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Tim BontempsESPN
Newly hired Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash said there was criticism that he “left the line” and had the opportunity to coach the NBA Championship contender, but his 18-season Hall of Fame career as a point guard said he had had success. First time head coach.
“Well, I clearly left the line,” Nashe said during his virtual opening news conference from the team’s practice facility on Wednesday afternoon. “But at the same time, I think it’s very unique to lead an NBA team for almost two decades. So while I don’t need some skills that I definitely couldn’t try to understand and learn up to the technical aspects. Coaching, I did it. Never far away.
“So to lead a team in such a unique position, to be a team leader on the floor, to think on the fly, to manage personalities and people, to set up skills, and to bring people together, to collaborate with coaches and coaches. Staff for almost two decades, it’s not like I’ve been in a vacuum. I learned a great deal during my career. “
Not a bad day to introduce a new head coach. pic.twitter.com/rjkwJv3cra
– Brooklyn Net (@ BrooklynNet) September 9, 2020
There are many other former players who have had inexperienced head-coaching opportunities, including Steve Care, Doc Reverse and Isaiah Thomas. The group also includes Hall of Fame Point Guard, a former Nation ally and prison Kid ally who, seven years ago, also had the opportunity to coach star players and a sky-high net team.
“I didn’t make it as an assistant coach like many people do, but it’s an example of a player who has a career, who’s a leader, who’s an anchor.” “I think this opportunity will come, because Steve Care and many others have had great success, it’s a unique situation, I think. But I definitely realize that I need support. I hope that many qualities And bring skills. At the table that’s unique and strong, but I need supportive and support staff who have a lot of experience and are willing to make this with me. “
Criticism of Nash’s hiring has been due to his lack of coaching experience and the fact that the current number of minority head coaches in the NBA has been at five this summer.
Nash, who has a picture of George Floyd as his Twitter profile picture, was asked about the idea that white privilege plays a role in getting this opportunity. And when he said he thought his playing career was the same reason he was taken, Nash said the white privilege was real.
Nashe said, ‘I have benefited from the white facility. “I’m not saying this position was a factor, as long as white is a privilege. … I think, as white people, we should understand that we have a special feature and advantage in our communities through skin color. We have a long way to go to find social and racial justice. I hope I am a great ally in that cause.
“… I’m very sensitive to cause and effect. I’m not sure this is an example of a conversation that fits, but I own it, and I understand why this has been talked about. We need more variety. And more opportunities for African American coaches on staff in all capacities. This league was created by African American players and stars who have created this one of the world’s greatest sports entertainment industries and businesses, it is really important that we continue to come together and level the league. Fight on.
“… It’s interesting, to be so supportive and allied to the need for equality, to put, in a sense, between them, because it’s something that’s close to my heart and dear. But I accept that. I want it. Part of the conversation. To be. And frankly, I want to be part of the change going forward. “
Since the end of his playing career, Nash has been a conspirator for many different jobs. Outside of his advisory role with the Golden State Warriors and serving as general manager of the Canadian national team, he had previously avoided pursuing any of them.
However, this was not the case in this job. Nash said he phoned Nets general manager Sean Marks earlier this summer and asked if it was too late to consider him for the job. From there, things progressed rapidly.
“I arrived at the scene sometime in the summer,” Nash said. “I don’t remember when it was, [and I] Asked me if this is the right time for me to throw my name in the hat and be considered for the position? The same ball got rolling. “
He also said that in the country’s largest city, with high-profile star players – the high-profile nature of the job did not lead to his quest.
“No part of me thinks on profile [of the job] While taking the job, “Nash said.” He was back in the fee with my coaching staff, on the floor here with the players, trying to create, as I said, a family and an atmosphere that these people love. The pressure to get to work every day, constantly growing and getting better. We are all pushing and supporting each other. I just considered the job from a basketball perspective.
“I really approached him from there, ‘Where am I on this journey of learning and growing and asking questions and gathering information?’ The opportunity is so unique, with the journey I’ve traveled, it felt like it was the right time, a moment of time, and I’m so thankful it came together. “
Mark said Nash’s playing career has the ability to work hard enough to hand it over to a team with championship aspirations. Kevin Durant will return a pair of Carrie Irving from torn Achilles tendon, who is undergoing shoulder surgery.
“I think Steve is a little different,” Marx said when Nash was first asked as head coach. “You look at the career path he had. I was also very lucky to be part of the team with him, so I became close and personal with Steve, and he goes back to seeing how he managed himself, the leader or he Both were in or out of court.I think that is very important.When I was there he was definitely a culture driver in those sun days.
“There’s no one around me who didn’t want to have a pressure-test on the spot like Steve. It doesn’t sound like a moment, so when you say first-time head coach, it’s the first time we’ve seen it. He never walks. He wants the ball in his hands at the end of the game, and his career speaks for itself. He has made the right decision more often than not, and he speaks of the experience he will bring here. Parts. “
Ahead of his playing career, one of the main selling points of Nash’s subscription is his relationship with Durant. The two worked together at Golden State during Durant’s three seasons there, and Nash has repeatedly said – including Wednesdays – that Irving is his favorite player to watch in the NBA. Nashe said he had not spoken to Durant before reaching Marx about the job.
Nash played with stars such as Dirk Novitzki, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Amara Studemir and Schwickl O’Neill throughout his career. He said he hopes his relationship with players like Durant and Irving Mirror is the same as he was with other players.
“I don’t even think of him as a star personality, in the sense of those people he was my friend,” Nash said of his past teammates. “He was my teammate and friend. So I think it’s not about his condition, it’s about the human being. I always enjoy getting to know and understand people. You need your teammate on the floor, but just friends with him off the floor. As needed.
“I wanted to come to work every day and understand my fellow players. I want to pick them. I want to create a fabric between us that makes it enjoyable, we can laugh and joke, but also be honest and push each other. And give each other a hard time and shorten the season.So it’s kind of a start and end for me.I understand that the game has levels and some people have high profile, high importance, but one team is one team and one person There is a person. So to understand people, to really care and to know them, that’s for me. “
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