While Brooklyn has won just 46 games across the last two seasons, coach Jordi Fernandez has impressed. He motivated players and got them to play hard, he ran clever sets to utilize the talent he did have, so much so that general manager Sean Marks had to keep trading away players so they wouldn’t win so much. If Fernandez were made available, he would jump to the top of the list for almost every coaching search.
Which is why the Nets locked down Fernandez and his entire coaching staff with multyear extensions, the Nets announced Monday.
“Jordi is a tremendous leader who, along with his coaching staff, put his stamp on this franchise from the moment he arrived in Brooklyn,” Marks said in a statement announcing the extension. “Over his first two seasons, Jordi has built a strong foundation rooted in player development, a competitive spirit and honest communication, all of which have been embraced throughout our roster. The energy and passion the entire staff relentlessly pour into our players reverberates throughout the organization, and we are excited to have this group continue to lead our franchise into the future.”
Fernandez, a native of Spain, got the Brooklyn job following 15 years working as an assistant coach in Cleveland, Denver and Sacramento.
Brooklyn’s front office is looking to turn the ship around, which starts with this year’s NBA draft. While it was a rough 20-62 season, Brooklyn ended it with the league’s third-worst record, meaning it has a 14% chance of the No. 1 pick and a 52.1% chance of landing in the top four. The Nets used all five of their first-round picks a year ago, but the rookies’ seasons were a bit disappointing, with the possible exception of Egor Demin, who showed promise. That said, the Nets need a foundational talent to build around and are counting on the draft to provide it.
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