Nets Sign Devontae Cacok

SEPTEMBER 20: The Nets have officially signed Cacok, the team confirmed today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 17: The Nets are signing free agent forward Devontae Cacok to their 20-man preseason roster, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, Cacok will attend training camp with the team and compete for a two-way contract.

Cacok, who went undrafted out of UNC Wilmington in 2019, spent his first two professional seasons on a two-way contract with the Lakers. He barely played at the NBA level as a rookie, but appeared in 20 regular season games in 2020/21, albeit primarily in garbage time. The 24-year-old averaged 2.0 PPG and 1.6 RPG in 4.9 minutes per contest.

While his NBA impact has been limited, Cacok excelled in the G League in 2019/20, putting up 19.3 PPG and 11.9 RPG with a .660 FG% in 33 games for the South Bay Lakers. He recorded a double-double and earned a spot on the All-NBAGL First Team while averaging just 23.9 minutes per game and coming off the bench in all but two contests.

The Nets have two open spots on their 20-man roster, so Cacok will fill one of them. Kessler Edwards holds one of Brooklyn’s two-way contract slots, but the other is up for grabs. Camp invitee David Duke figures to be in the mix for that opening, along with Cacok and perhaps one or both of the Nets’ unsigned second-round picks (Marcus Zegarowski and RaiQuan Gray).

Like Duke, Cacok is likely receiving an Exhibit 10 contract, which can be converted into a two-way deal before the start of the regular season without having to pass the player through waivers.