Brooklyn Nets: Anthony Bennett Ready For New Opportunity

Brooklyn Nets power forward Anthony Bennett is looking forward to the opportunity to get his career on track with his new team.

The Brooklyn Nets offseason didn’t go exactly as planned, as two of their top targets, Allen Crabbe and Tyler Johnson, were retained by their respective teams. Because both were restricted free agents, the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat had a chance to match the offer sheets they agreed upon with the Nets, and both teams did.

As a result, the Nets went onto Plan B, which was not as expensive or flashy as Plan A. Plan B was filled with veterans to help mentor the younger players, and younger players looking for a chance to get their NBA careers on track.

A team like the Nets presents a great opportunity to that, as they have playing time open at virtually every position except center, which is where Brook Lopez resides. There are a number of players that the Nets brought aboard that will be looking to make the most of their most recent opportunity, and no one epitomizes that as much as Anthony Bennett.

The former first overall pick has been a colossal bust thus far in his career, as he was selected in the 2013 NBA Draft but is already going to be on his fourth NBA team. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Toronto Raptors have all given up hope on Bennett already, but he is hoping that he can find a home with the Nets.

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“This is pretty much a brand new start,” Bennett said. “It is a process; it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. Like I’ve been saying, I’ll keep saying it, I’ve been working every day just trying to better myself offensively and defensively and I feel like this year it’ll pay out a lot.”

The effort from Bennett has been questioned previously, but he looks to have gotten the message and is taking his basketball career much more seriously. He was not handed a spot with the Nets, as he had to earn it while playing in a minicamp earlier in the offseason.

He played well enough to catch the attention of general manager Sean Marks and head coach Kenny Atkinson, eventually landing a contract with the team.

"“We had him in for mini camp and we obviously liked what we saw,” Marks said. “He had taken the steps ahead of time to get himself in shape. He showed up, his body looked terrific and how he conducted himself during that week here not only on, but off the court too, just getting to know him. He’s well aware that this is terrific opportunity for him. He needs to make the most of it and he’s hungry. We’ll see, really the ball is in his court now.”"

Bennett has continued to impress the Nets, as he is taking his fitness and conditioning seriously this summer. Bennett played for Team Canada during the summer and looked good there, averaging 6.8 points and five rebounds per game. He also had a monster dunk on Marco Cusin of Italy that went viral stateside.

Bennett looks to be in good condition in that video, something that could not always be said for him previously in his NBA career. In addition to the time that he has put in with the Canadian National Team, he had multiple workouts with the Nets, showing his renewed passion, work ethic and commitment that had been questioned previously.

"“He proved that to us this summer by being here. He could have been anywhere, but he was here every day with our guys,” Atkinson said. “That started to tell us, hey this kid, this is a different Anthony Bennett and his approach is a bit different. Then watching his performances with Team Canada, seeing this guy’s in shape, he’s having some darn good games against some high competition.”"

It is something that Atkinson was happy to see, as Bennett is someone that he has had his eyes on for some time. From watching him, Atkinson believes that confidence is his biggest issue, and it is something the Nets plan on building back up this season.

“I think he’s been torn down a little bit and lost his confidence,” Atkinson said. “In his case I think we need to build him up again. Really kind of narrow down what his role is going to be and then build him up.”

Atkinson already has an idea as to how he plans to deploy Bennett this upcoming season. He has shown that he can knock down a three-pointer if given a chance, but Atkinson wants him to focus on his rebounding who can help defensively with his athleticism.

"“Rebound the ball, run the court and really help us on the defensive end with his length and size and speed. Then the other parts of the game, that’ll come,” Atkinson said. I think he’s proved with Team Canada he can shoot the three, I think he’s proved that he can drive it, I think he can proved he can be a versatile offensive player, but with his package, we want to minimize it a little instead of expand it.”“If he misses two straight corner three’s, we’re going to say, take the next one,” the coach added. “Now if he’s not rebounding, obviously that’ll be a different story.”"

It sounds similar to the role that Thomas Robinson filled for the Nets last season, just without the range offensively.

If Bennett is able to do that on a consistent basis, he should easily carve out a role with this Nets team. The Nets have other options at power forward in free agent signings Trevor Booker and Luis Scola and holdover Chris McCullough.

Bennett arguably has more upside than any of those players, it is just a matter of him realizing it. Brook Lopez is probably the only player that already has a role set for him, but with a new coaching staff and new front office, there are very few ties to players so it should be an open competition for minutes everywhere else.

Next: Can Anthony Bennett Salvage His Career With Brooklyn Nets

This is probably the best shot that the 23-year old Bennett will have to carve out a role for himself on a team. There is nowhere near as much pressure this time around as there were at previous stops, as Bennett should have a chance to be himself and just play basketball.

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