AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.
Steve Nash may not be the scapegoat for the Nets' first-round exit in the NBA playoffs.
Nash is likely to avoid being rendered management's fall guy for the Nets' meek playoff showing, according to a source quoted by NBA Insider.
Nash doesn't seem to have lost the faith of the two key figures within the organization.
"My personal sense is that Nets owner Joe Tsai is far too impulsive and unpredictable to read in terms of how he'll react to a lopsided first-round ouster. Nash landed the Nets' job with no prior coaching experience largely because he had the backing of Kevin Durant as well as the gravitas to manage a team built around the mercurial Durant and Kyrie Irving. There is no evidence in circulation—yet—to suggest that Nash is in some sort of jeopardy ... as long as he retains the support of Tsai and (more importantly) Durant."
Brooklyn is all but destined to suffer this year, so someone usually gets fired when a team experiences disappointment.
The Nets had a championship-or-bust mindset from the moment they got KD, and the acquisition of James Harden last season only solidified that. KD's first two years on the court may not be remembered by the franchise.
A coaching change is made because it is the easiest lever to pull.
When the Los Angeles Lakers finished 11th in the NBA, what else was the organization going to do?
The Nets have a similar dilemma.
They might have been worse off if they had traded for Harden instead of Ben Simmons, as they would have had a star-laden squad.
nick wright @getnickwrightA shocking number of my colleagues called the Harden-Simmons swap a clear win for *the Nets*. I know this because it almost drove my guy @AdamLefkoe clinically insane.
Harden hasn't even played well & it's an utter rout in the Sixers direction.
They are committed with both of them and Irving is eligible to become a free agent.
It's difficult to imagine a scenario in which Brooklyn lets Irving sign elsewhere or executes a sign-and-trade where it gets equal value in return.
One plan of attack for 2022-23 would be to hope a different coach can get something else out of the players.
bomani @bomani_jonesthrough three seasons, this experiment has been an indisputable failure. somebody's gonna pay for that. someone *has* to pay for it. maybe it's sad for nash, but it's gotta be him. there's no other option. https://t.co/AJoZqvH4MX
It would be an unfair outcome for Nash.
The 48-year-old wasn't responsible for the Harden trade, the ongoing Simmons saga or for Irving not getting the vaccine.
The idea of riding two players to a championship might have been flawed from the beginning. After an injury, he is not getting any younger. Irving missed the final three games of the conference semifinals last year because of an ankle injury.
Stein described the campaign as an organizational failure, which accurately describes the entire blame to be dispersed.
If Nash is retained, one wonders what changes Brooklyn will make because maintaining the status quo might be a recipe for disaster.
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