BROOKLYN (July 10, 2026) – The Brooklyn Nets have acquired two-time All-NBA and three-time All-Star forward Julius Randle, along with the draft rights to Joshua Jefferson, the 28th overall selection in the 2026 NBA Draft, from the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of a four-team trade which also included the Chicago Bulls and Charlotte Hornets. In exchange, Chicago received center Nic Claxton and Minnesota received the draft rights to Isaiah Evans, who was selected with the 33rd overall pick, from Brooklyn.
“Julius is an extremely accomplished player who will raise our level of physical toughness and competitiveness,” said General Manager Sean Marks. “His veteran leadership and big game experience will be immensely impactful to our young players as we continue to grow as a team. We’re excited to welcome Julius and his family and look forward to making them part of our Brooklyn community.
“The decision to part with Nic was not an easy one. Over his seven seasons with our team, Nic was an exemplary representative of our organization and the borough of Brooklyn. It’s been rewarding to witness Nic’s growth as both a player and a person throughout his time with the Nets and we wish him and his family nothing but the best in the future. We are thankful for the impact Nic had here and he’ll always remain part of the Nets family.”
Randle (6’9”, 250) has appeared in 789 career games (709 starts) with Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans, New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves in 12 seasons, holding career averages of 19.2 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 0.7 steals in 32.1 minutes per contest while shooting 47.2 percent from the floor, 33.2 percent from 3-point territory and 75.9 percent from the free-throw line. Originally drafted seventh overall by the Lakers in the 2014 NBA Draft out of Kentucky, Randle won the NBA Most Improved Player award in 2020-21 with the New York Knicks while also earning his first All-Star selection and a spot on the All-NBA Second Team after averaging 24.1 points and a career-high-tying 10.2 rebounds in a league-leading 37.6 minutes per game across 71 contests. He earned Third Team All-NBA honors and his second All-Star selection in 2022-23 with the Knicks after averaging a double-double for the second time with a career-best 25.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per outing and followed the campaign with his third career All-Star nod on 24.0 points per game across 46 contests with New York in 2023-24.
The 31-year-old native of Dallas spent his previous two seasons (2024-26) with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he averaged 20.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists on 48.2 percent shooting from the floor, 32.9 percent from 3-point range and a career-best 80.4 percent from the free throw stripe. In 27 combined playoff games with the Wolves, he averaged 19.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 34.6 minutes per game while leading Minnesota to the 2025 Western Conference Finals. Randle is one of four players in the NBA to record at least 15,000 points and 7,000 rebounds over the past 11 seasons (since 2015-16), joining Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Jefferson (6’8”, 220), played four collegiate seasons for Saint Mary’s (2022-24) and Iowa State (2024-26), holding career averages of 10.5 points on 48.3 percent shooting from the floor, 31.5 percent from 3-point range and 72.2 percent from the free throw line, 5.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game in 23.4 minutes across 130 games (96 starts). In his two seasons as an upperclassman at Iowa State, the Las Vegas native averaged 14.7 points, 7.4 boards, 3.9 assists and 1.9 steals in 30.3 minutes across 70 games (all starts) and was named a consensus 2025-26 All-America Second Team selection, All-Big 12 First Team and a Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year finalist. His season was highlighted by a NCAA Division I-leading two triple doubles, becoming the first player in Big 12 history to record multiple triple-doubles in conference play in a season. He posted 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.6 steals in 30.8 minutes per game in his senior season, and his 34 outings with at least 10 points were the third most in Cyclone program history.
Claxton (6’11”, 215), spent seven seasons with Brooklyn after being selected 31st overall by the franchise in the 2019 NBA Draft and held career averages of 10.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.6 blocks in 26.2 minutes across 380 games (297 starts). He posted 11.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and a career-high 3.0 assists in 69 games (68 starts) last season and set the franchise record for a center with 253 total assists. Claxton ranked fourth in Nets franchise history with 611 career blocks, seventh with 2,875 total rebounds and had the second-highest qualified career field goal percentage (62.2 percent).