Kenny Atkinson unsure how to feel about being New York’s longest-tenured head coach

Another New York City area pro sports team’s head coach was fired recently, making Kenny Atkinson the area’s longest-tenured head coach.

On Tuesday, the New Jersey Devils decided to fire John Hynes as head coach. He’d been at the helm of the organization since 2015, but the Devils only produced 22 points under his watch this year, second-fewest in the NHL.

What do the Devils have to do with the Brooklyn Nets? Well, in firing Hynes, the Devils passed the unofficial title of “New York’s Longest Tenured Head Coach” to Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson.

Atkinson has been the man in charge for Brooklyn since 2016-17 and helped take the organization from a 20-win team to a destination for players like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.

While the organization’s development is what Atkinson strives for, his new unofficial title was never a goal of his. So he didn’t know what to make of the honor when he was asked about it in Atlanta on Wednesday:

Listen, I think it shows what a tough business — coaching’s a tough business. I really don’t know what to say. I don’t know if it makes me proud or sad for the other guys. I know this is a tough business, tough business to survive in. Especially in New York.