Hoopshype: Nets holding free agent mini-camp

Alex Kennedy of Hoopshype reports the Nets are holding a mini-camp for for at least 10 free agents this week.

On Wednesday, Kennedy updated the list...

The camp includes both an NBA diamonds-in-the-rough like Johnson and Mullens who’s played 189 NBA games as well as G-Leaguers like Wimbush, who averaged eight points with the Long Island Nets this season, and Gray who was one of the G-League’s top point guards. In addition, two of China’s top scorers, Christon and Fogg, are in the camp.

Brice Johnson, 23, is probably the best known, a 6’11” power forward who was drafted two years ago in the first round but has not lived up to expectations with either the Clippers or Grizzlies. He was cut by Memphis when they signed MarShon Brooks in March. Johnson played for three G-League teams this season as well, finishing with a 13.4 points and 9.4 rebounds. He is not a deep threat, shooting only 26.4 percent from three.

Semaj Christon, a 6’3” point guard out of Xavier, played in 64 games for the Thunder two years ago. He played in China last season, averaging 27.8 points with a high game of 45. He played for the Jeff Van Gundy-coached Team USA in this year’s FIBA Americas Cup before joining the Guangzhou Long Lions. He’s 25.

His 28-year-old teammate at Guangzhou, Kyle Fogg, averaged 35.8 points —fourth in the Chinese league— as a combo guard and shot nearly 40 percent from deep. He had five games of 50 or more with a high of 58. He had played in Finland, Belgium, Germany and Spain before making the trek to China. An Arizona product, he’s 6’3”.

Jarrod Uthoff, a 6’8” small forward out of Iowa, has spent most of the last two years bouncing around the G-League, finishing this season with Fort Wayne where he played 51 games, averaging 16.4 and 8.3 while shooting 39 percent from deep. He’s 24.

Josh Gray, a 6’1” point guard out of LSU, played five games for the Suns this season, but spent most of the year with the Northern Arizona Suns. In 45 games, he averaged 19.4 points, 6.4 assists and shot 41 percent from three. He’s 24.

Nazareth Mitrou-Long is a 6’4” Canadian shooting guard who played one game with Jazz this season and 40 with the Salt Lake City stars, averaging 18 a game and shooting 38 percent from 3-point range. He’s 24.

The oldest of the group is 30-year-old Xavier Silas, a 6’5” shooting guard from Northern Illionois who had short, scoreless stint with Boston in March. He played for the Northern Arizona Suns in the G-League.

Walter Lemon Jr. who played briefly for the Pelicans this season is in camp. A 6’3” combo guard, Lemon had short stint with Pelicans late last season after solid year in GLeague, where he averaged 22.4 points, teaming up with Silas at Northern Arizona.

Mullens may be the most intriguing player in camp. A legitimate 7-footer, Mullens put up big numbers in the G-League this year, averaging 19.6 points, shooting better than 50 percent overall and 41 percent from 3-point range for the Lakeland Magic. He also grabbed 11 rebounds and blocked two shots in 11 games. Mullens has played 189 NBA games, starting 66, for four teams before becoming a basketball vagabond, playing for teams in China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Iran. During the 2011 NBA lockout, he played against prison inmates to improve his toughness.

The Nets traditionally hold more than one of these mini-camps during the summer and beyond those named by Kennedy, there are likely others working out at HSS Training Center. The best of the group will often get invitations to the Nets summer league team.

• The cast-offs and long shots headed to Nets minicamp - Brian Lewis - New York Post