s Cam Thomas, who’s just gonna shoot every single time he touches the ball.

It’s, I just can’t wait to watch him.

I’m so happy you put them because Kevin, they are the last team I thought about for this experiment.

I think this is gonna be a team by December 2nd.

I am box score watching Brooklyn Nets games.

I’ll be honest with you.

Um, let’s hope that one of those five rookies really proved me wrong and then they’re the reason to watch, but Joe Tsai, what a crazy quote, but I completely understand them because if you take 5 swings one year and none of them work out, you kind of need that next swing to be the top pick.

Like, it’s just so many different little storylines and threads I can’t wait to watch unfold over the course of the year, like MPJ as an example.

Does he get opportunities to develop his game off the dribble, or is he gonna be in that offball role like we saw him in Denver?

Do some of the veterans become trade targets like a Terrence Mann type, a Haywood Highsmith, or, you know, guys like that as a piece for contending teams.

It’s just a weird team with a lot of weird players and that’s why they’re on my list, even though I understand that for a lot of people they’re not gonna wanna watch.

that group at all.

Nets may be planning to tank – but Brooklyn’s still a team to watch

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