LAS VEGAS — Brooklyn Nets center Day’Ron Sharpe entered this offseason with the possibility to playing for another team after the Nets declined to extend him his qualifying offer to make him an restricted free-agent. Brooklyn took a gamble by letting Sharpe be unrestricted after one of his best seasons in the NBA, but it seems like the backup center was coming back either way.
“It feels good to be back in Brooklyn. I feel good to play for Jordi [Fernández], to play for the Brooklyn Nets organization,” Sharpe said during halftime of the Nets’ 102-96 loss to the Washington Wizards in the Las Vegas Summer League. Sharpe wasn’t a free-agent for long as he re-signed with the Nets on a two-year, $12 million contract one day after Brooklyn declined to extend his offer so it appears that both sides wanted to continue their partnership.
“I got drafted here, it’s always home, so it’s good to be back for the team, for the Brooklyn Nets,” Sharpe continued. “I just feel that was the best option for me, and that’s where Brooklyn was at. I just decided when I decided.”
Sharpe, 23, is coming off the best season of his career as he averaged 7.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game while shooting 52.1% from the field and 75.7% from the free-throw line. Despite starting in just two of his 50 games that he played during the 2024-25 season, Sharpe achieved career-highs in many statistical categories, including playing 18.1 minutes per game as the backup to starting center Nic Claxton.
In his exit interview following the conclusion of the season, Sharpe said to the media at the time that he didn’t look at free-agency as his chance to get a bigger role compared to what he had in Brooklyn. For the foreseeable future, Sharpe will be playing behind Claxton, but it seems that Sharpe is okay with that. “Some guys don’t even get to play. I used to be in a position where I didn’t play at all. So, I just take whatever minutes I get. I’m just grateful,” Sharpe said in April.
