Three New Year's Resolutions for the Brooklyn Nets

The 2025 portion of the 2025-26 season hasn't gone according to expectations for the Brooklyn Nets, which could be viewed as either good or bad, depending on who you ask. The Nets currently boast a 10-20 record heading into the new year, having gone 7-4 in December.

Brooklyn's win line was set at 20.5 before the season began, a number it is on pace to go over. Whether head coach Jordi Fernandez can continue to lead this young team to success after last month remains to be seen, but there is still plenty of basketball to be played before any conclusions can be made.

Here's three New Year's resolutions for the Nets, both team and individually oriented.

Commit to the Ethical Tank

As the Eastern Conference standings currently sit, Brooklyn is 13th, six games back from the 10th-place Atlanta Hawks and three games ahead of the 14th-place Washington Wizards.

From a league-wide view at how the draft odds stand, the Nets have the fifth-best odds at the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Even though this is a deep draft class and the top five players could all be generational talents, it's in their best interest to get out of no-man's land in the East.

It is unlikely that Brooklyn can catch up to Atlanta, especially with an upcoming January slate that could prove to be the toughest stretch of the season. Instead, trying to get behind Washington in the standings is more plausible.

And by ethical tanking, we mean still trying to compete in games, but ultimately making certain moves that make losses more likely. This would primarily be by playing the youth more and centering the offensive game plan on developing them as scorers.

Increase the Rookies' Playing Time

This may seem like a nitpicky request given that four of the Nets' five rookies are currently in the rotation, but the main goal at this point in the season should be development.

In the last five games, it's become clear that the organization likes what it's seeing from Egor Demin and Danny Wolf, but the other three rookies either have smaller roles or no role at all. Drake Powell rarely sees more than 20 minutes, and although Nolan Traoré has been inserted into the rotation, he isn't playing significant minutes or being given enough opportunities to run the offense.

Ben Saraf hasn't seen time on the main roster since Dec. 6, even though he's averaged 16.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists and two steals per game. Saraf is a do-it-all player, and he doesn't need to constantly have the ball in his hands to be effective.

Shifting fully to the youth movement should also lead to a better draft position. Whether their increase in playing time comes via trades or sacrificing others' minutes, it will be necessary to gauge if the newcomers can be contributors down the line.

Be Active in the Trade Market

It's clear that as Brooklyn's roster currently stands, it's too good to claim a bottom-three spot in the NBA standings.

The Nets should capitalize on career years from Michael Porter Jr. and Nic Claxton by trading one or both away for future value. Other veterans on the team, like Cam Thomas and Terance Mann, could command draft capital.

Internal development won't turn this team into a contender by next season. The best thing Brooklyn can do is gain future draft assets and let its youth eat.

The Nets' rebuild appears to be ahead of schedule after their early-season stretch, and they will have an important decision to continue competing for wins or shift to focusing on getting better draft position.