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As every Nets fan knows, Brooklyn doesn't control any of its first round picks until 2019 ... nor any second round picks until 2021. But that hasn't stopped Sean Marks and his staff from making an impression at the Pre-Draft Combine in Chicago this week.
Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders tweeted what he saw on Friday.
Despite a dearth of picks, in Chicago, the #Nets are being incredibly active, doing due diligence and inviting prospects to Brooklyn.
— Moke Hamilton (@MokeHamilton) May 13, 2016
It seems as if every agent in Chicago for the draft combine has at least one client whom the #Nets have inquired about. Marks very active.
— Moke Hamilton (@MokeHamilton) May 13, 2016
#Nets general manager Sean Marks and his staff in the gym in Chicago. No surprise there. pic.twitter.com/PVUEBdevnm
— Moke Hamilton (@MokeHamilton) May 13, 2016
Meanwhile, seven time zones away in Berlin, Marks assistant GM Trajan Langdon --and Mikhail Prokhorov-- were scouting the Euroleague Final Four.
Courtside in Berlin @BrooklynNets's owner Mikhail Dmitrievitch Prokhorov pic.twitter.com/RmLfRYV2ss
— EuroleagueBasketball (@Euroleague) May 13, 2016
Who were they watching in the CSKA Moscow vs. Lokomotiv Kuban semi-final? One educated guess would be Nando deColo, the Euroleague MVP who played for the San Antonio Spurs when Marks and Langdon worked in San Antonio. Ohm Youngmisuk says he's worth watching.
Nando De Colo could be a guard to keep an eye on for the Nets. De Colo, this season's Euroleague MVP, scored 30... https://t.co/uzQnUSw3vs
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) May 13, 2016
That's 30 points in 35 minutes. And CSKA, which Prokhorov owned and Langdon starred for, won.
What's going on here? The Nets could be getting ready to move up OR it could be another move by Marks to let the NBA know things are changing in Brooklyn?
Meanwhile, Hamilton names two other players the Nets have interest in. Elgin Cook, a 6'6" small forward out of Oregon, the son of former NBA All-Star Alvin Robertson; and Tim Quarterman, a 6'6" shooting guard out of LSU.