When the Brooklyn Nets drafted Egor Demin eighth overall, it was immediately deemed a reach, and early impressions have not changed this view.
With the eighth pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, the Brooklyn Nets picked BYU point guard Egor Demin, which was a bit of a reach. He was ranked 20th in our full mock draft.
However, the Nets ended up with five first-round selections and were able to gamble with some prospects, which they did. Demin was seen as one of the best passers and true point guards in the draft, although he disappointed in Summer League, posting 11.3 points, 1.3 assists, and three turnovers per game.
Before playing at BYU, Demin trained with Real Madrid and attended the Moscow Basketball Academy, so there was an expectation that he would be a bit more polished than most first-year guards.
While he was solid, he did not live up to the eighth-overall hype, leaving a lot to be desired by the Nets, especially as a facilitator.
“Demin shot the 3 well (10-of-23, 43.5 percent), which raises his floor, but he made only one basket inside the arc in three games while compiling a 4:9 assist-turnover ratio,” explained The Athletic’s Law Murray.
The biggest knock was by far his lack of aggression. In three games, he recorded only three total steals and took only four shots inside the arc, making a single shot near the basket.
As an oversized, 6-foot-8 point guard, he must be able to get to the rim and finish through contact, although the lack of bust, aggression, and athleticism should have caused panic within the Nets’ front office.
While Demin shot very well from deep in Summer League, he was not known as a marksman in college. He was a very good passer, and his Summer League assist-to-turnover ratio should not be enough to concern the Nets, as the three-game sample size was very limited, and he played a vastly different role than what he is expected to have in the regular season.
“He should be the front-runner to start at point guard in Brooklyn, but don’t be surprised if he isn’t particularly on-ball dominant at the beginning of the season,” Murray predicted.
Expect him to bring the ball up the court, maybe slash, and then kick the ball out. He will not be used as a scoring threat; he has already proved that he is not at the level he was initially expected to be at.
For the Nets, Demin needs to be a star point guard in his prime for the gamble to pay off, and with his “dominance” already being questioned, patience will be needed in Brooklyn.
