The Disney bubble is going to be a challenge for everyone involved. Off-the-court life will be odd, and things won’t get much easier on the court.
Of all the people set to head down to Florida for the resumption of the 2019-20 NBA season at the end of July, Brooklyn Nets interim head coach Jacque Vaughn may have more on his plate than anyone.
Not only is he vying for the full-time head coaching job in Brooklyn without Kevin Durant (right Achilles) and Kyrie Irving (right shoulder) — both of which won’t be traveling with the team — Vaughn also won’t have Nic Claxton (left shoulder), Wilson Chandler (elected to opt-out), DeAndre Jordan (elected to opt-out after testing positive for COVID-19). And Spencer Dinwiddie’s status is up in the air still, too.
Regardless of the situation, Vaughn is in tryout mode.
#Nets interim Jacque Vaughn said there’s no playbook for this moment, and he’ll be “coaching from the cortex.” Adds he hasn't seen his family in months, since his wife & kids headed to Phoenix since it had fewer COVID-19 cases but is now a hotspot.
— Brian Lewis (@NYPost_Lewis) July 1, 2020
But Nets general manager Sean Marks made clear on a conference call with reporters on Wednesday that knows a lot is being asked of Vaughn right now. So he’s going consider that when evaluating what the interim head coach does in Florida, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post:
It’s completely unfair to say this is about wins and losses at this point.