Noah Clowney has put himself in the middle of a decision the Nets can’t dodge much longer.
Brooklyn has until next Monday to decide whether to give the 22-year-old big man a contract extension or let him head toward restricted free agency in July, when the Nets would still be able to match any outside offer. Based on the way things are trending, it sounds unlikely an offer is coming.
That’s where Clowney’s preseason surge matters. He was not exactly a headline act to open the exhibition slate, but he’s strung together two strong performances since then.
In a win over the Sixers, he scored 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting and 2-for-3 from deep, finishing plus-12. Then on Monday in Washington, he followed with 15 points, knocking down 5 of 8 shots and 4 of 6 from 3.
He also added four assists and a steal without turning it over.
For a player who entered the league with plenty of promise but no long-term commitment, that’s the sort of stretch that gets noticed. Clowney, 6-foot-10, has had his moments across his three seasons in Brooklyn - including one game with seven made 3s and another where he blocked seven shots, then came back with four more the next night.
He has not been a bust. Last season was solid, too: 12.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.4 free-throw attempts per game in 66 appearances, with 60 starts.
But the Nets, and their fans, wanted more.
The roster shift around him changed the picture even more. On the eve of the draft, Brooklyn dealt frontcourt partner Nic Claxton and a second-round pick to Chicago for Julius Randle and a first-rounder. With Randle now occupying the 4, there’s not an obvious clear path to the 27 minutes a night Clowney would need to put up bigger numbers.
Still, Jordi Fernández likes what he’s seeing.
“Just steady,” coach Jordi Fernández said. “He’s been consistent so far.
The whole training camp, the whole, all these preseason games. Very proud of him.
You see him with 15 points.
“[We] challenge him. We’re challenging him to rebound.
But yet four assists to zero turnovers, that’s pretty impressive. He’s just been very good - not too high, not too low.
He’s always ready. And that’s the Noah Clowney that we need, because we know that he makes a lot of winning plays.”
Clowney has also picked up support beyond the Nets. Coach Thorpe of True Hoop included him in a list of “Ten guys who might make a difference ” and went a step further, saying ”His defense will have to keep improving, but to me Clowney has the look of a starting level power forward who might even play some small ball five.“
Wednesday night in Miami should tell us a little more. It will be Mikel Brown Jr.‘s preseason debut, the highest Nets pick in 16 years since the franchise played in New Jersey.
It will also be Clowney’s final preseason game before Brooklyn’s deadline to extend him. For him, that ought to be plenty of fuel.
In Other News...
Michael Porter Jr. Voices A Frustration Nets Fans Know Too Well
Michael Porter Jr. has only been in Brooklyn long enough to notice something Nets fans have been saying for a while: home games do not always feel like home games. Speaking recently, Porter pointed to the way opposing supporters can take over the building and said the Nets need more of their own crowd noise if they want a real home-court edge. It is the kind of observation that tends to land differently when it comes from a new arrival, because it underscores just how much the atmosphere still has to grow.
The timing also fits with a roster that is trying to reset its image and its expectations, including the recent addition of Julius Randle. Porter and Randle both know the conversation around attendance and energy changes fast when a team starts winning more consistently, and that is the larger point hanging over Brooklyn right now. The Nets can add talent, but they still have to give the fan base enough reason to fill those seats and make the arena sound like it belongs to them. [Read more 🡒]
Julius Randle Just Gave Nets Fans A Reason To Revisit Finchs Comments
Julius Randle has wasted little time making an impression in Brooklyn, opening the preseason in a way that has given the Nets plenty to like about what he can bring. Coach Jordi Fernandez has been encouraged by the way Randle has fit in so far, and that matters for a team looking for more than just scoring from one of its most talented pieces.
Randle has long been viewed as a player who can set a tone as much as fill a box score, and the Nets seem to value that edge. For fans still parsing recent chatter around his demeanor elsewhere, his early work in Brooklyn is a reminder that his impact is about more than production, and the preseason is offering a first look at how that presence could matter over time. [Read more 🡒]
Nolan Traore Is Giving Nets Fans A Real Rotation Debate
The early preseason has given the Nets a little something to think about beyond the usual conditioning and lineup tinkering. Nolan Traore and Noah Clowney have both flashed enough to stand out even as the team continues sorting out roles and minutes, and Traore in particular has made a strong impression in limited playing time. For a Brooklyn group still in the middle of evaluating what fits, those kind of performances tend to matter more than the box score suggests.
Traores play has already put him in an interesting spot heading into Wednesdays action, because he has forced himself into the conversation as Brooklyns rotation takes shape. The challenge now is that the competition for minutes is only going to get tighter as the season moves forward, and the Nets will have to decide how much weight to give a preseason surge when the roster is healthy and the pecking order starts to settle. [Read more 🡒]