Brooklyn’s night in Boston came with one scare after another, and Egor Demin’s early exit added a tense subplot to a game that the Nets eventually dropped, 125-124 in overtime.
Demin left Tuesday’s matchup with the Celtics with a right leg contusion and did not return after a collision with Paul George on a defensive possession late in the first half. The injury came with 2:22 remaining before halftime. He stayed in for the next offensive trip, but at the following stoppage he grabbed at his leg, got subbed out and hobbled toward the locker room.
After the game, though, Demin brushed off the concern.
“I'll be good. It’s nothing serious.
I’ll be ready to go,” Demin said. “I just got hit, got kneed in kind of like a muscle, bone area… Now it feels better than it did right away.
I think I’ll be ready in a couple of days.”
He wasn’t sure whether he’d need imaging, and he also didn’t have a clear answer on his status for Friday’s game against the Detroit Pistons.
“I have no idea. Whatever is going to need to be checked or whatever it is, I have no idea. I'm just working here,” he said.
The BYU product has started all four of Brooklyn’s games to open the season. Before exiting against Boston, he had two points on 1-of-3 shooting, plus one rebound, two assists and one turnover in 10 minutes.
Egor Demin on his leg injury:
— Erik Slater (@ErikSlater_) October 28, 2026
“It’s nothing serious. I’ll be ready to go… I just got kneed in the muscle/bone area… Now it feels better. I think I’ll be ready in a couple of days.” pic.twitter.com/9II4h4n4z2
The Nets still had a chance late because Mikel Brown Jr. caught fire, pouring in 17 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. But Brown’s drive for a layup while Brooklyn was up one in the final seconds of overtime gave Boston the ball back, and Jayson Tatum ended it with a game-winning jumper on the final possession.
Demin said he was encouraged by what he saw from Brown, even if he had to watch it from the bench.
“I'm super proud of [Mikel] for stepping up. I know how badly he wants to win and how competitive he is.
And seeing him kind of taking that step and bringing us up in the game, I'm super proud of him. I'm super happy to see it,” Demin said following the loss.
“I wish I was out there with him and the rest of the group. But I think that's another step for him to become who he actually is… It was terrible to watch from the locker room tonight.
Here's the full sequence leading up to Egor Demin's exit. From what I can see, he may have bumped knees with Paul George while guarding his drive.
— Erik Slater (@ErikSlater_) October 28, 2026
Egor is out for the rest of the game. The Nets are calling it a right-leg contusion. pic.twitter.com/hddspInmJh
I wanted to go out there for sure. Especially in a game like this, and remembering the game we had last year, which was one of my favorite games from the whole entire year… I wanted to be out there so badly.”
Demin came into the game averaging 9.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.3 turnovers while shooting 8-of-26 (30.8 percent) from the field and 6-of-19 (31.6 percent) from three. The No. 8 pick had been one of the few positives in Brooklyn’s tanking season last year and was one of three rookies to average more than 10.0 points and 3.0 assists with a true shooting percentage above 56.0, along with Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel and San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper.
Brooklyn also got a boost from rookie point guard Nolan Traore, who replaced Keon Ellis in the starting lineup and finished with 15 points and three assists on 6-of-9 shooting and 1-of-2 from deep in 24 minutes.
With two days to recover, Demin now turns his attention to Friday’s home game at Barclays Center against Detroit.
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