Nets' Jordi Fernandez, rookies applauded by Warriors' Steve Kerr

NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets undertook a massive endeavor coming into the 2025-26 NBA season when they decided to take five rookies in the 2025 NBA Draft. While many around the league expected Brooklyn to trade at least one of those picks, general manager Sean Marks and the front office decided to develop all five rookies, a decision applauded by a coach who has seen it all.

"[It] looks like it's working... I don't know, I just think that every time we've played them over the last couple years, they've been energetic, well-organized, well-coached," Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said prior to Monday's 120-107 win over the Nets. Kerr was complimenting what Brooklyn head coach Jordi Fernandez has been doing with players like Egor Demin and Danny Wolf, just to name a couple of the rookies.

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"They came to our place last year and beat us [last season]. We came here last year, and it was like 24-to-6 right out of the gate," Kerr continued. "Jordi is doing a great job, his staff, player development, in the face of obviously a rebuild, but seven out of 10 wins, best defense in the league in December. So, they're doing something right."

As many Nets fans know, Brooklyn played like one of the best teams in the league in December, both in win percentage and in defensive rating. While the Nets allowed the Warriors to drop 120 points on them via shooting 53.0% from the field, Brooklyn still finished the month as the best defensive unit in the league by posting a 105.4 defensive rating, slightly ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder's 106.2 defensive rating.

More to the point, Demin stood out amongst the rest as he finished the game with 23 points (on seven made three-pointers) and three assists while going against superstar Stephen Curry. Ultimately, time will tell which direction Fernandez and Marks want to go in prior to the trade deadline, but for now, one of the most successful head coaches in league history is applauding what the Nets are doing as an organization.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets' Jordi Fernandez, rookies applauded by Warriors' Steve Kerr