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Nets' new coach has absurd goal for Ben Simmons
The big bad wolf wouldn't mess with Ben Simmons. He'd huff and puff but couldn't blow down the house of bricks the Nets' PG built with outside jumpers.
So why, dear lord why, would Brooklyn's new head coach Jordi Fernandez include Simmons with a list of bigs he wants shooting at least three long range attempts per game?
The rims at Barclays Center and road arenas might not be able to take that kind of abuse from Simmons clanking jump shots.LMAO Jordi is a mad man pic.twitter.com/mzzBX43yRg
— BKN 85 (@brooklynnets85) September 30, 2024
Then again, Simmons may not even draw iron.
Fernandez's goal to create floor spacing is admirable, but unfortunately it's not possible with the offensively challenged Simmons.
After multiple back surgeries and knee issues have diminished his once explosive frame, Simmons has devolved into a decent defender and black hole of offense.
Fernandez, like many in Nets World, is optimistic at the advent of a new season.
You can't fault him for that.
But it would take some serious Black Magic to make Simmons an effective offensive player from the perimeter.
NFL Opener decided in eerily similar fashion to Nets playoff heartbreaker
The Brooklyn Nets had their title hopes dashed when Kevin Durant's toe touched the 3-point line on a potential game winning basket in the 2021 NBA playoffs.
That big three squad fell apart and the Nets championship chances went out the window in a flash. So while an NBA playoff loss at a pivotal moment by millimeters can't stack up to a NFL regular season heartbreaker, the similarities are still uncanny.
Watching Isaiah Likely's toe touch the line brought back so many painful memories! #nets #NFLKickoff #ravens #chiefs
— Nets Insider (@NetsHistory) September 6, 2024
In a rematch of last year's AFC Championship Game, the Ravens went to Arrowhead aiming to avenge the loss on their own turf in January to the Chiefs.
Trailing 27-20, Lamar Jackson danced in the pocket as the final seconds slipped away and miraculously found an open Isaiah Likely for an apparent touchdown.
Baltimore coach John Harbaugh signaled for his team to go for the two point conversion and the win. Before the Ravens could do that, the booth reviewed the play and upon closer examination, Likely's toe appeared to just touch the out of bounds line in the back of the end zone.Really @BleacherReport ! https://t.co/P8Eqx7Rn1u
— Nets Insider (@NetsHistory) September 6, 2024
Just like that, a potential win was turned into a devastating loss. Sound familiar Nets fans?
Nets should be wary of veteran All-Star putting Brooklyn atop 2025 FA wish list
According to Brian Lewis of the New York Post, Jimmy Butler has Brooklyn near the top of his wish list during free agency next off-season.
The veteran shooting guard will turn 35 before next summer and with the Nets fielding a team of players all under 25 outside of Ben Simmons, he doesn't seem to fit the organizational timeline.
Butler was instrumental in the Heat clinching a finals berth during the 2019-2020 COVID Bubble season as well as the 2022-23 NBA season. Miami lost both trips to the Lakers and Nuggets, respectively.
Sean Marks is going to take a measured approach to free agency, the draft and trade market and bringing Butler into the fold wins disrupt that plan.
Butler's talent is undeniable. He has an ability to lead a team and grind through tough playoff runs. He has worn out his welcome in places where winning didn't pan out like his quick stop in Minnesota.
Bringing Butler to Brooklyn would be a disaster for all parties involved and should be avoided at all costs.
This Nets player will wear KD's sacred No. 7
If Nets fans haven't turned the page from Kevin Durant's unceremonious exit from Brooklyn, they will be forced to now.
Shake Milton came over to the Nets from the Knicks in the Mikal Bridges mega blockbuster this offseason.
The shooting guard will take Durant's number 7.
This is the first time since Durant's departure that a Nets player will wear that number.
Clearly Milton won't fill the void left behind from Durant, but seeing another player wear
that number might help the healing process in Brooklyn.
Nash reflects on disastrous Bklyn tenure, NBA player empowerment
Things didn't exactly go as planned for Steve Nash in Brooklyn. He'd be the first one to admit that.
With a plethora of injuries, side stories, distractions, COVID interruptions, infighting and constant power struggles, the locker room wasn't exactly a picture perfect place.
Speaking at former NBA star Goran Dragic's retirement event in Slovenia, Nash revealed to Eurohoops that many obstacles he faced during his first opportunity as an NBA coach in Brooklyn were not basketball related.
“I was surprised when I coached, you’re not in the team that much, Nash told Eurohoops. You have five minutes with players before the game, at halftime, and after the game. Those are the only times when you address the team. I wanted to connect with every player individually. It’s important to build a culture and an environment where people believe and see them be their best. You need to feel that you want them to become the best version of themselves”, Steve Nash continued.
Managing the egos of Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, and James Harden became untenable for the neophyte head coach.
"Coaching was a great experience, I didn’t want to be a career coach, admitted Nash to Eurohoops. "I don’t think coaching was about to be my career. I’m coaching my kids, teaching them life. I earned the opportunity to choose, and that’s rewarding, There are always projects, affiliates, and partnerships. I always have something going on, I’m focused on my family."
While Nash did interview for the Toronto opening and didn't get the gig, the two-time MVP had a very difficult situation to navigate in Brooklyn and failed to deliver on the lofty title or bust expectations.
Bogdanovic, Croatian National team to play game honoring Petrovic
Bojan Bogdanovic, Dario Saric and Ivan Suban will be among the Croatian-born NBA players to play a game honoring the late-great Dražen Petrovic's 60th birthday.
The former Net passed away tragically in a car crash on the rain soaked Autobahn on June 3, 1993 , in the middle of his brilliant NBA career.
The game with feature the trio of NBA players born in Croatia, along with members of the Croatian National team taking on a selection of European players on September 5 at Zagreb Arena in Zagreb, Croatia.
Former Croatian NBA players are expected to be in attendance and it will be a touching tribute honoring one of the game's great European-born stars that was gone too soon.