Even prior to the 2011 lockout dip, …

Even prior to the 2011 lockout dip, defenses were catching up, in large part because of the way Tom Thibodeau-inspired “strong side overload” defenses were able to effectively shrink the floor before Golden State and Steph Curry definitively proved “jump-shooting teams” could win at a high level — and as has been noted in this space many, many times before, describing those Warriors as somehow more reliant on jump-shooting than previous top-level teams is largely ahistorical — fully energizing the pace-and-space era in which we find ourselves.

Oddsmakers weigh in on Nets’ next head coach

Could Kenny Atkinson stay in New York but coach for a different NBA team? Oddsmakers weigh in.

When 2019-20 comes to a close there’s no guarantee Jacque Vaughn will continue to be the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets. When the organization announced he would take over for Kenny Atkinson, the Nets said Vaughn would hold the position for the rest of the season.

With that being the case, there’s been no shortage of speculation as to who will be the next Nets head coach. The NBA media has weighed in and thrown around names like Mark Jackson and Tyronn Lue, the latter of which coached Kyrie Irving in Cleveland.

Oddsmakers have taken those individuals being considered and set a field for who will be Brooklyn’s next head coach.

BetOnline.ag has Lue as the favorite at 5/4 odds, with Jackson right behind him (2/1). SportsBetting.ag also feels Lue (+125) and Jackson (+200) are the two leading candidates for next head of the Brooklyn Nets.

Both sites feature Vaughn on their list of candidates — 6/1 odds on BetOnline and +600 on SportsBetting — but he’s fourth in both cases, trailing Jeff Van Gundy (5/1 on BetOnline, +500 on SportsBetting).

Also featured on both lists are Tom Thibodeau (7/1, +700), Jason Kidd (9/1, +900) and Brooklyn’s director of player development and assistant coach Adam Harrington (10/1, +1,000).

Both sports betting sites also presented fans with a question about Atkinson’s future.

BetOnline asked “Will Kenny Atkinson be Knicks head coach for the 2020-2021 NBA Season?” The odds have been set a 1/1 for “yes” and 5/7 for “no.”

SportsBetting asked a similar one, though slightly different: “Will Kenny Atkinson be the Knicks next head coach?” The difference here is the Knicks could easily move on from Mike Miller before Atkinson is ready to take a new job. This line has been set at -120 for both “yes” and “no.”

RELATED: Every name tied to Nets’ head coaching job

Clifford said on Saturday that a …

Clifford said on Saturday that a lingering cold and a lack of food intake prior to Friday’s game led to the dizziness that he experienced – something his coaching buddies scolded him about profusely. “I’d say the best (conversation) that I got was a stern lecture from Stan (Van Gundy) last night, and Jeff (Van Gundy) also, and (Tom Thibodeau), too,’’ said Clifford, referring to the medical distress that forced him off the sidelines in the third quarter of the Magic’s 132-118 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night. “Those three guys, and Patrick (Ewing), all my guys, they weren’t like … well, not `Hope you feel better.’ It was more like, `C’mon man, you’re not 51 anymore.’”

We know that Leon Rose has connections …

We know that Leon Rose has connections to Tom Thibodeau and Jeff Van Gundy. Both are expected to get consideration from New York. But Rose – and his longtime business partner William ‘World Wide Wes’ Wesley – certainly have relationships with dozens of coaches around the NBA and NCAA. Included among that group is former Knick Mark Jackson and ex-Knicks head coach Mike Woodson.