The Brooklyn Nets have fired coach Jacques Vaughn after a 21-33 start to the season, the team announced Monday. Vaughn coached the Nets for 129 games this season, leading the team to a 64-65 record.
The Nets entered the All-Star break in 11th place in the East with a sour taste in their mouth after a 50-point loss to Boston in the first half. They are ranked 21st in points and 16th in games played.
Vaughn, a former Nets assistant coach, was promoted to interim head coach on November 1, 2022 following the team’s parting ways with Steve Nash. He was named permanent coach about a week later, then signed a multi-year contract extension on February 21, 2023.
In the year Between November 1 and February 21, Vaughan led the Nets to the fifth-best record in the league, including a 12-1 record in December 2022. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are heading into a rebuilding season built around newly acquired forward Michael Bridges.
Vaughn previously coached the Nets for 10 games as interim head coach in 2020 following the mid-season departure of Kenny Atkinson.
This marks the second February firing of Vaughn’s career since he was waived by the Orlando Magic on February 5, 2015. Vaughn coached Orlando two years ago to a 58-158 record.
Vaughn began his coaching career with the San Antonio Spurs and joined Gregg Popovich’s staff as an assistant coach in 2010. Vaughn finished his playing career with the Spurs in 2009, capping a 12-year career that included previous stints with the Utah Jazz, Atlanta Hawks, Magic and Nets.
Why would he fire him now?
The timing of Vaughan’s dismissal is certainly surprising. The Nets have, in fact, never had a bad season. They’re just 2.5 games behind the Hawks for the 10th seed, so the Play-In Tournament is on the horizon in a year where they try to find new balance. But the nets were still a bit unpredictable. 500 on Dec. 26. They’ve lost 18 of their last 24 games.Vaughn’s appeal in the locker room has also waned. League sources said it was not accepted by some players.
Now, the Nets will be moving on to their third head coach in 17 months, and the organization has yet to name an interim. They hired Kevin Ollie and Will Weaver this offseason. Ollie won a national championship as head coach at UConn. Weaver interviewed for NBA head coaching jobs after coaching in Australia and France. He won G League Coach of the Year while coaching the Long Island Nets. – Mike Vorkunov, national NBA business reporter
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