The Brooklyn Nets failed in their superteam experiment with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but now they’re moving forward with a young team that just may surprise people this NBA season.
They received Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges in the Durant trade, as well as Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith for Irving. All four of them instantly made Brooklyn an interesting and potent team that opponents weren’t able to take lightly.
In July, the team signed guard Dennis Smith Jr., who has played six seasons in the NBA but hasn’t fully panned out yet despite being the No. 9 pick in the 2017 draft. He struggled in the Nets’ first two preseason games, and now he’s now dealing with an ankle injury.
NBA INJURY NEWS: Dennis Smith Jr & Brooklyn Nets Updates
According to head coach Jacque Vaughn, Smith will miss some time, which means his status for their regular season opener on Oct. 25 against the Cleveland Cavaliers could be in question.
“He’ll definitely be out at least a week,” Vaughn said. “Precautionary with the boot, so he’s got some support as he walks around.
“It’s definitely an ankle sprain, and he’s got some bone bruising in there, as well. So we’ll see a week from now, what he looks like, but luckily I think [there is] no ligament damage. So we’ll take that.”
Smith is slated to be Vaughn’s backup point guard this season. He spent last year with the Charlotte Hornets, and prior to that, he spent a couple of seasons across the East River in the city with the New York Knicks. He has career averages of 10.3 points and 4.4 assists in 24.2 minutes a game, but he has shot just 40.3 percent from the field and 29.9 percent from 3-point range since coming into the NBA.
NBA INJURY NEWS: Dennis Smith Jr & Brooklyn Nets Updates
With Smith, Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neal, Cam Thomas and Lonnie Walker IV coming off the bench, Brooklyn looks to have solid functional depth this season. Ben Simmons, their enigmatic but talented 6-foot-10 point guard, has looked spry during the exhibition season, and he is perhaps the team’s biggest key to reaching the play-in tournament and perhaps ultimately snagging one of the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spots.
The Nets have two preseason games remaining on Monday against the Philadelphia 76ers and on Wednesday versus the Miami Heat.
