Mikel Brown Jr. Draws Rave Reviews From Nets Coach Jordi Fernandez

Mikel Brown Jr. made his preseason debut in the Brooklyn Nets' loss to the Miami Heat.

Sep 28, 2026; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets Mikel Brown Jr. (0) poses for a portrait during media day at Brooklyn Nets HSS Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Mikel Brown Jr. made his preseason debut in the Brooklyn Nets' 144-128 loss to the Miami Heat on Wednesday.

He finished with 15 points on 4-of-7 shooting and three assists, drawing rave reviews from his head coach, Jordi Fernandez.

“[Mikel's] pace and how he moves out there [stands out]. He looked great,” Fernandez said. “And it's just his first few minutes. So, he's going to continue to get better and build from there. I loved his communication, how engaged he was with his teammates. I thought it was a very well-played 18 minutes for him.”

Brown's 3-point shot off the dribble and deep range suggests he definitely has the potential to be a lights out shooter at the next level, and his knack for getting downhill should continue to put pressure on interior defenses.

Brown definitely has All-Star upside and a mindset that has drawn considerable praise from several notable people around the NBA, including fellow Louisville alum Donovan Mitchell.

However, Brown has a tendency to commit a few too many turnovers and can oftentimes find himself taking a few too many deep 3-pointers, which can obviously severely affect the flow of the offense.

Turnovers or a deep miss could give the other team a clear advantage to get out on the break and tack easy points on the board.

But those instances become neglible if Brown can consistently put together good performances and light up the box score each night.

The fact that Fernandez recognizes Brown's communication at 18 years old is also incredibly encouraging, as it could take a player years to become comfortable using their voice.

But Brown and Egor Demin are both players who genuinely want to win and have proven willing to do whatever it takes to make the necessary improvements to their games.

Both will have their own growing pains they'll need to navigate and holes in their games they'll need to fix, but their collective mindsets will only help them live up to their fullest potential.

Injuries are an early career concern for Brown after he dealt with a lower back injury in college and a sprained ankle before stepping into his first preseason game.

Assuming Brown can put those injuries behind him, there's a very good chance he could effectively use all of the tools in his toolbox and become one of the NBA's most dynamic scorers as his career goes on.