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Nets adding undrafted players, others, to summer league team

Atlantic 10 Basketball Tournament - Rhode Island v George Washington Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images

The Nets are adding players who went undrafted Thursday — as well as international players — to their summer league team and possibly training camp. That’s according to social media accounts held by players, their agents and their alma maters. The Nets don’t normally announce their summer league roster until July 4 weekend.

That said, five players appear to have agreed to play for Brooklyn in the Las Vegas summer league which starts July 6. For the first time, all 30 teams will be playing. Each team is guaranteed three games in the summer league playoff format. Of the five, three are veterans of their country’s national time.

Here’s the list:

Theo Pinson, a 6’6” senior guard from the University of North Carolina. Pinson, who has a near 7-foot wingspan, is a defensive specialist and a player who Roy Williams used to guard everyone from point guards to bigs. In fact, he went up against Marvin Begley III in the all-important Duke-UNC contests. He is not a shooter, taking only 179 three’s in his four year career ... and making 26.9 percent of them. Pinson did average 10 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists, showing his versatility. A member of North Carolina’s 2017 NCAA championship team. Pinson was ranked the nation’s 10th best high school player in 2014, three spots ahead of D’Angelo Russell and four ahead of Isaiah Whitehead.

Tyler Davis, a 6’10” junior forward from Texas A&M and Puerto Rico. Davis was seen as a potential second round pick, but suffered a concussion this season which hurt his draft stock. A high character guy with a strong workout ethic, he turned his body from round to ripped, as one Houston sports blog put it. A hard worker in the post, he averaged 14.9 points and 8.9 rebounds, hitting better than 60 percent of his shots in his three year career. Also not a shooter, taking only 26 shots from deep, and only one since his freshman year. A member of the Puerto Rican national team.

Yuta Watanabe, a 6’9 senior shooting guard from George Washington and Japan. Watanabe is a shooter. He made 36.4 percent of his three’s on his way to a 16.4 point average his senior year. He also grabbed 6.1 rebounds and is seen as an underrated defender, voted the Atlantic 10’s Defensive Player of the Year as a senior. Watanabe is attempting to become just the second Japanese-born player in NBA history after 5’9” point guard Yuta Tabuse who played four games for the Phoenix Suns in 2004. Watanabe provided NBA Japan with an inside look at the Nets workout routine. A member of the Japanese national team.

Shawn Dawson, a 6’6” swingman from Israel. The 24-year-old is the son of an American basketball player. He has played in Israel his entire career, not attending a U.S. college. He’s had tryouts with the Pelicans and Wizards. He is an efficient scorer even if his 3-point shot is not that deadly. He can play multiple positions. He’s 24 and a member of the Israeli national team.

Jordan McLaughlin, a 6’2” senior point guard from USC. McLaughlin is a top floor general and a good outside shooter as well. He may have a camp invite as well as one to the summer league. Over the course of his four-year career with the Trojans, McLaughlin shot 38 percent from three and averaged 5.8 assists, including 7.8 this past season, third nationally. An all-around, if undersized player, McLaughlin finished his USC career second in assists, third in steals, fourth in points and fifth in three-pointers made.

Sean Marks said Friday he’s still deciding whether the Nets two draft picks, Dzanan Musa and Rodions Kurucs, will play in Vegas. He noted that both, in particular Musa, are coming off long seasons. He noted Musa has played 75 games this season, an extraordinary numbe for a European players. Caris LeVert, Jarrett Allen and Juan Pablo Vaulet, the Nets Argentine stash have said they expect to play. However, Vaulet, was dropped from the Argentine national team Thursday, suffering pain in his left ankle. He’s had surgery on both ankles. Summer league teams can carry up to 15 players.