Mar 10, 2019; Oakland, CA, USA; Phoenix Suns head coach Igor Kokoskov speaks to center Deandre Ayton (22) and guard Devin Booker (1) during the fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Steve Nash’s revamped coaching staff is starting to take shape following the Brooklyn Nets‘ disappointing first-round exit.
The Nets are expected to hire Dallas Mavericks‘ assistant coach Igor Kokoskov, according to Marc Stein.
Nash and Kokoskov have a long history together during their time in Phoenix when the former was their franchise point guard, and the latter was an assistant coach.
When Nash took the Nets coaching job, he pursued Kokoskov. But the Serbian coach, who became a naturalized American citizen, stayed in Turkey to coach Fenerbahce in the Turkish Basketball Super League and Euroleague.
Kokoskov has been a long-time assistant coach in the NBA, starting with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000. His previous stops also include Detroit, Phoenix, Cleveland, Orlando, Utah, Sacramento and Dallas. He also coached Slovenia, led by Luka Doncic and Goran Dragic, to the Eurobasket gold in 2017. He finally broke through and became the Suns’ head coach the following year.
However, in a mind-boggling move, the Suns passed up on a Kokoskov-Doncic reunion. Instead, they made Deandre Ayton the top overall pick.
Kokoskov was fired after the season following a 19-63 record. He returned to assistant coaching under Luke Walton in Sacramento before venturing into Turkey while dabbling as the head coach of the Serbian national team.
Kokoskov will fill one of the spots vacated by Adam Harrington, David Vanterpool and Amar’e Stoudemire.
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This post was published on 2022-06-04 12:40
