Brooklyn Nets rookie Mikel Brown Jr. is turning his first NBA season into something bigger than basketball.
Brown has teamed up with the El Puente Beacon Leadership Center at M.S. 50 to start Mikel’s Crew, an ongoing mentorship program for the center’s 75 middle school students. The partnership will give Brown a regular presence with a group of students at the Williamsburg school, where the Beacon Leadership Center runs free programming for all students. The center offers leadership opportunities built around academics, art and athletics after school and during the summer.
The first stop for Mikel’s Crew comes during El Puente’s annual Thanksgiving Potluck event, where Brown will help lead a Brooklyn Basketball clinic for M.S. 50 students. The event is set for Tuesday, Nov. 17, at 5:30 p.m. at M.S. 50 during Puerto Rican Heritage Month. About 300 community members are expected to gather for food, music and basketball.
Brown will work alongside Brooklyn Basketball coaches at the event, guiding students through a clinic centered on basketball skills and teamwork.
He’ll stay involved with the M.S. 50 students throughout his rookie year, with the goal of building a lasting connection with the center’s cohort, which is made up primarily of students of Puerto Rican, Dominican and African American descent. Brown, who was drafted by the Nets with the sixth overall pick in 2026, became the third player of Puerto Rican descent selected in the top 10 of the NBA Draft.
Brown has been open about what that heritage means to him, especially after he wore a draft-night suit with the Puerto Rican flag on the inside.
“It means the world to me,” Brown said. “You know, coming from the Puerto Rican tradition, that side of the family is hard-working.
My grandpa worked for 22 years in the army. So he's very disciplined about his stuff, and he does everything with a purpose.
I try to take that away from him and represent it to the best of my abilities.”
He also talked about what it means to carry Brooklyn with him as the Nets’ highest draft pick since the franchise moved to the borough.
“I think it's just the past legends that come from this city. They take pride [in it],” Brown said.
“And the people, when you hear somebody say they're from Brooklyn, they take pride in it. To be able to represent that and come in and kind of have the same mentality where it's not just about you.
It means the world.”
On the floor, Brown has already been asked to do plenty. The 20-year-old has stepped into a leadership role right away as one of the Nets’ two featured point guards.
Through his first seven NBA games, he has averaged 12.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 23.1 minutes per game. He’s one of four rookies putting up at least 12.0 points and 3.5 assists, joining Utah Jazz guard Darryn Peterson, Sacramento Kings guard Darius Acuff Jr. and Memphis Grizzlies forward Cam Boozer.
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