Nets fans will need to wait a little longer to see Nolan Traore back in action.
General manager Sean Marks announced Monday that Traore recently had a scope on his right knee after he suffered an injury last season and won’t be playing in any Summer League games.
While the 20-year-old won’t be participating in the Summer League, Marks said he expects the guard to make a full recovery and be ready for training camp in the fall.
Traore was one of the Nets’ five first-round picks in 2025 and had an up-and-down rookie campaign, averaging 8.9 points per game while shooting just 38 percent from the field.
In addition to trading for Julius Randle, the Nets locked up Josh Minott, Day’Ron Sharpe and Malachi Smith.
The Nets inked Sharpe to a two-year, $20 million deal after he spent the first five years of his career in Brooklyn. Sharpe averaged a career-high 8.7 points per game last season in just seven starts but will have more opportunity this season with Nic Claxton’s departure.
Minott, who averaged 10.8 points per game last season after coming over from the Celtics, is staying with the Nets on a two-year, $9 million contract.
The Nets also exercised their team option on guard Malachi Smith, who started four games and averaged 8.3 points per game last year.
Marks also spoke about the Nets’ current state after winning just 20 games last season and how he anticipates next season being another step in the team’s rebuild.
“I think we continue to take the next steps and continue to build. I never want to put a cap on any of these teams,” Marks said. “Go out there, roll the ball out, and we’ve seen it before many years ago, when all of a sudden these guys feed off each other, the energy is palpable in the gym, and that’s important.”
“We start establishing a real culture, and these guys are grinding and competing not only in practice, but they’re competing out there on the court, and that’s what I want to see,” Marks added.
Even with many around the league having low expectations for the Nets next season, their rookies are confident the team can “shock the world” and win more games than people expect.
