Bored with mere basketball, the Nets are now building a superteam of toxicity
Brooklyn appears to be ready to hire Ime Udoka to join its circus of gross sideshows.
Good morning. Let’s basketball.
The Evening of the Deluge, J.M.W. Turner, 1843
The Brooklyn Nets fired Steve Nash. Whatever. It was an odd hiring in the first place, a basketball legend who seemed to be enjoying retirement dipping his toes in various enterprises and claimed to be uninterested in becoming a full-time NBA coach … then recruited to coach a talent-loaded team with sky high expectations, a wild card point guard slash leader and an all-time great who allegedly recruited Nash and maintained full faith in that wild card co-star. Nash was an odd choice for all that, but once you turn your franchise completely over to Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, you roll with it. The Nets rolled with it. And now Steve Nash is fired a few months after the franchise ignored a “him-or-me” demand from Durant amid an ongoing trade demand saga from Durant. The Nets realized in August KD had no teeth to his demands on a trade or Nash on account of signing a long-term extension. But then they realized that maybe KD was right about Nash.
The Nash dismissal is whatever. The absurd twist here is that the Nets are not promoting an assistant coach to finish out this cursed year. They are hiring Ime Udoka, according to multiple reports. Yes, the team with the star point guard posting links to virulently anti-Semitic movies and co-signing Alex Jones takes has decided to hire a coach who not two months ago got suspended for a year by his team coming off of an NBA Finals appearance for an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.
Let me be clear: I don’t think based on what we know Udoka should be eternally banned from the NBA and prevented from working his craft. I do think it’s bizarre that a team with the problems the scope and nature of the Nets would hire Udoka less than two months after he was sanctioned. The fact that the Celtics are reportedly letting the Nets hire Udoka without compensation makes it clear that Boston never intended to bring Udoka back into the fold, which has been theorized throughout that saga and is logical. So surely the Celtics are happy that this particular Gordian knot is someone else’s problem. Now the C’s can judge Joe Mazzulla on the merits, and if he’s not fit they go out and hire a new coach.
Udoka has a long history with Sean Marks, the other member of Durant’s reported ultimatum, so this would appear to mean that Marks isn’t hitting the escape pod alongside Nash. My assessment of Marks’ judgment and interest in self-care is at an all-time low. The Nets were already the biggest mess in the NBA, and Marks is adding the second biggest mess into the vat. This is the dumbest merger and acquisition I’ve seen in years. You’ve got KD’s unhappiness, you’ve got Kyrie’s anti-Semitism and now you’ve got Ime Udoka’s problematic workplace relationship. It’s hideous!
With Kyrie at least, you want to feel some sympathy for Joe Tsai and Marks. I mean, look at how pitiable this quote from Marks on Irving’s media availability was:
Bad sign when letting your galaxy brain star point guard interact with people will definitely cause a fuss. Just as bad a sign when you’ll willingly and unnecessarily1 had an Ime Udoka shaped pile of fuss to your plate.
The Nets should be ashamed. This is a disgrace.
Scores
Bulls 108, Nets 99 — It’s usually DeMar DeRozan doing it, but this time Zach LaVine dropped 20 in the fourth to lead the Bulls in a comeback win over the Nets.
Kyrie Irving: 4 points on 2/12 shooting.
Warriors 109, Heat 116 — Really rough times for the champs. Steph Curry had a triple-double and Andrew Wiggins shot well, but the bench situation isn’t working beyond Jordan Poole (and he didn’t even produce on Tuesday).
I do not like this development of the officials calling carries.
Magic 108, Thunder 116 — 34 in the win for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He’s definitely playing at an All-Star level right now, and maybe an All-NBA level? Unreal talent. He has all the tools you want from a scoring guard.
Timberwolves 107, Suns 116 — I regret to inform you that the Phoenix Suns are still really good. As soon as they get a new franchise owner I may be required to start rooting for Chris Paul to win a ring. Stay tuned.
Schedule
Eleven games on the board. All times Eastern.
Wizards at Sixers, 6
Celtics at Cavaliers, 7:30, ESPN
Kings at Heat, 7:30
Hawks at Knicks, 7:30
Hornets at Bulls, 8
Clippers at Rockets, 8
Pistons at Bucks, 8
Raptors at Spurs, 8
Jazz at Mavericks, 8:30
Grizzlies at Blazers, 10, ESPN
Pelicans at Lakers, 10:30
Links
The NBA players’ union put out a statement on Kyrie Irving’s anti-Semitic tweet and defense of such as vague as the league’s own statement. Notably, it doesn’t name Kyrie Irving! Reggie Miller speaks truth in calling out players for not calling out Kyrie.
Michael Rosenberg on the Nets.
David Alridge in The Athletic on the Nets. ($)
Kelly Dwyer on … a lot, including Myles Turner’s groundbreaking interview with Woj. ($)
Marc Stein with a warning about NBA labor peace.
The Dallas Wings have a head coach: Latricia Trammell, most recently an assistant with the Sparks.
Be excellent to each other.
Jacque Vaughn is a perfectly suitable interim coach.
Enforcement of the carrying rule was long overdue.
Thought those carry calls were accurate, especially the last one.