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Egor Demin is still in the top ten of the NBA’s Rookie Rankings, at No. 9, one spot below where he was drafted. Still the second fastest player to 100 3-pointers in NBA history, behind only Kon Knueppel. And yes, he’s still averaging double figures. Still a winner in the All-Star Break’s Rising Stars Challenge.
But…
He is also in a slump. In his last three games, he is shooting 7-of-28 (25.0%) overall and 4-of-19 (21.0%). And after shooting 47.2% in the month of January from deep, he’s down to 31.0% so far in February. On Tuesday night, he didn’t score till the fourth quarter in what was an embarrassing loss to the Mavs. Moreover, the 6’9.5”, 210-pound rookie has had issues with NBA physicality and he knows it as he told Brian Lewis before the Mavs game.
“Yeah, that’s definitely one of the next steps,” Dëmin told The Post. “And that comes from the physicality in general. I think that the physicality part is the next step that as soon as I get there, it’s going to put me on a different level in my opinion. Right then obviously being able to contain shooting and just improve it.
“And from the physicality it’s going to be better defense, better athleticism, better paint touches, again just because I’m going to be stronger and bigger. Mentality is definitely a part of it too. Just trying to implement this into my game before it implements itself, I guess; really trying [to be physical] a lot. I think all of it. And it’s all about the work, pretty much; and the time.”
A refreshing self-assessment for the 19-year-old but as the Nets first lottery pick in 15 years, a lot is being asked of him.
“Obviously touching the paint, making the right play, cutting,” coach Jordi Fernández said of what he’d like to see from the teenager. “He’s going to keep shooting: I like all his shots. He made a big one in the fourth because he’s confident. Even if he misses five, he’ll shoot the sixth and make it. Other things are cutting, touching the paint, finding sprays, getting to the rim, getting to the [foul] line. One step at a time; but I want to see more of that.”
That level of patience is a big part of development and a luxury a team going nowhere has. He’s the only one of the first first round picks to avoid playing in the G League with the Long Island Nets — the other four have played 42 games, led by Ben Saraf’s 19, He’s been handed the reins, starting 43 of the 50 games he played for Brooklyn — at total of 1,255 minutes.
That load may also be a factor as it often is for rookies. At BYU last season, he played a total of 908 minutes, 25% fewer than his NBA total with 25 more games to go. Is it the Rookie Wall that’s giving him issues? He notes he’s put on 11 pounds since Summer League (then rehabbed for two months after he came down with a case of plantar fascia.) The Moscow native says he is getting help from team trainers to help him through the transition from college to pro. He admits there’s a mental aspect as well as physical.
“This is something I’m really trying to focus on a lot, just trying to get better at this, from the standpoint of toughness: mental, more than physical, because the physical part. I can’t really do more than I’m able, than my ability,” Dëmin explained to Lewis. “So this is something I’m working on in the lifting room; trying to get stronger, looking at my nutrition.
“[The trainers] make my body stronger. But right now, it’s really about my mental, physicality, where I can resist every single player on the court. And I’m looking for that state of mind where, ‘No, I’m not going to step away from you,’ which obviously it happens sometimes. Sometimes it’s not as good. And that’s a process.”
Nets fans along with the team staff have been happy with the pairing of Demin with his fellow rookie, Frenchman Nolan Traore, who had a similar transition earlier in the season. As Steve Aschbruner of NBA.com wrote this week in compiling the rookie rankings.
A 1-for-10 night against OKC, including 1-for-8 from the arc, dragged down Dëmin’s shooting percentage. But the emergence of teammate Nolan Traoré has Nets fans envisioning the two 19-year-olds as Brooklyn’s global backcourt of the future.
At this point, Brooklyn believes in both and hopes that the two — the sixth and 11th youngest players in the league — can get back on track before the season ends. You don’t want to lose development time. Despite Demin’s shooting issues, the organization remains confident that Demin in particular will, that they did well picking the Russian in the 2025 Draft.
One former point guard who knows all about development is Jason Kidd, the Nets great and now Mavs coach. Kidd’s nickname as a young player was “Ason Kidd” because he had no “J” or jumper. He finished his career second in NBA history with 1,988 3-pointers, a number of course that’s been since surpassed. Lewis asked him which was tougher: a 3-point shot or finding your place on the floor.
“Getting where you want [on the floor] is what you want. The great players all get where they want: step-back 3, side-step 3, to the rim, Euro step. Shooting you can work on, sometimes it just takes time. If you can stay the course and have patience, it will come. If you can’t get where you want to go, there’s no way you can get the shot off,” Kidd said. “I’d take that package, and that young man has it.”
He would know.