On September 3, the Brooklyn Nets hired former Hall of Fame point guard, Steve Nash, to be their next head coach for the next four seasons. Jacque Vaughn, the previous interim head coach, will now serve as an assistant to Nash. A seven-time All-NBA selection, eight-time All-Star, and two-time NBA MVP, Steve Nash had an illustrious 18 year playing career, most notably being a member of the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks organizations. 

Even though Brooklyn had a promising 2018 season and a special 2019 playoff run under former head coach Kenny Atkinson, the disconnected relationship between him and newly acquired superstars Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant ultimately ended his tenure in New York earlier than expected. The hiring of Steve Nash at just 46 years of age comes as a surprise to many across the basketball world, because he has no prior professional head coaching experience. 

Despite not bearing any major responsibility to date, Nash worked as an assistant for the Golden State Warriors under head coach Steve Kerr, and during Kevin Durant’s three-year stay there. The rapport he built with the star forward was certainly a major factor in his hiring with the Nets. Nash was the ultimate “coach on the court” his entire career and he will bring a wealth of personal playing experience to the position. Nash will have to be crafty and strategic in managing all of the variations of ages and talents currently on the roster. Nonetheless, it is an extremely intriguing group to work with and a great opportunity to prove himself right out of the gate.

When Durant and Irving teamed up in signing with Brooklyn last summer, the hype and expectations surrounding the Nets organization skyrocketed. Formidable veteran center De’Andre Jordan also joined them, adding even more talent and depth to the already blossoming young core. This season, shooting guard Caris LeVert showed immense promise averaging 18.7 points and 4.4 assists per game. Irving, who only played 20 games this season, scored a career high average of 27.4 points per game (ppg) and 6.4 assists from the point guard position. Durant was injured all season, healing from the Achilles rupture from the 2019 NBA finals vs the Toronto Raptors. The Nets also have great role players in Spencer Dinwiddie (20.6 ppg) and Joe Harris (14.5 ppg), along with young defensive specialist Jarrett Allen at the center position. 

  This season didn’t go quite as planned with Durant and Irving injured for the vast majority of the year, but they still made the playoffs as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference with a 35-37 record. Unfortunately for the Nets, they were eliminated from the “restart” expansionary playoffs in the first round. 

  Their outlook for next season looks extremely bright if they can enter the season having both Irving and Durant at 100% health. Steve Nash is hoping to replicate Steve Kerr’s 2015 rookie head coaching season with the Warriors in which they won the NBA finals. It is certainly not out of the question that the new-look Nets could make it all the way, but much of that depends on the amount of chemistry and confidence that Steve Nash can bring to this organization on the prowl.