NBA Veteran Shows Love to Nets Rookies After Summer League Showing

Originally posted on Brooklyn Nets on SI
By Tyler Carmona | Last updated Jul 21, 2025 12:14 AM ET

Jed Katz

After wrapping up their Las Vegas Summer League run, two Brooklyn Nets rookies drew praise from an NBA veteran who shares their roots and has experience on the international stage.

During a press conference earlier this week, Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija spoke about Nets rookies Danny Wolf and Ben Saraf.

“It was fun to watch them play, have fun together, talk,”he discussed meeting them during the NBA 2K26 Summer League in Las Vegas,“I am happy to see the next generation in the best league in the world. I believe it will grow over the next years.”

Both players have competed for Israel in international play, Saraf most recently suited up for Israel's U18 national team at the 2024 EuroBasket Championship, while Wolf represented the country at the 2023 FIBA U20 European Championship.

Ben Saraf (Photo: Yuval Chen)

During the 2024 FIBA U18 EuroBasket Championship, Saraf was named tournament MVP after leading all players in scoring with 28.1 points per game, while also averaging four steals.

He also starred for Israel in the 2022 FIBA U16 Championship, again leading the tournament in scoring with 24.3 points per game.

At the professional level, Saraf most recently played for Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany’s Basketball Bundesliga, where he averaged 12.8 points and 4.6 assists per game while helping lead his team to the league finals.

Saraf kicked off his professional career in Israel, being named the Israeli Basketball National League's Rookie of the Year after averaging 14 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3 assists per game while playing for Elitzur Netanya.

He appeared in three games throughout the Summer League, averaging seven points, 3.7 assists and two rebounds per game.

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Wolf kicked off his international career in 2023, helping lead Israel to a silver medal in the 2023 FIBA U20 European Championship. He was an all-tournament selection after averaging 17.7 points, 12 rebounds (led tournament) and 1.3 blocks per game.

While spending his final collegiate season at Michigan, Wolf led the Big Ten in rebounds with 9.7 per game while averaging 13.2 points and 3.6 assists per game.

Throughout the Summer League, Wolf appeared in three games, averaging 10 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

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

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