The Nets and Kenny Atkinson part ways

[Paradise]

I'd also like to add, there's probably a lot of Tsai influence going on right now. He may have a KD/Kyrie approved guy he has earmarked to takeover next season.

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Than again why extend Kenny before signing our star players. They'll try to hide player opinions for obvious reasons, but there is no way I'm going to buy it unless Kenny straight up says that.

I'm just reading rumors out there that Tsai was going behind Marks back and talking to players about Kenny for awhile now.

Marks might be gone next. Tsai might wind up being the second coming of James Dolan smh.

I wouldn’t buy into that only because it seems like Kenny’s stubbornness on analytics might’ve cost him the job.

I think Marks is still firmly in a good place here under ownership but I think it’s very realistic to believe Kenny and Sean began to have creative differences on the future of the offense and end of game strategy.

It’s nothing short term that led up to this. This was something Marks claimed they’ve went “back and forth” on before so I’d assume they had “hypothetical” plans of how to incorporate two superstars into this current system and the lack of success offensively and inconsistent effort probably didn’t help the cause and I pretty much think the benching of Prince broke the camels back. I thought it was an odd move tbh but I totally understood it.

[isekii]

Read on Twitter

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Than again why extend Kenny before signing our star players. They'll try to hide player opinions for obvious reasons, but there is no way I'm going to buy it unless Kenny straight up says that.

I'm just reading rumors out there that Tsai was going behind Marks back and talking to players about Kenny for awhile now.

Marks might be gone next. Tsai might wind up being the second coming of James Dolan smh.

I wouldn’t buy into that only because it seems like Kenny’s stubbornness on analytics might’ve cost him the job.

I think Marks is still firmly in a good place here under ownership but I think it’s very realistic to believe Kenny and Sean began to have creative differences on the future of the offense and end of game strategy.

It’s nothing short term that led up to this. This was something Marks claimed they’ve went “back and forth” on before so I’d assume they had “hypothetical” plans of how to incorporate two superstars into this current system and the lack of success offensively and inconsistent effort probably didn’t help the cause and I pretty much think the benching of Prince broke the camels back. I thought it was an odd move tbh but I totally understood it.

Prince needed to be benched though. Every time he takes a 3 i cringe.

[MGrand15]

I can't believe we wouldn't wait until the end of the season. Doing this in March right before the playoffs is so embarrassing.

Marks is gonna have to take a hard look at the players on the roster. Outside of 2-3 guys - the consistent effort level on this roster has been embarrassing. We can talk about schemes and system all day but if guys won't play hard - you have to make a change. Coach is the first one to go. Still says a lot about a player if he's willing to sleep walk through a season when things get tough.

I fully expect us to make big big changes in the off-season. I see Kyrie, KD, DJ, LeVert, Dinwiddie, Temple staying for sure. Joe Harris is a maybe. I think everyone else outside of TLC and Claxton are gone.

[ProspectPark]

I think in today’s NBA you need a coach that less rigid and more open to trying new things.

Kenny stuck with the same 9 man rotation for far too long. Not playing Claxton and Rodi was my biggest problem with him.

[Hello Brooklyn]

Who do we hire now?

I think it has to be a former player that has the respect of KD/Kyrie.

Maybe Jerry Stackhouse?

[halfHAVOC]

I mean I think I made it about as obvious as possible that the above was mainly my opinion.

Again, my take is this is mainly Tsai, Dinwiddie, and Kenny refusing to play certain guys that Marks has told him over and over, play said player, or we're going to have a serious problem.

Yeah even if that's ur opinion though lol what are you basing Dinwiddie's "big mouth and ego" off of? He just complain's on the court to refs too much but I haven't seen him indicate in anyway he's got a big ego or is a snake or something.

There really isn't anything to indicate what he's saying. Dinwiddie comes across as well spoken, and a likeable dude among NBA players. You can see it in his interactions with his teammates, and the things he says when it comes to prioritizing team. D Lo was just here at Barclays not long ago, calling Dinwiddie "my dude", hugging him, and talking to him at Barclays.

I've spoken to Dinwiddie directly and his business manager, all great guys. I had a positive interaction with Dinwiddie, so anything otherwise just seems like some unjustified haterade sippin'

[Hello Brooklyn]

Actually wondering aloud if we're going to see something crazy this off-season... such as a Greg Popovich hire...

Or maybe Coach K?

Popovich would be the best option.

But does he really want to start over after all these years?

Pop should have over the reigns and get back in big leagues.

[halfHAVOC]

I'm just reading rumors out there that Tsai was going behind Marks back and talking to players about Kenny for awhile now.

Marks might be gone next. Tsai might wind up being the second coming of James Dolan smh.

I wouldn’t buy into that only because it seems like Kenny’s stubbornness on analytics might’ve cost him the job.

I think Marks is still firmly in a good place here under ownership but I think it’s very realistic to believe Kenny and Sean began to have creative differences on the future of the offense and end of game strategy.

It’s nothing short term that led up to this. This was something Marks claimed they’ve went “back and forth” on before so I’d assume they had “hypothetical” plans of how to incorporate two superstars into this current system and the lack of success offensively and inconsistent effort probably didn’t help the cause and I pretty much think the benching of Prince broke the camels back. I thought it was an odd move tbh but I totally understood it.

Prince needed to be benched though. Every time he takes a 3 i cringe.

Yeah this I will say was a problem. Taurean Prince is not a starting 4 on any NBA team, let's be real. He has been a huge disappointment and shouldn't have been getting so many minutes. Also Claxton shoulda got some more PT. Still, seems like something that coulda been handled internally and not led to his firing. I'm guessing Nets are gonna go for a big name splash.

[DarkXaero]

Actually wondering aloud if we're going to see something crazy this off-season... such as a Greg Popovich hire...

Or maybe Coach K?

Popovich would be the best option.

But does he really want to start over after all these years?

Pop should have over the reigns and get back in big leagues.

Spurs are currently in a situation that they haven't been in a long time. And at this point in Pop's career, factoring in his age, he likely doesn't want to go through another rebuild. I was thinking that Pop was going to retire soon, but coming here would make a lot of sense, considering the circumstances.

[DarkXaero]

Anyway, I've been quoting and replying to other posts in this thread, but time to post how I feel about this.

First reaction was complete shock, and made me think that something really bad must have happened to have prompted this. I legit did feel that Kenny's position was untouchable, at least for another season, so this completely blindsided me. The official stance is that it's a mutual decision, and something that has been in the making for a while, rather than something sudden. But the timing is so weird, I'm not sure why we didn't just wait till end of season. I saw the official reasoning for the timing, but it's still weird to me. The fact that this happened right after the Spurs game, an organization that we have obvious ties to, makes it a bit interesting too.

We can only speak to what we saw from Kenny on the court, in terms of coaching and decisions that impacted games. And I made this point in my next season plan thread OP, that Kenny's position shouldn't be untouchable and he should be held accountable for his shortcomings as a coach. I didn't think that it would mean we would fire him like this, but I have felt that he hasn't done a good enough job this season. We have had double digit leads in 16 games this season that we have lost. We have consistently blown a lot of close games, often failing to execute late-game. Effort has been missing from way too many games this season. The rotations have always been questionable throughout Kenny's time. All the blown leads, and the close game losses, they end up taking a toll on locker room, team morale, and everyone in the organization. I know there is one particular person here who defended Kenny to death, but he has been proven wrong by the Nets making this decision.

Bottom line is that while Kenny is a super likeable dude, I was never convinced that he was the right coach for a title contending team. He is a great development coach, and he definitely has the right approach to the game (analytics driven, gritty team ball with spacing). But he didn't make a good case this season that he's the right coach for this team fully healthy, going forward. I'm okay with Kenny leaving, if we get an upgrade. Getting the likes of Ty Lue, and especially Mark Jackson would be a massive step backwards. A Mark Jackson hire will have me questioning my loyalty to this team. But if we can get an established, proven top HC, I'll be happy. There is speculation about Pop, if Spurs and him decide to part ways, I would be ecstatic with Pop here. Even someone like MDA, who might be out of contract in the summer, he could be a great hire.

[Born_Ready]

I would be totally fine if Marks and Pop (hopefully) have an arrangement, but man out of respect they could have given Atkinson a chance to finish the season. Finish what he started. I get that a change is needed but the way they handled today's mutual separation feels unjustified.

[vincecarter4pres]

Yeah even if that's ur opinion though lol what are you basing Dinwiddie's "big mouth and ego" off of? He just complain's on the court to refs too much but I haven't seen him indicate in anyway he's got a big ego or is a snake or something.

There really isn't anything to indicate what he's saying. Dinwiddie comes across as well spoken, and a likeable dude among NBA players. You can see it in his interactions with his teammates, and the things he says when it comes to prioritizing team. D Lo was just here at Barclays not long ago, calling Dinwiddie "my dude", hugging him, and talking to him at Barclays.

I've spoken to Dinwiddie directly and his business manager, all great guys. I had a positive interaction with Dinwiddie, so anything otherwise just seems like some unjustified haterade sippin'

I mean so you met a dude a couple times... He literally recruited Kyrie to come here at D-Lo's expense, beginning in the middle of DLo's breakout season. I'm not even mad at him for it, I take Kyrie over DLo 243 times out of 100. But he's also publicly questioned coaching decisions and he tends to shoot off at the mouth too often(about his teammates, coaches, etc.) in frustration after losses. Human nature, I get it. I'm just speaking my opinion as a fan, that's all. No need to get panties in a bunch.

[Claud]

Very sad to see the news but I understand.

Kenny was part of the group that turned this franchise from a laughing-stock to an attractive destination which ultimately culminated in KD and Kyrie in black and white.

At the same time, It was becoming obvious that time was running out for Kenny.

This season some of the guys seemed to not have bought into his style as much as previous years.

While Kenny is a great coach to have if you're trying to build something from zero and you have a lot of young talent, he hasn't been as great in terms of oncourt on the fly obvious adjustments and relied too heavily on analitics for my taste. This led to quite a number of avoidables Ls which surely began to sour the relationship.

I think if we end up getting someone like Mark Jackson, or another coach who is similar to Kenny in terms of being an unproven elite coach at the highest level, firing Kenny would be a mistake. However, if we end up with Pop, coach K or someone of that level then this would have been the correct move since we need a coach that our stars have FAITH in while the youngsters still continue to learn and develop.

A LOT is riding on making the correct choice for HC next season. Kenny wasn't perfect but he was a good coach. Not elite but good.
If we end up with a marginallly better coach then it's a failure in my eyes.

I hope things workout our way.

[vincecarter4pres]

One big thing to think about here:

If KD is planning on coming back this season,the Kenny firing most definitely has to directly correlate to that.

As in,KD didn't want Kenny as his coach as he makes this major readjustment and attempts a monumental playoff run from a bottom 2 seed.

But reports out there are this had a lot to do with Tsai and certain players. I also agree with the take that he and Marks were not seeing eye to eye. He was almost certainly sitting guys he was told have to play, many times over. That and I mainly agree he's more of a developmental coach and is developing as a coach himself.

Sadly, unless they have some crazy move already lined up for a legendary coach, we're looking at some $hitty yes man retread this summer though.

[Paradise]

I think Sean is way too smart and savvy to be looking at typical retreads like Mark Jackson. That’s pure conjure.

We will look for the best fit for this group as possible but it will be someone that has experience coaching superstars. You can bank on that.

[halfHAVOC]

There really isn't anything to indicate what he's saying. Dinwiddie comes across as well spoken, and a likeable dude among NBA players. You can see it in his interactions with his teammates, and the things he says when it comes to prioritizing team. D Lo was just here at Barclays not long ago, calling Dinwiddie "my dude", hugging him, and talking to him at Barclays.

I've spoken to Dinwiddie directly and his business manager, all great guys. I had a positive interaction with Dinwiddie, so anything otherwise just seems like some unjustified haterade sippin'

I mean so you met a dude a couple times... He literally recruited Kyrie to come here at D-Lo's expense, beginning in the middle of DLo's breakout season. I'm not even mad at him for it, I take Kyrie over DLo 243 times out of 100. But he's also publicly questioned coaching decisions and he tends to shoot off at the mouth too often(about his teammates, coaches, etc.) in frustration after losses. Human nature, I get it. I'm just speaking my opinion as a fan, that's all. No need to get panties in a bunch.

Panties ain't in a bunch lol I'm literally just asking what you're basing that off, seems like its just unjustified/coming out of no where. Was just looking for examples, I personally haven't seen him mouth off at coaching decisions or teammates...so just trying to understand what it's stemming from. Just seems like a reach from my POV.

[haosmoove]

Is it possible that Marks wanted to develop young players and possibly tank to keep the pick? This way he can have more assets to acquire more talent this summer. Atkinson continuing to play the vets, and beating the Spurs was the last straw.

We will soon find out if my conspiracy theory is true, as Vaughn's rotation should answer for itself.

[TinmanZBoy]

Very sad to see the news but I understand.

Kenny was part of the group that turned this franchise from a laughing-stock to an attractive destination which ultimately culminated in KD and Kyrie in black and white.

At the same time, It was becoming obvious that time was running out for Kenny.

This season some of the guys seemed to not have bought into his style as much as previous years.

While Kenny is a great coach to have if you're trying to build something from zero and you have a lot of young talent, he hasn't been as great in terms of oncourt on the fly obvious adjustments and relied too heavily on analitics for my taste. This led to quite a number of avoidables Ls which surely began to sour the relationship.

I think if we end up getting someone like Mark Jackson, or another coach who is similar to Kenny in terms of being an unproven elite coach at the highest level, firing Kenny would be a mistake. However, if we end up with Pop, coach K or someone of that level then this would have been the correct move since we need a coach that our stars have FAITH in while the youngsters still continue to learn and develop.

A LOT is riding on making the correct choice for HC next season. Kenny wasn't perfect but he was a good coach. Not elite but good.
If we end up with a marginallly better coach then it's a failure in my eyes.

I hope things workout our way.

same feeling here, still a little shocked though... so on for the culture building, the Nets turned to another page, time will tell, next season will be very interesting for you guys...

[DarkXaero]

There really isn't anything to indicate what he's saying. Dinwiddie comes across as well spoken, and a likeable dude among NBA players. You can see it in his interactions with his teammates, and the things he says when it comes to prioritizing team. D Lo was just here at Barclays not long ago, calling Dinwiddie "my dude", hugging him, and talking to him at Barclays.

I've spoken to Dinwiddie directly and his business manager, all great guys. I had a positive interaction with Dinwiddie, so anything otherwise just seems like some unjustified haterade sippin'

I mean so you met a dude a couple times... He literally recruited Kyrie to come here at D-Lo's expense, beginning in the middle of DLo's breakout season. I'm not even mad at him for it, I take Kyrie over DLo 243 times out of 100. But he's also publicly questioned coaching decisions and he tends to shoot off at the mouth too often(about his teammates, coaches, etc.) in frustration after losses. Human nature, I get it. I'm just speaking my opinion as a fan, that's all. No need to get panties in a bunch.

I understand its your opinion, but it comes across as character assassination based on not much. He recruited Kyrie Irving, knowing that he'd be backup to him, and while he could at least compete with D Lo, he had zero chance to compete with Kyrie. He did that to make the team better, sacrificing his ego, so that goes against your notion of his big ego.

He has publicly questioned coaching decisions? This is honestly new to me, I don't ever remember seeing that. He has never said anything negative about Kenny, his teammates or the Nets, and I've followed him pretty closely over the last two-three seasons. If you feel he has, feel free to post proof, but I've seen basically all his media experiences, read his interviews, heard him on podcasts, and he doesn't say anything negative about the team, his teammates, Kenny, Marks or anyone else.

[MrDollarBills]

Read on Twitter

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Than again why extend Kenny before signing our star players. They'll try to hide player opinions for obvious reasons, but there is no way I'm going to buy it unless Kenny straight up says that.

I'm just reading rumors out there that Tsai was going behind Marks back and talking to players about Kenny for awhile now.

Marks might be gone next. Tsai might wind up being the second coming of James Dolan smh.

I wouldn’t buy into that only because it seems like Kenny’s stubbornness on analytics might’ve cost him the job.

I think Marks is still firmly in a good place here under ownership but I think it’s very realistic to believe Kenny and Sean began to have creative differences on the future of the offense and end of game strategy.

It’s nothing short term that led up to this. This was something Marks claimed they’ve went “back and forth” on before so I’d assume they had “hypothetical” plans of how to incorporate two superstars into this current system and the lack of success offensively and inconsistent effort probably didn’t help the cause and I pretty much think the benching of Prince broke the camels back. I thought it was an odd move tbh but I totally understood it.

Taurean Prince deserved to be demoted. He has been terrible.

Honestly I still don't know what to make of this but clearly something has been going on and it may not have anything to do with Kyrie, but the media and fans have already made up their minds.

This season is a disaster. We can officially say it now. A complete disaster