Julius Randle didn’t come to Brooklyn planning to be just another veteran voice in the room. The Nets forward made it clear that helping rookie Mikel Brown Jr. through his first NBA season is one of his main jobs now, right alongside trying to push a young roster toward winning.
Randle said he wants to be the kind of veteran Brown can lean on every day, and he’s already started laying that groundwork.
"I just told him I was excited to help him," Randle said. "I really want to be that vet he can come and talk to. I know how it is early in your career."
That support, in Randle’s view, goes well beyond what happens during games. He talked about being there for the frustrations, the good stretches, the grind of daily work, and even the off-court stuff that comes with life in the league.
"I can be that veteran shoulder he can lean on every single day, whether it's frustration, the highs and lows, teaching him how to work every single day, weight room, whatever it is," Randle said. "Or if he just needs to talk about life, I want to be that vet for him and help him out."
He also had plenty of praise for Brown as a person, not just a prospect.
"He's got a steady head on his shoulders," Randle said. "You can just tell he's a good kid who comes from a great family."
Brown gave Brooklyn a strong first look at Las Vegas Summer League on Friday, showing why the Nets spent a lottery pick on him. He scored 20 points, with 16 coming after halftime, and added three assists, two steals and one block.
Brown said the performance reflected the work he’s put in to get here.
"I know how much work I put in to get to this point," Brown said. "I'm a savant when it comes to this stuff.
I love the game of basketball. I love when my teammates look successful."
Second-year guard Egor Demin also saw plenty to like in Brown’s game, especially the way he creates offense.
"He's extremely talented overall," Demin said. "His shooting ability, his ability to create his own shot, and how shifty he is, he's going to give a lot of trouble to defenders."
Randle said Brooklyn’s young core helped sell him on the move after he spent last season with the Timberwolves. He believes his experience can speed up the growth of players like Brown and Demin while helping set the tone for how the Nets want to operate.
"They're really excited to have me here," Randle said. "I get to come in and be a leader, show guys how to be a pro.
We're coming in trying to win. It's as simple as that."
At 31, Randle says he sees some of the same ingredients in Brooklyn that he saw when he arrived with the Knicks in 2019 after back-to-back losing seasons. The difference, he believes, is that he knows much more now about how to lead a group through that kind of environment.
For Brown, that means a veteran who has lived through rebuilding and playoff basketball is already in his corner.
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Julius Randle Sends Clear Message About Brooklyns Rebuild Patience
Julius Randle is already making the case for patience in Brooklyn, where the offseason trade that brought him in from Minnesota also signaled a broader reset. The veteran forward met with the media this week and framed the Nets approach for the coming season as one built around belief in the rosters talent, even after a brutal 20-62 finish last year.
Randle did not sugarcoat the challenge ahead, and that is part of what makes his voice matter for a team trying to climb back into relevance. Brooklyn is still leaning into development while trying to add real structure around its younger pieces, and Randles arrival gives the Nets a more established presence as they try to turn potential into something sturdier, even if the next step may be more incremental than dramatic. [Read more 🡒]
Nets Sign Joshua Jefferson To Multi-Year Deal With Real Rookie Buzz
The Nets have locked in another piece of their young core, signing forward Joshua Jefferson to a multi-year deal after taking him with the 28th pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Jefferson arrives in Brooklyn with a reputation that stretches well beyond draft night, built over four college seasons at Saint Marys and Iowa State, where he became one of the more versatile forwards in the country.
His rsum includes All-America Second Team and All-Big 12 First Team honors, plus a standout 2025-26 season that put him in rare company nationwide. Jefferson led Division I in triple-doubles and set a Big 12 mark for multiple triple-doubles in conference play, the kind of production that gives the Nets a different sort of frontcourt option as they continue shaping the roster around their latest wave of talent. [Read more 🡒]
Joshua Jefferson Just Got His First Real Nets Test
Joshua Jefferson finally got a real look in a Nets uniform in Las Vegas, and it came only after the trade that brought Julius Randle to Brooklyn was officially finalized on Friday. The rookie forward made his Summer League debut with nine points and two steals, giving the Nets a first glimpse of a player whose passing and feel are part of what intrigued them in the first place.
For Jefferson, it was also his first competitive game since March after an injury interrupted his spring and kept him from even getting practice reps. He sounded confident about how his game can translate into Brooklyns rotation, especially with the way he sees the floor and keeps the ball moving, but the bigger question is where that skill set fits once the roster is set and the minutes start getting divided up. [Read more 🡒]