CHICAGO — The Brooklyn Nets came away from the 2026 NBA Draft Lottery from the No. 6 pick and while that was the result they didn’t want, they have to move forward with that outcome. Brooklyn not only has to decide what they’re going to do with their first-round pick, but they also have to figure out who they will take in the second round, especially at the guard spot.
“The team’s guard heavy, looking for a lot of new guards in his draft class, and any team that’s guard heavy, I feel like I fit their team,” Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas said to Nets Wire during the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago earlier this week. Thomas is expected to be taken somewhere in the late first-round to early second-round of the draft, a prime spot for the Nets to take a chance on his shotmaking ability.
“If you need a guard and you need a player that brings energy and is going to continuously work day in and day out, I’m that guy for you,” Thomas continued. “If that’s what you feel as a staff and as a front office, I can bring so many aspects to the to the team as a guard.” The Nets have the 33rd and 43rd overall picks in June’s draft and if Thomas makes it out of the first round, Brooklyn could do worse than adding another guard to the rotation.
Thomas played a huge role for the Razorbacks this past season as he posted averages of 15.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 43.5% from the field and 41.6% from behind the three-point line. Thomas, who’s in the same draft class as teammates Darius Acuff Jr., Billy Richmond, and Trevon Brazile, could find himself in a situation where he can grow into a scorer/shooter role in Brooklyn.
“Shooting versatility and the ability to play in ball screens with pacing, a dangerous pull-up game and floater should help Meleek Thomas succeed in a combo-guard role,” Jonathan Wasserman wrote on Thomas in his latest mock draft for Bleacher Report. While the Nets did take four guards in the 2025 NBA Draft, Thomas could be the kind of guy that provides the kind of punch the team needs on the roster amidst this rebuild.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Potential Nets 2026 NBA Draft pick Meleek Tomas talks fit with Nets
Reporting by Sharif Phillips-Keaton, Nets Wire / Nets Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
