Steve Nash and Mike D’Antoni are putting the band back together in Brooklyn.
ESPN reported Friday that D’Antoni is finalizing a deal to become a Nets assistant coach under Nash, who won two Most Valuable Player awards while playing point guard for D’Antoni’s Phoenix Suns in the mid-2000s.
The Nets hired Nash, 46, on Sept. 3. Ten days later, D’Antoni stepped down after four seasons as head coach of the Houston Rockets.
Nash played four seasons for D’Antoni in Phoenix (2004-05 to 2007-08), operating a fast-paced offense that led to back-to-back MVP awards, two 60-win campaigns and four playoff berths. Nash also played the last two seasons of his Hall of Fame career for D’Antoni with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
D’Antoni, 69, owns a 672-527 (.560) record in 16 seasons as a head coach with the Denver Nuggets (1998-99), Suns (2003-08), New York Knicks (2008-12), Lakers (2012-14) and Rockets. He was named the NBA Coach of the Year in 2004-05 and 2016-17.
According to ESPN, Brooklyn is also adding longtime San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Ime Udoka to Nash’s staff, which already includes associate head coach Jacque Vaughn.
Led by All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant, the Nets are expected to vie for an NBA championship in 2021-22.
