Nets' Mo Wagner explains his usage on both ends of the court

NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets center Mo Wagner is heading into his ninth season in the NBA and across the few stops he’s made over the course of his career, his role has been steady for the most part. Brooklyn brought Wagner in as a free-agent this summer as the team looked to bolster its frontcourt depth and he explained what the adjustment period has been like thus far.

“Defensively, I have not yet adjusted to the type of defense that we want to play. Probably, that’s still so habitual to me because I’ve been doing it for five years so that still needs a lot of work on my end,” Wagner said prior to Thursday’s 114-108 preseason win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Throughout training camp and the preseason, Wagner has been enthralled in a competition with Day’Ron Sharpe for the starting center spot.

“A lot more focus, and a lot more willingness to do that which I can’t wait to show tonight,” Wagner continued. “At the same time, offensively, it fits really well. There’s so many reads, and the offense isn’t really like plays, it’s more like reads going off of each other that we train every day so it’s been a lot of fun. So far, I think it’s a good fit.”

Wagner, 29, spent the majority of his career with the Orlando Magic where he primarily came off the bench behind players like Wendell Carter Jr. and Goga Bitadze, among others. When Wagner officially signed with the Nets, Brooklyn had already traded starting center Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls in the deal that brought forward Julius Randle to the Nets, paving the way for Wagner to potentially be a starting center once again.

Wagner is coming off a 2025-26 season in which he averaged 6.9 points and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting 42.6% from the field and 81.9% from the free-throw line. So far, Wagner is averaging 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game in two preseason games with Brooklyn so it seems like he is slowly, but surely adjusting to his new role under head coach Jordi Fernandez.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets’ Mo Wagner explains his usage on both ends of the court