Reece Beekman is just a third of the way through his rookie season and has already been traded.
But in coming to rebuilding Brooklyn from contending Golden State, the young point guard has also been given a golden opportunity.
“Yeah it’s been a crazy, crazy turn of events. For this to be my rookie year and not even halfway through the season for me to get traded is a little crazy,” said Beekman, part of the Nets’ return in the Dennis Schroder deal. “But that’s life in the league. So I just got to be able to adjust fast. Just blessed for this opportunity. New situation but got to get settled in and be ready to hoop.
“Just do whatever the team needs. I’m coming in with a work-hard mentality and try to do what’s best for the team to put ourselves in a better position. I can tell they’re missing Schroder, he’s a leader, a point guard, so just try to help with that.”
Missing Schroder is an understatement, as the Nets were obliterated 130-101 by Cleveland on Monday.
Ben Simmons is the only pure point guard left, with Shake Milton and Keon Johnson backup off-guards.
The Nets added Killian Hayes in the offseason, but waived him and re-signed him to G League Long Island, where he has struggled.
Beekman, who went undrafted but earned a two-way deal with Golden State, has averaged 18.7 points on 51.5 percent shooting for Santa Cruz, 7.3 assists (ninth in the G League), 5.2 rebounds and 2.8 steals (third in the league).
The defensive-minded guard has logged just four NBA minutes in two short cameos.
But he’ll get every chance to crack the rotation in Brooklyn.
“Yeah, it’s a great opportunity for me,” Beekman said. “The G League is a little different from the NBA, just the players, the level of competition. So being able to grow in my first year would mean a lot for me. I’ve seen that in college over the years, getting better just with playing reps So getting this opportunity early on in my career, I think it can help me longer down the road.”
