Brooklyn Nets Film Room: Breaking Down Egor Dëmin’s Second Game

Dëmin’s shot selection against the Wizards continued to strongly hint at this. 10 of his 13 attempted field goals were 3-pointers. Demin knocked down four of his shots from downtown. The Russian playmaker only took threes in his Summer League debut against the Oklahoma City Thunder, so another game in which his shot diet is made up almost exclusively of threes doesn’t appear to be coincidental. 

Dëmin only made 27.3% of his 154 attempted threes in college; however, that was solid volume (4.7 threes per game) and with a previous track record of having knocked down his outside shots. He shot 36.3 3P% (49/135) in the 2023-24 season, as well as 40.1 3P% (61/152) in 2022-23. The raw material to work with was always there, although two games of summer ball in Las Vegas should not be used to reach any conclusions. 

Dëmin’s willingness to take threes is encouraging, but there’s also the question of why taking this shot is so important for him. At the NBA level, a significant factor is that Dëmin seems unable to create consistent advantages on the ball right now. 

The Nets rookie has an upright handle and gait without much flexibility. This can limit Dëmin from getting to his spots or even beating his defender. Both of these things have already happened during both of Brooklyn’s Summer League games. Often, Dëmin cannot turn the corner on his man. As a result, he has to pass the ball off or kill his dribble. 

Dëmin’s handle couldn’t manufacture space against virtually any defender on the Wizards. This might be cause for concern, given that the athleticism and physical measurements of Washington’s players look to be en vogue across the NBA. Dëmin couldn’t leave first gear on his drives, but it’s not like he was aggressive slashing to the rack. The one time he tried to do that, he got blocked by Alex Sarr.

Dëmin can still make accurate and flashy reads, but his ability to execute those is impaired when he cannot create advantages with the ball in his hands. If he can’t get past his man, then he can’t force the defense to rotate. If the defenders stay home, then Dëmin’s passing lanes don’t exist. If he is forced to act as a scorer, then he has to keep polishing his pull-up and, moreover, rev up his aggression at the rim.

The former Cougars facilitator largely made quick, snappy reads against the Wizards. It was when he was asked to act as the main ballhandler that things got murkier. 

Notably, that did not happen during the end of the game. The ball largely flowed through Nolan Traore, the No. 19 overall pick and perhaps more of a pure point guard than Dëmin, who is now seeing himself as a broader playmaker. When this happened, the Russian prospect mostly spotted up in the corners. He’ll have to knock down his threes, like he did on one late-game occasion against the Wizards, if he is going to do this.