Brooklyn Nets name two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash head coach

The Brooklyn Nets have named two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Steve Nash as the team’s new head coach.  

The former Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks star had been working as a senior advisor for the national team in his native Canada in addition to a player-development consulting role with the Golden State Warriors. Nash retired as a player in 2015 after a brief, injury plagued stint with the Los Angeles Lakers. 

Nash has no previous coaching experience, but that did not deter Nets general manager Sean Marks, who praised the longtime point guard’s ‘instincts for the game.’

‘After meeting with a number of highly accomplished coaching candidates from diverse backgrounds, we knew we had a difficult decision to make,’ Marks said in a statement. 

‘In Steve we see a leader, communicator and mentor who will garner the respect of our players. I have had the privilege to know Steve for many years. One of the great on-court leaders in our game, I have witnessed firsthand his basketball acumen and selfless approach to prioritize team success. His instincts for the game, combined with an inherent ability to communicate with and unite players towards a common goal, will prepare us to compete at the highest levels of the league. 

‘We are excited to welcome Steve, Lilla, Lola, Bella, Matteo, Luca and Ruby to Brooklyn.’ 

Nash takes over for interim coach Jacque Vaughn, who replaced the fired Kenny Atkinson in March and guided Brooklyn to a first-round playoff defeat at the hands of the Toronto Raptors. 

Brooklyn is expected to be better next year with last summer’s high-priced free agent acquisitions, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, presumably back from injury. 

San Antonio Spurs coach and five-time NBA champion Gregg Popovich was reported to be a candidate by The Athletic’s Shams Charania, but Popovich and even Marks – his former player and front office pupil – had dismissed that talk in recent weeks. (Still, Popovich re-ignited rumors this week by putting his San Antonio mansion back on the market) 

Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Nash is a Canadian who grew playing basketball, soccer, and hockey in British Columbia before going on to a collegiate hoops career at Santa Clara