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Just as draftniks are updating their mock drafts in anticipation of Wednesday’s 8 p.m. virtual Draft, we at NetsDaily are updating their updates ... assuming the Nets keep their picks at No. 19 and 55. Ya never know. As we’ve noted, when the Nets went into June 2019, they held the Nos. 17, 27 and 31 and by the time Draft Night was done, the Nets had the Nos. 31 and 56.
We’ve been following 18 mocks and at the end of the day, the general consensus is that the Nets will go with someone who is 1) a one-and-done; 2) a long term prospect not a rotation candidate and 3) the best player available.
And so, the evening before the Draft, who is the prospect most linked to the Brooklyn Nets at No. 19? R.J. Hampton, the 6’6” guard who played in Australia’s NBL with the New Zealand Breakers. They play in Sean Marks’ hometown of Auckland. Hampton is the choice of five draftniks, one quarter of those we surveyed. Makes sense. the Nets flew Marks and Nets scouts to Memphis recently to watch Hampton work out.
Here’s what Ian Begley wrote Tuesday...
SNY sources confirm that members of the Nets organization are high on RJ Hampton. Stanford’s Tyrell Terry also appears to be on Brooklyn’s radar. He had an in-person workout with the Nets. But will Terry or Hampton, whose Nets’ interest was first reported by the New York Post, be available at 19? If the Nets like Terry or Hampton enough, do they trade up for either player? It would seem like a stretch for a team with title aspirations to use assets to trade up for a rookie, but maybe Brooklyn sees Terry or Hampton as an important part of its bridge to a post Durant-Irving era?
How else could the Nets move up if they choose to? The Nets could use some of Joe Tsai’s cash to get a better pick. Each team in the NBA can use up to $5.63 million a year to sweeten deals, whether in a trade or the Draft. There were reports out of Detroit this week that the Nets sent an undisclosed amount of cash along with Dzanan Musa to acquire Bruce Brown. So we don’t know how much they have left.
Beyond Hampton, Cole Anthony, the 6’3” point guard out of North Carolina, Desmond Bane, the 6’6” shooting guard out of TCU and Jaden McDaniels, the 6’10” small forward out of Washington, are the choice of two draftniks. There was no consensus in the second round and in fact only four of the mocks went 1-through-60.
The Nets have interviewed a lot of prospect via Zoom, but as far as we know, they’ve only worked out three of them: Hampton and two point guards: Theo Maledon of Asvel, France and Tyrell Terry, of Stanford. Both were linked to the Nets in one mock.
ESPN
19. Josh Green, 6’6” SG, Arizona, freshman.
55. Paul Eboua, 6’8” PF, VL Pesaro. 20
NBADraft.net
19. Cole Anthony, 6’3” SG, North Carolina, freshman
55. Omer Yurtseven, 7’0” Georgetown, senior
The Athletic
19. R.J. Hampton, 6’6” SG, New Zealand Breakers, 19
SB Nation
19. R.J. Hampton, 6’6” SG, New Zealand Breakers, 19
New York Daily News
19. R.J. Hampton, 6’6” SG, New Zealand Breakers, 19
New York Post
19. Desmond Bane, 6’6”, SG, TCU, senior
USA Today
19. Theo Maledon, 6’4” PG, ASVEL, 19
Sports Illustrated
19. Tyrell Terry, 6’2” PG, Stanford. freshman
55. Ashton Hagans, 6’2” PG, Kentucky, sophomore
The Ringer
19. Aaron Nesmith, 6’6” SG. Vanderbilt, sophomore
Chad Ford’s NBA Big Board
19. Jaden McDaniels, 6’10” SF, Washington, freshman
Bleacher Report
19. R.J. Hampton, 6’6” SG, New Zealand Breakers, 19
Tankathon
19. Cole Anthony, 6’3” PG, North Carolina, freshman
55. Mason Jones, 6’6” SG, Arkansas, junior
CBS Sports
19. Jalen Smith, 6’10”, PF, Maryland, sophomore
55. Nate Hinton, 6’5” PG, Houston, sophomore
NBC Sports
19. Leandro Bolmaro, 6’7”, SG/SF, F.C. Barcelona, 20
Sporting News
19. Jaden McDaniels, 6’10” SF, Washington, freshman
Yahoo! Sports
19. Malachi Flynn, 6’1”, PG, San Diego State, junior
Hoops Habit
19. Desmond Bane, 6’6”, SG, TCU, senior
24/7 Sports
19. R.J. Hampton, 6’6” SG, New Zealand Breakers, 19
The fun starts at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday on ESPN. It’s all virtual.