Nets coach Jordi Fernandez eyes early success in Brooklyn
Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden weren’t the only ones who didn’t stick around long in Brooklyn.
The Nets have gone through coaches almost as quickly as superstar players in recent years, even while the team had been good enough to make five straight playoff appearances from 2019-23.
Maybe Jordi Fernandez will be the coach to have lasting success.
The first head coach from Spain in NBA history said Wednesday he expects the Nets to improve quickly after finishing 32-50 last season.
“We will see results right away because like I said before, this industry is about getting results and getting better,” Fernandez said.
The coach of Canada’s men’s national team spent the past two seasons as the associate head coach of the Sacramento Kings and stood out during a search that began almost immediately after the Nets fired Jacque Vaughn at the All-Star break.
“I think something that separates Jordi from a lot of the candidates, we found that he could look at a developmental roster, he could do various different pathways,” general manager Sean Marks said. “I mean, he’s coached stars before, he’s been the head, director of development before. So as I said, he’s worn many hats and I think with our roster that he’s going to be able to get the respect of those guys.”
The Nets have to decide what kind of roster that will be. They were building gradually early in Marks’ tenure under Kenny Atkinson before he was replaced during the 2019-20 season. Then they tried the superstar route under Steve Nash, signing Durant and Irving and then acquiring Harden in a blockbuster trade.
With those players all traded, the Nets were back to a younger squad last season, which they finished under interim coach Kevin Ollie, and Fernandez said he likes having that kind of roster.
“The youth is always great, right, because it allows you to have a team for a long run,” Fernandez said. If he gets a long run, that is. “You never want to have to let people go from positions, whether that’s coaching or staff members and so forth,” Marks said. “I think what we’re in is, we’re in professional sports and there’s turnover. I mean, we’re all very, very lucky and very fortunate to have the jobs