The Nets begin a new season this week, and it’s full of potential for building blocks to emerge. Second-year guard Egor Demin and rookie Mikel Brown Jr. have the chance to prove their worth as future stars. Demin needs to become more well-rounded in his defense and passing to become a true point guard. Brown has to prove that his college game can translate to the NBA. Demin and Brown don’t have to do it all, as veteran forwards Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. complement them. Randle and Porter are score-first players who raise the floor. Second-year players Nolan Traore, Danny Wolf, Ben Saraf, and Drake Powell have to prove their value as first-round picks last year, and if they can, the Nets could be competitive. That competitiveness has been a hallmark of head coach Jordi Fernandez’s first two years, but this season will be his first true test in a non-tanking year. A successful season for the Nets will be a ninth- or tenth-seed finish that keeps them in the play-in, giving this core its first experience in playoff basketball.