Just a month into the NBA season, and the Brooklyn Nets have already endured more than most teams experience in a season.
After an explosive and chaotic summer, Steve Nash was promptly let go after a 2-5 start — and a coaching search has been underway ever since.
Initially, reports indicated that ex-Celtics coach Ime Udoka was a shoo-in for the job, with various claims detailing negotiations between both sides.
But after days of deliberation, it seems the Nets have decided to go in a different direction. According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Nets are rolling with Jacque Vaughn as their new coach instead.
https://twitter.com/TheAthletic/status/1590393298287742978
NBA Fans Are Shocked At Brooklyn’s Latest Big Move
Despite Udoka’s baggage, he was thought to be the best candidate available to whip these Nets into shape. As the last two years have shown, KD and Kyrie need a coach that they respect — and Udoka is someone who would have commanded that respect. In the end, however, the Nets decided to play it safe and avoid making any moves that might bring their reputation down even further.
Still, many fans were shocked that they turned down such a talented coach like Udoka.
https://twitter.com/mikemoreau85/status/1590394024300810240https://twitter.com/KingJosiah54/status/1590393563720089601https://twitter.com/Krisplashed/status/1590393066900578306https://twitter.com/AdamMKaufman/status/1590391064174944257https://twitter.com/mariahcrose/status/1590393785670053889https://twitter.com/SirSavageDa21st/status/1590395140002418689https://twitter.com/oneCR_15/status/1590395137515192320https://twitter.com/bbaird517/status/1590395111317204992https://twitter.com/WaleAyoola5/status/1590394705589964800
Obviously, many of the fans were split on the news. For some, Udoka was the only guy capable of controlling this Nets team. And while the Nets are the ones who seemingly made this choice, they did face a lot of pressure to avoid hiring Udoka.
“With the Nets already embroiled in one controversy over Kyrie Irving, they may end up avoiding another by backing off on hiring Ime Udoka as their next coach due to potential ‘blow back,’ multiple league sources said,” wrote Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. “‘[Nets owner] Joe [Tsai] is getting some blow back’ and there’s ‘too much potential drama,’ one league source said of a Udoka hiring. A second source said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver ‘may have stepped in’ and also said ‘there has been some concern from women in leadership positions within the Nets.”
Only time will tell if Vaughn is the right man for the job, but the team has responded to him well enough so far, going 2-2 without Kyrie since he took over.
Regarding what’s next for Udoka, only time will tell what his NBA future looks like — but some think he may never coach at this level again.
If you are interested in more NBA news, follow us on Google News for the latest updates.
