With the Nets rebuilding, they’ve taken fliers on a number of children like Ziaire Williams and Killian Hayes searching for recent begins.
Jordi Fernandez is hoping they make good on these second possibilities.
“A recent begin is sweet, however on the finish of the day you want consistency, since you can’t preserve having recent begins,” Fernandez mentioned. “You can’t say, ‘Oh, I’m achieved right here, I’ll go elsewhere.’ Typically while you get hit within the mouth it’s good to get well after which begin and have a look at your self within the mirror and say, ‘What did I do unsuitable that I can repair myself?’
“The context or the opposite folks, that you simply can’t management. However you possibly can management what you are able to do. And a recent begin, I’m good with it, however I’m gonna choose everyone from what I see on a regular basis. And it’s not simply in the future, it’s not two days, you gotta preserve stacking days collectively.”
That’s what Williams has achieved, trying good in open run earlier than Tuesday’s begin of camp.
The 2021 No. 10 decide averaged 8.1 factors as a rookie however wanted growth and bought misplaced within the shuffle of a contender earlier than the Nets traded for him.
Williams, 23, mentioned he seems like “a unfastened hen lastly let loose of his cage,” including, “Some days I simply type of felt like I used to be trapped. I positively really feel much more free [here]. … It’s positively a blessing in disguise.”
Now the ahead is in a spot that may afford to let him develop.
“What occurred in Memphis, I don’t know and, the fact is, I don’t care,” Fernandez mentioned. “That is my begin with him, my relationship with him, so all I can do is construct that relationship with him, speaking to him day-to-day the identical manner I do with everyone else, difficult him.”
Hayes, the No. 7 decide in 2020, has much more to show.
Although he averaged 8.1 factors and 5.2 assists in 210 video games for Detroit, he bought let go.
The Nets labored him out and inked him to an Exhibit 10, primarily a camp invite.
“I really feel prefer it’s a superb begin for me as a result of it’s a rebuild and I’m attempting to rebuild myself as effectively. It’s an excellent factor for me,” Hayes, 23, mentioned. “We’ve a chip on our shoulder, as a result of we aren’t coming in as a favourite, so we have now to place in that rather more work to get to the place we need to go.”
Hayes is ineligible for a two-way deal resulting from service time, so he should land a typical contract or nothing. A protracted-armed defender — High 10 in steals in 2023 — he’s engaged on his shot and conditioning to make good on this second probability.
“[I’m] attacking the times. Day by day you need to be targeted and prepared for something,” Hayes mentioned. “It is a big-time alternative for myself, so I can’t be caught slipping.”
