By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The Brooklyn Nets held their preseason media day on Monday, before formally launching training camp on Tuesday.
Spanish head coach Jordi Fernandez is leading a roster packed with European talent. For this young group, the upcoming weeks are about turning summer development into real production.
The 43-year-old tactician treats the booming international presence in the league as a reality of talent scouting rather than an advantage. Passports do not matter to him. Performance does. “If you focus on your controllables and what you can control,” he said. “Those opportunities will come.”
Fernandez wants his players to push him into difficult choices when drawing up rotations. “I hope I have too many guys doing well so they make my job harder,” he added.
The Nets’ European contingency is meeting that challenge head-on. Russian guard Egor Demin prioritized the weight room this summer to handle the sheer athleticism of the league. He feels a natural connection with his new head coach.
“Having Jordi as a European mind definitely helps a lot because a lot of things that he’s trying to teach us, I already know them. I’ve seen those,” he explained. “That’s awesome.”
Israeli guard Ben Saraf matches that confidence. He views a crowded backcourt as fuel. “It’s always good when you have healthy competition,” he said. “It pushes everyone to be their best version of themselves.”
His countryman, Danny Wolf, spent his offseason altering his frame to build the necessary physicality for the interior. French guard Nolan Traore is fully cleared from knee surgery and spent his summer locking down a more consistent release on his jumper. Up front, German big Moritz Wagner talked about choosing Brooklyn in free agency because of straightforward approach from management.
The Nets face a four-game preseason schedule before opening the Regular Season at Barclays Center against the Charlotte Hornets on October 21.
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