The Brooklyn Nets have named Steve Nash as the 23rd head coach in the franchise’s NBA history. Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Nash has signed a four-year deal in what will be his first jaunt into coaching an NBA team full-time.
Nash joins the Nets following five seasons as a player development consultant with the Golden State Warriors, where he contributed to two championship teams and made four successive trips to The Finals.
Per Wojnarowski, Nets owner Joe Tsai and general manager Sean Marks had been aggressive in recruiting Nash to make the move to coaching. In Brooklyn, Nash will be leading a Nets team filled with talented scorers, including former Kia MVP and Finals MVP Kevin Durant and All-Star guard Kyrie Irving.
That made the Nets vacancy an attractive position, and Marks said he met with a number of highly proficient candidates. There was even speculation the Nets would try to entice Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, for whom Marks played and then worked under in San Antonio.
Instead, Marks turned to one of his former teammates.
“After meeting with a number of highly accomplished coaching candidates from diverse backgrounds, we knew we had a difficult decision to make,” Marks said in a statement released by the Nets. “In Steve we see a leader, communicator and mentor who will garner the respect of our players. I have had the privilege to know Steve for many years.
In addition, the team announced that Jacque Vaughn will return to Brooklyn as lead assistant coach.
“I am honored to have this opportunity with such a first-class organization and would like to thank Sean, Joe and his wife, Clara, for having faith in my ability to lead this team forward,” Nash said.
The Nets reached the postseason despite having Irving for only 20 games and Durant for none, but the two stars who came to Brooklyn together last summer are expected to be ready for the 2020-21 campaign.
Vaughn finished out the season as coach and did as well as anyone could have expected, leading the Nets to a 5-3 record in the NBA’s restart in Florida before they were swept by the Toronto Raptors. He started 2-0 after replacing Kenny Atkinson in March, including a triumph over the Lakers in Los Angeles, and picked up victories over the powerful Bucks and Clippers at Walt Disney World.
Having grown up in Victoria, British Columbia, Nash is one of the most accomplished figures in Canadian basketball history. He was a member of Team Canada from 1993-2004 and served as general manager for the senior national team from 2012-19.
Nash played collegiately for four campaigns at Santa Clara University before to being selected 15th overall in the 1996 NBA Draft.
