Marks: Nets must make decisions not 'in line' with winning games

Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks says the team may have to sacrifice being competitive in the short term in order to achieve long-term success.

"We're building this, and we're building this for hopefully sustainable success," Marks told Brian Lewis of The New York Post. "That's what we want. We want to get to that.

"We're going to have to be systematic with some of the decisions we make. And they may not always be in line with winning the next game or putting the most talent out there."

The Nets have lost four straight and now embark on a five-game Western Conference road trip, with their first two contests coming against the 9-28 Utah Jazz and 13-25 Portland Trail Blazers. Brooklyn ranks 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 13-25 record.

The team will be without key rotation pieces like D'Angelo Russell (shin), Cam Thomas (Hamstring), Cam Johnson (ankle), and Trendon Watford (hamstring) for Sunday's contest against the Jazz.

Brooklyn holds a 34.8% chance to get a top-four pick in the 2025 draft, and an 8.3% shot at landing the first selection, according to Tankathon. The Washington Wizards, Toronto Raptors, and New Orleans Pelicans have a collective 42% odds of acquiring the top pick.

The Nets also have later selections from the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, and Houston Rockets.

The franchise has not been involved in the lottery since 2010 when it selected Georgia Tech big man Derrick Favors.

"To be frank, you've still got to get a little lucky. We all know that," Marks said. "The hot-button topic has always been the draft. We all know we've still got to get lucky. At the end of the day, the ping-pong balls are going to drop a certain way."