Nets' Jordi Fernandez explains process of coaching five rookies

NEW YORK -- Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez just finished up his second season as the leader of the Nets, but the franchise endured another tough rebuilding campaign along the way. Brooklyn came into this year with the understanding that it would likely be another losing season given their five-man rookie class and Fernandez explained what that experience was like.

"I think with the system that we have here, it worked very well between Long Island, the coaching staff and the front office," Fernandez said when asked about the challenges of coaching that many rookies at the same time. While players like Egor Demin (eighth overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft) and Nolan Traore (19th) have shown glimpses of what they could be, their fellow rookies in Drake Powell (22nd), Ben Saraf (26th), and Danny Wolf (27th) have had to learn on the job as well, so to speak.

"The exposure that these guys had to real games, I think we led the league in minutes played by rookies, and that tells you a lot," Fernandez continued. "The best player development coach ever is real minutes. Not just minutes, but competitive minutes and we've seen that. Unfortunately, we have not been able to win all those competitive games, but just those guys being there, I think that makes a difference and you see the results."

While the Nets had the largest first-round selection in NBA history, they still managed to play all five of their rookies at least 916 minutes over the course of the season. Players like Traore, Powell, Saraf, and Wolf had various stints with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn's G League affiliate, while Demin had been with the team since the beginning of the season, showing how ready he was for NBA minutes.

Demin, who averaged 10.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game while shooting 39.9% from the field and 38.5% from behind the three-point line, is regarded by many as the best player of the quintet. However, with the Nets heading into an offseason that will be important for the entire organization, Fernandez and the rookies will have to continue making strides next season.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets' Jordi Fernandez explains process of coaching five rookies