For tomorrow’s game at the 76ers, the Nets say that rookie Drake Powell is OUT with his right ankle sprain. Brooklyn HC Jordi Fernandez said last night that the team isn’t concerned about Powell’s latest ankle sprain.
Rookie Ben Saraf was recalled from Long Island as well.
— Sharif Phillips-Keaton (@SharifKeaton) December 22, 2025
The Brooklyn Nets are coming off one of their best wins of the 2025-26 NBA season as they beat the Toronto Raptors on Sunday 96-81 after overcoming their fourth-quarter woes. Brooklyn has done about as good as expected with Cam Thomas, Haywood Highsmith, and rookie Drake Powell out of the rotation and it looks like they will have to continue playing without that trio.
The Nets announced on Monday that Powell is out for Tuesday’s game at the Philadelphia 76ers due to the right ankle sprain that he suffered in a 106-95 loss to the Miami Heat last week. Brooklyn has not given more information on how severe Powell’s injury is or how much time he’ll miss due to the injury, but it seems like the team is expecting him to come back soon.
“[I’m] not concerned. He’ll be back soon,” Fernandez said prior to Sunday’s win over the Raptors when discussing if he’s concerned with Powell’s recurring ankle injuries. This is the third time this season that Powell has missed time due to an ankle injury so it’s fair to wonder if the team is going to be more cautious with the rookie when it comes to this latest injury.
Aside from the fact that Powell, Thomas, and Highsmith remain out with their injuries, the other significant part of Brooklyn’s injury report is who is not on it. Rookie Ben Saraf, who has been relegated to the G League after struggling in his role as the starting point guard earlier in the season, has been recalled to Brooklyn ahead of Tuesday’s game in Philadelphia.
Saraf is coming off his best game of the G League season after he dropped 40 points, six rebounds, and four assists in Monday’s 116-97 win over the Oklahoma City Blue in the G League Showcase. Whether the Nets were planning to bring Saraf back up at some point on Monday regardless of how he played will forever be unknown, but the good news is that the rookie could be set for some minutes against the 76ers when his confidence should be sky-high.