Nets rule Markel Brown out for preseason

The Brooklyn Nets have ruled Markel Brown out for the remainder of the preseason, as the sophomore shooting guard is suffering from a left oblique strain. His status will be updated once preseason action concludes.

"I made a turn and I felt a pop," Brown said Monday, calling the strain a "freak accident."

There's a small chance the next Brown update could come with the news that Brown didn't make the final roster, though his guaranteed contract mitigates that risk to some degree, and his role seems secure even without the benefit of a full camp.

Brown was presumed to enter the season as one of the team's primary shooting guards, perhaps even starting. There are plenty of names behind him competing for jobs on the wing, and his absence will give several players - including a few of the seven on non-guaranteed deals fighting for two roster spots - additional opportunities to make their case for head coach Lionel Hollins' rotation.

A second-round pick in 2014, Brown appeared in 47 games as a rookie, starting 29. He averaged 4.6 points and 2.3 rebounds in 16.6 minutes, shooting 36.2 percent from the floor and 26.6 percent from long range, but it's his value as a stopper on the wings that ingratiated him to the hard-nosed Hollins.