Last season, whenever the Nets‘ veterans wanted to shower in the locker room, Jalen Wilson served as their towel boy. Yes, rookie hazing is still a thing in the NBA. Thankfully, Wilson does not have to worry about that anymore. “I feel like that’s something, you come back after the game, you’re tired, and now, everybody, all the vets, ask them where the towels at and so, I’m glad I don’t have to do that anymore,” Wilson said. “If it comes to travel on a plane and carrying bags and stuff like that, I can scoot that to the side.” At this rate, Wilson will not have to worry about waving towels on the Nets’ bench, either. The 23-year-old continued to improve his game last summer after working his way into Kevin Ollie’s rotation toward the end of last season. He was named NBA 2K25 Summer League MVP after averaging 21.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists across five games in Las Vegas while shooting 55% from 3-point range. “Just getting even more reps in, as far as more practice after practice, shooting game-like shots and just building confidence,” Wilson said. “I feel like when you put the reps in, you got to go in the game. You have to shoot them as well. Because if you don’t shoot them in a game, your confidence will never grow.” Wilson was shooting 41.7% from deep on four attempts per game entering Friday’s preseason finale against the Toronto Raptors at Barclays Center. Not only has his hot shooting carried over from his summer league run, but first-year head coach Jordi Fernandez has raved about his work ethic, too. Fernandez rewarded Wilson’s effort throughout training camp by starting him against the Raptors. His 10.3 points per game ranked third on the Nets this preseason entering Friday’s game. “[Jalen] has been amazing,” Fernandez said. “He had an amazing summer. Physically, he’s one of the best conditioned guys on our team. You can see it on the court, he’s still running and being physical, and the shot, when he lets it fly, it goes in… He’s done a great job and put himself in a good position to perform at this level… It’s a good opportunity for him.” Wilson and other second-year talents on the roster will be fighting for expanded roles under Fernandez this season. General manager Sean Marks, and the Nets fan base, are curious to see which young players take the leap. Their NBA journeys continue Wednesday in Atlanta. “I think just taking preseason seriously and understanding that three or four games can fly by and now, it’s the real deal, real time to play the season,” Wilson said. “So, taking every single rep you get as a serious rep. Preseason obviously doesn’t count on the record, but it is a game that matters to a lot of people. It matters to the team as far as how we jell and how we build our chemistry going into the real season.” CLAXTON ON TRACK Nic Claxton (hamstring soreness) missed his fourth straight preseason game on Friday but remains on track to start at center in the Nets’ season opener on Wednesday against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Stadium. OTHER INJURY UPDATES Veteran forward Dorian Finney-Smith also missed Friday’s game after taking a nasty fall against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday. Fernandez said Finney-Smith was held out for precautionary reasons. Ben Simmons, who missed Wednesday’s game, returned to the starting lineup against the Raptors. Killian Hayes, who was invited to training camp on an Exhibit 10 deal, missed his fourth straight preseason game. He is not eligible for a two-way contract and his future in Brooklyn remains murky. However, Fernandez did tell reporters ahead of Wednesday’s game that he was happy with Hayes’ effort in training camp when healthy.