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Jun 25, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Egor Demin stands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the eighth pick by the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

How Should Fans View the Brooklyn Nets' Rebuild Timeline?

Originally posted on Brooklyn Nets on SI | By Jed Katz | Last updated Aug 5, 2025 5:00 PM ET

The worst thing to tell an NBA fan is to have patience, especially in the modern era. The last thing you want to hear is a general manager or executive telling fans to give them time, because that means the team isn't where they want it to be. It's almost always telling that championship contention is a ways away.

However, patience isn't a bad thing. In fact, fans need to have more of it. Contenders aren't built in a day, and the blueprint to a ring is so much more modified than it was just a decade ago. We're out of the era of superteams and big names and in a time where championships are won through the draft, development, and a specific system.

The Brooklyn Nets are still trying to figure out their own blueprint, but they have the pieces to do so. The Nets brought in a league-record five first-round picks this offseason, and while the perception of their rookie class is questionable, they had five chances to get a franchise player in 2025 alone.

Brooklyn is expected to be at the bottom of the barrel this season, even more so than the last, which already has fans talking about how the team can sneak up to the No. 1 overall pick in 2026. The organization is still in the early stages of a rebuild, so perhaps the worst basketball is yet to come. However, most people know that the losing won't last forever, and it can pay dividends down the road.

The Nets have their own draft picks in 2026, 2028, and 2030, plus first-rounders from other teams such as the New York and potentially Philadelphia. Houston has swap rights in 2027 and potentially 2029, but Brooklyn has an immense amount of draft capital, either to be used for young talent or a trade. The key is to have options.

All of this begs the question: how patient should fans be? For Brooklyn, the end of the rebuild could come in a year (on the miracle that one of the rookies ends up as the savior) or five years. This is expected to be long and strenuous, not quick and to the point.

We have a long way before the 2026 NBA Draft, but the Brooklyn Nets are an early candidate for a top pick, given the state of their rebuild.

For @BKNNetsSI, some way-too-early candidates for the Nets should they land a high lottery pick next June:https://t.co/oYo4DycV0q
— Jed Katz (@jedkatzNBA) July 21, 2025

Nets fans need to have patience. It's fine to bash losing and bad basketball, but know that it's for a greater cause. Brooklyn's window to get out of the basement of the NBA should realistically be between two and four years, if a few of its draft picks develop to what the organization expects.

For many, that statement may be shocking, but look at franchises like Charlotte, Washington, and Utah, which haven't made it out of high lottery territory. The Nets need to avoid those situations, and being in a market like New York City should help. But the results should come down the line, not right now.

This article first appeared on Brooklyn Nets on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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