Jacque Vaughn’s run as interim head coach of the Brooklyn Nets has been impressive, to say the least.
In his second game as head coach, the Nets knocked off the Los Angeles Lakers — then the pandemic forced the league into a hiatus. So, entering the NBA restart, Vaughn was 2-0 as Nets head coach.
In the Disney bubble, Brooklyn has pulled off the biggest upset the NBA has seen since the 90s, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks. The Nets later beat the Los Angeles Clippers, as well, despite not having Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Spencer Dinwiddie, DeAndre Jordan, Wilson Chandler and Taurean Prince.
Despite the job as Vaughn has done, he has not locked up the next permanent head coaching in Brooklyn. He’s “a significant candidate to retain the job,” according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, but Charania is also reporting Nets governor Joe Tsai wants there to be a “full-scale head coaching process”:
Nets GM Sean Marks will work closely with ownership and his front office on the task of finding the proper leader for the position with Brooklyn as a leading title threat for the 2020-21 season.
According to Charania, the search will start at the end of the Nets’ season.
In addition to Vaughn, four names have emerged as candidates — though, more are expected to pop up: Los Angeles Lakers assistant Jason Kidd, Philadelphia 76ers assistant Ime Udoka, LA Clippers assistant Ty Lue and former Rockets and Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy.
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