Prior to being traded to the Phoenix Suns, Kevin Durant was asked about how the Brooklyn Nets were able to right the ship after a disastrous start. Durant had a simple explanation for the resurgence.
“What we did was simplify both ends of the basketball,” Durant said. “Shored up our roles individually. Coach shored up our roles, pretty much letting us know each day what he needs from us. I think that’s been a focus. It’s not like, man finally we got the noise out of our locker room and now we can play. We’ve always been locked in on basketball.”
The coach who shored up the Nets’ roles was Jacque Vaughn. It’s the same Jacque Vaughn who was viewed as a temporary solution until the team secured a deal for Ime Udoka. But the Band-Aid the Nets applied after Steve Nash was fired on Nov. 1 has become a permanent fix.
Vaughn has not only kept the Nets afloat amid this turbulent season, but he has managed to make them into a playoff contender by fixing a major weakness that dogged his predecessor — defense.
Through the first 17 games of the 2022-23 season, the Nets were averaging 111.6 points per game while shooting 49% from the field and 37% from 3-point range. They had a record of 8-9 and were on the outside of the playoff race. For the next 17 games, the Nets averaged 117.2 points per game while shooting 53% from the field and 41% from 3-point. They won 14 of their next 17 games and soared into upper tier of the Eastern Conference standings.
The Nets were on a serious roll until Durant suffered an MCL sprain on Jan. 9. Before the injury, which sidelined Durant for at least four weeks, the four-time NBA scoring champ was enjoying the most efficient offensive season of his career. He was shooting 55% from the field and a league-best 93.4% from the free throw line.
Just when the Nets were beginning to turn it all around and make a push for one of the top four seeds in the East, Kyrie dropped a bombshell on Feb. 3 when he requested for a trade. Two days later, the Nets shipped Irving to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and three draft picks.
The smoke from the Irving trade hadn’t cleared yet when the second bombshell dropped. The Nets and the Suns worked out a blockbuster deal, sending Durant to the Grand Canyon state for a package that included rising star Mikal Bridges, 3-and-D wing Cam Johnson, veteran forward Jae Crowder and four unprotected future first-round picks.
In less than a week, the Nets went from being title contenders to a team in rebuild. This latest challenge is nothing new for the 47-year-old Vaughn. He’s been able to steer the ship in the right direction in spite of rough waters the past four months since taking over for Nash. The Nets were able to secure the sixth spot in the East, earning a first-round date with No. 3 seed Philadelphia. Finishing in the top six was nearly implausible given all the off-court drama the Nets have endured for almost a full calendar year.
The implosion in Brooklyn started back in the summer when Durant demanded to be traded. The basketball world was turned upside down for a few weeks while the Nets entertained numerous offers for Durant. In the end, Nets general manager Sean Marks and owner Joe Tsai couldn’t find a deal that would satisfy all sides and Durant remained a Net.
Following the KD drama, Kyrie Irving found himself in hot water when he shared a link on an antisemitic film on social media. Kyrie’s actions resulted in team-imposed suspension.
“My approach is the train is going to keep moving. And that train of playing hard, playing together, being a team, that’s going to continue. And it’s going to be up to me to get our group to incorporate everybody. But the train is gonna keep moving,” Vaughn told reporters.
Irving’s nearly four-year stint with the Nets ended on Feb. 6 after the franchise traded him to the Dallas Mavericks. Irving requested to be traded and the Nets honored that request by shipping him to a playoff contender in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and draft picks.
“My interactions with Kai have always been positive,” Vaughn said about Kyrie, one day after the All-Star guard was traded.
“I enjoyed coaching him. I want him to succeed. I’ll keep it that simple,” Vaughn added. “We’ve had some ups and downs I guess along the way. I’ve also seen the young man score 60 points. I’ve also seen him bring his kids into the locker room.
“I’ve also seen him grow as an individual and be a better teammate than when I first met him. So for me, I’m going to always look at the good in people and want the good in people. And I want him to succeed. He’s no longer with us, but I appreciate his time.”
Durant was also appreciative of his time with the Nets as he got emotional talking about his former squad during his introductory press conference in Phoenix.
“I built a family over there. They’re always going to be a part of my journey…I love those guys,” Durant said about the Nets organization, who stuck by him while he rehabbed his torn Achilles tendon.
“It was a lot of ups and downs, but I loved the grind. Everyone in Brooklyn loved the grind too, so I built a family over there,” he said. “They always gonna be a part of my journey. We didn’t accomplish what we wanted to accomplish as far as winning a championship, but I enjoyed the grind. Everybody there, we tried our hardest everyday regardless of what was going on in the media, what was going on with our teammates. Everybody who was in that gym, we grinded.”
Durant added: “So I love those guys. I get emotional talking about it because that was a special four years of my career coming off an Achilles. They helped me through a lot. It was terribly how some stuff went down, but at the end of the day I love the grind and we all loved the grind in Brooklyn. I wish them the best going forward, they got a bright future.”
Vaughn brings a calmness to the table. It’s a trait he’s always had dating back to his teenage years at Pasadena’s John Muir High School. When he was a freshman point guard for the Muir Mustangs, he would often be the calming influence on coach Rocky Moore’s overly animated bench. During one pivotal league game, a chaotic Muir sideline was trying to get the players’ attention when Vaughn put his hand up to tell his bench to chill. It was his way of saying: I got this. No need to panic.
In college, the 6-1 guard was the poised pointman for Roy Williams at Kansas University. He was a two-time GTE first-team Academic All-American was the Jayhawks’ all-time leader in assists when he left school and entered the NBA in 1997.
Vaughn ended his NBA career in 2009 after a three-year stint with the San Antonio Spurs. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich gave Vaughn his first post-NBA gig when he offered him an opportunity to hang around the Spurs and watch the coaches work.
After a failed three-year head coaching stint with the Orlando Magic, Vaughn was hired to be Kenny Atkinson’s top assistant in 2016. Vaughn was promoted to interim head coach in March 2020 following Atkinson’s midseason departure. Vaughn gave the Nets a preview of what he can do when he coached the Nets to a 7-3 finish and a playoff berth inside the Disney World bubble. But the Nets weren’t convinced that Vaughn was the right guy to lead a headstrong squad and Marks decided to bring in Nash despite a lack of coaching experience. Marks cited Nash’s ability to build relationships was the key to crafting a winning culture. It turns out that the key to crafting the franchise’s winning culture was one spot down the bench.
Vaughn’s calm demeanor and quiet leadership are exactly what the Nets needed to turn their season around. The Nets management showed their confidence in Vaughn by extending his contract through the 2026-27 season.
“Jacque has made an immediate and immeasurable impact on our entire organization since assuming the role of head coach earlier this season,” Nets general manager Sean Marks said. “On the court, he’s clearly demonstrated his leadership through his ability to connect and communicate at a very high level while displaying tremendous instincts for the game. As a person, they don’t come any better than Jacque. His character is impeccable, and there is not a better representative for our team and our borough. We are thrilled to have Jacque lead the Nets for years to come.”
Center Nic Claxton, a second-round draft pick in 2019, has been one of the biggest beneficiaries from the coaching change. Vaughn installed Claxton as the team’s No. 1 center to anchor the defense. Claxton rewarded Vaughn with the best season of his four-year career year, leading the NBA in field-goal percentage (70.6%) and third in blocked shots (2.5). Claxton, who should get votes on the all-defensive team, filled the three biggest needs for the Nets: a rim protector, screen-and-roller who can finish in the paint, and rebounder (9.2).
Brooklyn has improved its defensive rating from 118 to 106, and rebounding the ball has been a point of emphasis. Vaughn demanded they become better rebounders and has turned them into better defenders. Vaughn began including “box out data” in team film sessions to highlight missed assignments on rebounds. It held players accountable and helped improve the team’s deficiencies on the defensive end.
“The thing about Jacque is that he doesn’t want the camera. He’s not going to seek attention. He’s a quiet dude but he’s very contemplative,” Popovich told the Associated Press. “He thinks things through and he’ll have a sort a peace about him and he engenders respect. He doesn’t do anything unnecessarily. He’ll have standards, he’ll hold them accountable and he knows what he’s doing.”
Boston Celtics first-year head coach Joe Mazzulla and Mike Brown of the Sacramento Kings are the front-runners to win NBA coach of the year. Vaughn should be added to that mix. He deserves his flowers for saving the Nets’ season.