As usual, Nets general manager Billy King managed to make things happen on NBA Draft night.
Not only did King manage to get one second-round pick, as he had predicted heading into Thursday’s festivities at Barclays Center, but he wound up grabbing three of them before the night was through, selecting Oklahoma State guard Markel Brown 44th overall before getting San Diego State guard Xavier Thames and Baylor forward Cory Jefferson with the final two selections of the draft.
“We were working different angles and different picks, and we had our board and had guys ranked on there,” King said. “There were places we could’ve gotten in the first round, but we thought the price was too high.”
Brown, 22, averaged 17.2 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Sooners this season, and earned All-Big 12 Second Team honors for the second consecutive season. An explosive athlete, Brown tied for top honors at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago last month, when he showed off a vertical leap of 43.5 inches.
“Markel Brown gives us an athletic combo guard, and is probably one of the top athletes in the whole draft,” King said. “We looked at it as a chance to add some youth to the backcourt as a plus, also.”
Because the trades for Thames and Jefferson weren’t confirmed by the league yet, King wasn’t able to discuss either player with the media.
Thames averaged 18.1 points to help San Diego State reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament as a senior — the same round Jefferson helped Baylor reach by averaging 13.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.
It is expected all three players will join Mason Plumlee, Marquis Teague and Jorge Gutierrez on the Nets’ Summer League team in Orlando next month, with the rest of the roster set to be announced sometime this weekend or early next week.