Steve Nash’s job as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets is safe, despite the team getting swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.
The Nets were the betting favorites to win the NBA title prior to the start of the season, with sportsbooks such as BetMGM New York offering odds, yet they are the only team to get swept; all of the other teams that made it past the end of the regular season have won at least one game.
Their exit amounts to a failure of epic proportions yet Nash isn’t expected to be removed from his post, with previous reports claiming the former two-time MVP would keep his job whether or not the Nets got bounced in the first round.
Nash appeared to be in no mood to leave Brooklyn after the Celtics completed the sweep on Monday night.
“I’ve loved doing this and love these guys, love my staff, love all the departments,” he told reporters. “Really have a great working environment, really enjoyed it and want to continue doing it. Ben Simmons and Joe Harris will give us a big lift, you know, and we’ll see how the rest of the roster rounds out, but we should be excited by that. Getting two of your top four guys back—two guys with size, one who’s an All-Star, and one who’s one of the best shooters in the league—that gives us a big boost.”
Steve Nash postgame; Nets lost to the Celtics in Game 4
Nash is hardly to blame for the nets’ collapse. Kyrie Irving wasn’t available for most of the season due to his unwillingness to get vaccinated while the James Harden acquisition simply didn’t work out. That led to Ben Simmons coming in via trade but the Australian didn’t play in a single game because of a herniated disc and mental health issues, and it will be interesting to see how things pan out when he’s given the opportunity for a fresh start next term.
It really was a terrible situation for Nash to be placed in, especially when it was expected that he would have an embarrassment of talent at his disposal.
The supposed Big Three of Irving, Kevin Durant, and Harden imploded and the latter’s main replacement never made it to the court. Of course, having Irving and Durant should have been enough to at least get the Nets to the second round but Durant was basically a non-factor throughout the first three games and his 39-point performance on Monday night was too little and way too late. Not that it was efficient either, as it took him 31 shots to get there.
Irving had a spectacular Game, which Brooklyn lost through a buzzer-beating layup from Jayson Tatum. But the point guard has yet to show up since.
Speaking after the game, Irving, who could become an unrestricted free agent this year, expressed a desire to remain in Brooklyn. He would also admit feeling like he let the Nets down.
“I don’t plan on going anywhere,” he said.
“At this point, I really just want to be part of a great team… I felt like I was letting the team down at a point when I wasn’t able to play,” he added. “We were trying to exercise every option for me to play but I never wanted it to just be about me. It became a distraction at times.”
Brooklyn was the talk of the league for some time as Irving was unable to be a full participant, and the Nets were initially against letting him play away games. They ultimately relented after an outbreak of COVID-19 left them with seven unavailable players.
Irving returned full-time last month when New York City opted to exempt athletes and performers from its private sector vaccine mandate.
In the end, his return changed very little for the Nets as they might have gotten swept in the first round either way, though they did have to go through a play-in situation that might have gone down differently without him.
Irving and Durant only played 16 games together this season and 58 games together since they both joined the team.
Durant was asked if there were any regrets as it pertains to a failure to take advantage of having a Big Three and stated that there were none.
“No regrets,” he said. “No crying over spilled milk. It’s about how we can progress… Just played out the way it did.”
As Nash pointed out, there could be a lot to look forward to next season as Simmons should be part of the rotation and Joe Harris is expected to be back.
Management, though, will not be as lenient should the Nets fail to challenge for a championship.