NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton has been asked to be one of the main scoring threats for the Nets over the past few seasons in the midst of this rebuild. Coming into the 2025-26 NBA season, Brooklyn has asked Claxton to do even more on the offensive end of the floor, specially his play-making, and he has thrived under those circumstances.
“Just in a flow state, knowing the spots that I’m going be in, knowing where my teammates knowing where to find them; and the coaches just trusting me to make plays,” Claxton said following Thursday’s 106-95 loss to the Miami Heat. Claxton finished the contest by almost notching his third triple-double of the year with his 16 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists while also contributing two steals and two blocks.
Claxton, 26, is averaging 13.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game while shooting 56.4% from the field and 69.3% from the free-throw line in 26 appearances. Assuming that Claxton maintains his current production, he will notch per-game career-highs in points, assists, and free-throw percentage during a season in which head coach Jordi Fernandez is asking for more out of the former Georgia Bulldog.
As of this writing, Claxton is fourth in the league in assists per game among players listed as a center with Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets, Alperen Sengun of the Houston Rockets, and Julius Randle of the Minnesota Timberwolves being the only players ahead of him in the metric. More to the point, Claxton, along with Jokic and Randle, are the only centers to have at least triple-doubles this season.
Ultimately, Claxton’s primary role on this team is to score when he gets the ball near the basket, rebound, protect the rim, and set screens for players like forward Michael Porter Jr. However, this season has shown that Claxton can do more than just what traditional big men are asked to do as Fernandez has put him in a position to be one of the primary playmakers on the team as well.