Staying Healthy Could Mean Everything This Season For Brooklyn Nets

Rebuild-wise, the Brooklyn Nets are much further along than they were this time last year. Thanks to multiple potentially franchise-changing moves executed by the front office this summer, Brooklyn appears to be on track to compete in the coming years. It won't be in 2025-26, but once the Nets' pick conveys to the Houston Rockets in 2027, the hope is that they'll be able to avoid the draft lottery, thus preventing Houston from landing a top pick.

But Brooklyn can only prevent that from happening by winning. It can only win if its young guys properly develop, who can only develop if they're healthy.

Last season, the Nets were eventually completely decimated by injuries. Cam Thomas missed 57 games, Noah Clowney missed 36, Trendon Watford missed 38 and Day'Ron Sharpe missed 32. There were three to four key absentees per game, which is essentially unacceptable and cannot happen in the upcoming season.

The injury bug biting Brooklyn was fine last season because there was a distinct lack of young talent outside of leftovers from the previous coaching staff—who really classify more as veterans than "young talent" at this point. Thomas and Sharpe, while still young, have plenty of experience under their belts.

Things are different now. The Nets made five first-round picks in June's draft, each of whom is expected to blossom into a cornerstone of this rebuild moving forward. None of those picks are over the age of 21, instantly giving Brooklyn a young core to build around, assuming it stays healthy.

However, it's not just the rookie class that must avoid injuries. The front office continued the youth movement through trades and signings, which produced the additions of Kobe Bufkin and Fanbo Zeng. Both are somewhat "unknowns" heading into the preseason, and while more clarity regarding their roles is expected to emerge, neither can prove their worth from the sidelines.

But again, that thinking doesn't simply apply to the new faces. Dariq Whitehead, despite entering his third professional campaign, needs to prove his value. He'll be one on the brink of losing his roster spot, and must produce—but injuries have plagued his career thus far.

That's not even mentioning experienced pieces like Nic Claxton and Michael Porter Jr., who have struggled with injuries in their own right throughout their respective careers.

For a multitude of reasons, health will be paramount for the Nets in 2025-26, but none is potentially more important than the growth and development of those Brooklyn invested in to lead the franchise into the future.