Brooklyn Nets Rookie Watch - Egor Demin

The Brooklyn Nets raised more than a few eyebrows when they selected 19-year-old BYU point guard Egor Demin with the 8th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. A five-star recruit, the first in Cougars history, the Russian teenager impressed during his freshman season in the Big 12, averaging just 10.6 points, 5.5 assists, and 3.9 rebounds, earning a spot on the conference's All-Freshman Team.  Unfortunately, the one downside was his 41/27/69 shooting percentage splits. 

If you can look past the lack of impressive shooting percentages, Demin might be one of the most talented ball distributors to come out of the draft. Standing 6’8”, Brooklyn’s young guard brings a unique blend of size and court vision that will help guide the Nets into the future. 

After setting a single-season BYU freshman record for assists, Demin will look to use his experience playing for Real Madrid and the Russian national team to help his transition to the NBA game. 

The Nets, one of the worst teams in the East last season and one of the youngest teams in the league overall, are clearly banking on development this season with four first-round draft picks on the roster and seven players 21 years of age or younger. 

Averaging 11.3 points during his three Summer League games, Demin’s focus was clearly more on scoring and proving he could hit the outside shot, hitting 43.5% of his attempts. 

With D’Angelo Russell, Dennis Schroder, Ben Simmons, and Killian Hayes all playing elsewhere, the battle for the starting point guard position is wide open heading into training camp. Head coach Jordi Fernandez has already made it known that Demin will likely be part of the Nets' starting unit come opening night. 

Receiving comparisons to current Chicago Bulls point guard Josh Giddey, who averaged 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 6.4 assists during his rookie season with the OKC Thunder, a team that looks to be similar to what the Nets are building, Demin should be able to post similar numbers. 

Fortunately for Demin, the goal for the Nets is not to compete in the East this year, but rather to use the season as development and look towards what projects to be a stacked 2026 NBA draft class. With that in mind, Demin will be given ample opportunity to showcase why the Nets believe he will be a cornerstone for the franchise moving forward.