There was a sigh of relief this NBA offseason when it was announced that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving would be returning to the Brooklyn Nets for at least one more season. While the trade drama may have dissipated, the dysfunction of the organization never ceased.
Irving has been making headlines because of some anti-semitic things he has shared on social media. This isn’t the first time he has shared questionable content on his social media pages and it likely won’t be the last. He has painted himself as being the victim, saying the media is portraying him wrong but whenever he has a chance to speak out, he isn’t available to the media.
On Tuesday, the Nets made more headlines as head coach Steve Nash and the organization agreed to mutually part ways. Nash is the biggest winner out of everyone involved in this as he no longer has to answer questions about the Nets, be put in lose-lose situations during press conferences or interact with players who openly defy him at every chance they get.
The Nets wasted very little time in finding a replacement. Jaques Vaughn will serve as the acting head coach, but he won’t be in that position very long. Brooklyn is already moving toward hiring currently suspended Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka to take over their head coach position.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Steve Nash, Ime Udoka & Brooklyn Nets Updates
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, a deal is expected to be done for Udoka by Wednesday. Boston isn’t requiring draft compensation for Udoka to join the Nets but discussions are taking place before a deal can be finalized.
Seeking someone that can galvanize the locker room and demand respect from the players, while salvaging things among all of the turmoil the Nets are facing, Udoka is certainly a head-scratching hire. He is dealing with his issues stemming from the suspension the Celtics handed to him, as his hiring seems more fuel being added to the fire, not a fire retardant solution Brooklyn needs.
Udoka has experience working with Durant, Irving and Ben Simmons from his time as an assistant with the Nets and Philadelphia 76ers. From a basketball perspective, there isn’t likely a better person for this job.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Steve Nash, Ime Udoka & Brooklyn Nets Updates
But, the Brooklyn Nets and NBA in general are letting down millions of people with how they have handled things the last few weeks and days with each incident. Irving and Udoka really haven’t answered for their actions and they will now be continuing their careers alongside each other in Brooklyn.
