Last nights 116-109 victory over the Indiana Pacers was not enough to save Steve Nash from the pink slip. The Brooklyn Nets and Nash agreed to part ways Tuesday afternoon. A decision on whom will be the next Nets coach is still pending according to reports. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Jacque Vaughn will be the interim head coach.
Nets have parted ways with Steve Nash, team says: pic.twitter.com/7eArfwvgx2
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) November 1, 2022
Nets General Manager Sean Marks said of Nash, “Steve was faced with a number of unprecedented challenges, and we are sincerely grateful for his leadership, patience, and humility throughout his tenure. Personally this was an immensely difficult decision; however … we agreed that a change is necessary at this time.”
Nash had just entered his third season as head coach of a superstar team that included Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and at one point, James Harden. In two-plus seasons, the Nets failed to live up to the lofty championship expectations that many had tagged this franchise with. A lot of the issues went beyond Nash’s office with Durant, Irving and Harden causing various issues for the franchise. Harden was traded last season to Philadelphia in a package for Ben Simmons.
Durant and Irving each demanded trades during this past summer, but cooler heads prevailed and both remain with the franchise. Although Irving is in hot water now after his controversial Tweets about a movie that many have deemed to be antiemetic.
In two-plus seasons, Nash went 94-67 as head coach.
Nash posted a statement to social media that read “A very heartfelt thank you to Joe and Clara Tsai along with Sean Marks for giving me the opportunity to coach the Brooklyn Nets. It was an amazing experience with many challenges that I am incredibly grateful for.”
