Source: Dustin Satloff / Getty
The Brooklyn Nets PR team is putting in overtime right now.
From uncomfortable moments, player personalities, and recent firings the team’s drama has been superseding its playing ability. Now, Nets general manager Sean Marks had to explain why the franchise parted ways with head coach Steve Nash just seven games into the season.
In talking to the media Marks doubled down on the players having no say in Nash’s departure and that it was a decision purely made by Nets’ brass.
“There was zero input from any of the players on this. I think this was a decision that we didn’t need that. Steve and I didn’t need that. Obviously, I’ve talked to [owner] Joe [Tsai] about this, but the players were not consulted. They were told ahead of time that this was the direction we were going,”
After Tuesday night’s 108-99 loss to the Chicago Bulls, Durant said he was “shocked” at the Nash news and learned of it through ESPN.
But that’s not the only issue facing the Nets right now, as free thinker Kyrie Irving is currently embroiled in promoting an antisemitic film. The tweet has been deleted, but many are wondering why Kyrie has yet to be punished.
“As I mentioned before, we’re talking to the ADL right now. That’s on the Joe Tsai level, our CEO and myself and the group, and really just trying to weigh out exactly what the best course of action is here,” Marks said. “Part of it is going to be getting sides together so they can understand where people are coming from. There’s an education piece for everybody here. There’s an empathetic piece to this and understanding that we need to move on and we need to do the right thing without a doubt.”
Beyond the possibility of missing games, Irving hasn’t been allowed to speak to the media lately and Marks says it’s because they don’t want to cause any more of a “fuss.”
With the team fighting fights on several fronts they’ve also got to look for a new coach and early reports say that embattled Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka is in the front running.
When asked if the Nets would feel comfortable hiring Udoka, Marks said, “Obviously, there’s a reason why we made this move when we did, because time is ticking. So we do want this process to be a thorough one. We’re not going to skip steps on that. And we’ll do our due diligence.”
