#Sean Marks still tweaking the Nets roster: ‘We’ll be fluid’

LAS VEGAS — The Nets can bring 20 players to training camp, and they’re at that limit. But that doesn’t mean they’re done tweaking the roster.

“Yeah, we’ll always keep that door open. It’s obviously not wide open anymore because we’ve signed a lot of these guys, but I think it’s cracked,” general manager Sean Marks said Wednesday. “We’ve got to continue to tinker with the roster, and just see what happens.

“We’ve seen in the past where other teams make cuts, and so forth, and we’re able to adjust because of that. So I don’t want to say that the roster’s complete: Maybe it’s 90 percent complete, 99 percent complete. But we’ll definitely reserve the right to continue to tinker with this roster.”

Under Marks, the Nets have usually made late pickups. They signed Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot hours before the 2019 opener, and picked up Tyler Zeller in mid-September two years earlier.

“We’ll be fluid. We could potentially keep a roster spot open,” Marks said. “We still have to agree on a two-way position as well. I don’t think we’ll necessarily make our mind up in the next 24, 48 hours.”

Marks acknowledged that he’ll consult his stars on making roster moves. So far, his roster-building has shown a clear intent to shore up the defense by keeping Bruce Brown and adding the likes of Jevon Carter and James Johnson.

“We won’t have addressed all the needs until probably post-trade deadline, and that’s when we’ll really know what we’ve got,” Marks said. “But we wanted to make sure we were deep, make sure we were healthy, and certainly address some of those needs from a defensive standpoint.”

Part of the roster uncertainty is DeAndre Jordan. The veteran did not play in the final four games of the regular season or in any of the Nets’ 12 playoff games. He has been shopped around the league.

“From a GM standpoint if we’re not having calls around the league then none of us would be doing our job. That’s what we do,” Marks said. “Whether the roster looks the same in a month or two I really don’t know. But as it stands now DeAndre is certainty part of this roster.”

Marks — who was in Los Angeles on Tuesday to finalize Patty Mills’ signing — landed the Aussie guard for the mid-level exception, with the second year an option, according to Spotrac. Marks also admitted he was surprised he was able to keep Brown for the $4.7 million qualifying offer, when league sentiment was he’d get double that.

“Absolutely; without a doubt. We certainly thought Bruce would be getting, whether it was an offer sheet,” Marks said. “But at the same time, Bruce made it very clear that the job wasn’t done here, and I respect the heck out of him for wanting to come back.”

Marks also addressed the call to leave Nic Claxton in Brooklyn for individual work.

“We felt, not only from Nic’s side but from an organizational standpoint there were some things that maybe he needed to focus on, and he could do that better on an individual basis working out with coaches,” Marks said. “He’s doing that in Brooklyn.”

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The Nets beat the Bucks 97-91 Wednesday as Cam Thomas had a team-high 22 points, as well as four assists.

“It’s definitely an adjustment, but with the real team I’m gonna be coming off the bench anyway so this is just good practice for me to get used to [it],” said Thomas.

Fellow first-round pick Day’Ron Sharpe had 11 points and eight boards (six offensive).

“The other guys are gonna get tired of boxing you out sooner or later. If I keep going hard 24/7, sooner or later somebody’s gonna slip up,” Sharpe said. “Guys don’t want to deal with a guy that’s running after the ball and is nowhere near them.”

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The Nets will hire former Magic and Hornets coach Steve Clifford as a consultant, as first reported by ESPN.