The Brooklyn Nets are expected to release combo guard Edmond Sumner, according to sources. Sumner, 27, was selected 52nd overall by the New Orleans Pelicans in the 2017 NBA Draft out of Xavier University.
However, the Michigan native was then traded to the Indiana Pacers for $1 million cash on draft night. In July 2017, the 6-foot-4 guard signed a two-way contract with Indiana. He scored a basket in one game with the Pacers in the 2017-18 season.
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The Brooklyn Nets are expected to release Edmond Sumner, league sources told @hoopshype. Sumner was a spark plug off the bench averaging 7.1 points in 13.9 minutes last season. The 27-year-old guard is expected to have several potential suitors.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 15, 2023
Edmond Sumner made two starts in 23 games played with the Pacers in the 2018-19 season. The guard averaged 2.9 points, 1.0 rebound, and 9.1 minutes per game while shooting 34.4% from the floor, 25.9% beyond the arc, and 62.5% at the foul line.
Moreover, Sumner then made three starts in 31 appearances with Indiana in the 2019-20 season. He averaged 4.9 points, 1.5 rebounds, a career-high 1.8 assists, and 14.4 minutes per game. In February 2019, his two-way deal was converted into a regular contract.
Brooklyn Nets expected to waive combo guard Edmond Sumner after pushing back guarantee deadline for his 2023-24 salary of $2.24 million from July 5 to 15
In September 2021, the Pacers announced that Sumner would be sidelined indefinitely due to a torn ACL. He would miss the entire 2021-22 season.
Of course, Sumner and a 2025 second-round draft pick were traded by Indiana to the Nets for Juan Pablo Vaulet on Oct. 6, 2021.
Though, Brooklyn waived Sumner four days later. In July 2022, the Nets signed Sumner to a two-year, $4.21 million contract.
After recovering from his ACL injury, he made 12 starts in 53 appearances with Brooklyn in the 2022-23 season. Furthermore, the Xavier product averaged 7.1 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 13.9 minutes per game. Sumner finished 46.1% shooting from the field and a career-best 91.7% at the free throw line as well.
James 1:2-4 always speaks volumes to me because of how I approach adversity now. I control what I can control and know it’s always gone work out. It’s just never the way I expect it. I been in the grind my whole life so I’m a keep doing what I always do GRIND. 🫡
— Edmond Sumner (@EdmondSumner) July 14, 2023
In Brooklyn’s 125-123 win over the Washington Wizards on Feb. 4, 2023, the guard scored a career-high 29 points in 40 minutes as a starter. Along with logging two boards, three assists, one steal, and one block, Sumner shot 9-of-19 (47.4%) from the floor and drained two 3-pointers.
Additionally, the guarantee deadline for his 2023-24 salary of $2.24 million was pushed back from July 5 to 15. NBA insiders speculate that Nets GM Sean Marks was attempting to trade the fifth-year guard.
Since Marks was unable to find a suitable trade partner, the Nets have decided to waive Sumner. In October 2022, Brooklyn guaranteed $500,000 of his $1,968,175 salary for the 2022-23 season.
Brooklyn’s offseason additions and departures
For other offseason moves, the Nets signed former Phoenix Suns forward Darius Bazley to a one-year contract. Brooklyn also traded forward Joe Harris and two future second-round picks (2027 second-round draft pick via the Dallas Mavericks and a 2029 second-rounder via the Milwaukee Bucks) to the Detroit Pistons in June.
By trading Harris, the Nets created a $19.9 million traded player exception. Brooklyn re-signed forward Cam Johnson to a three-year, $108 million contract and extended wing Royce O’Neale.
In early July, the Nets traded guard Patty Mills and a 2028 second-round draft pick (via Milwaukee) to the Houston Rockets in exchange for future draft considerations.
Plus, the Nets added forward Lonnie Walker IV and guard Dennis Smith Jr. in free agency. For a few more departures, guard Seth Curry signed a two-year, $9.26 million deal with Dallas, and wing Yuta Watanabe inked a two-year, $5 million contract with Phoenix.
