On Tuesday Nov. 1, it was announced that Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash had been fired after two years in charge. Nash led the team to a 48-24 record last season before losing to the eventual NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020-21 postseason. The following year, they lost to the eventual Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics. Nash’s impact as coach had been minimized over this past offseason due to the lack of anticipated success he experienced with standout talent which included Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving. For reference, their combined greatness consisted of 18 All-NBA Selections, seven scoring titles and two Larry O’Brien trophies. That’s a whole lot of hardware for never reaching the second round of the NBA playoffs.

After the rocky 2-5 start to a young 2022-23 NBA season, the Nets decided to move on from Nash, naming Jacque Vaughn the official head coach just four games into his interim tenure. Since Vaughn has been given the title of head coach, he is 8-6, with a top five defensive rating in the NBA to go along with a top 10 offensive rating. The events leading up to Vaughn’s appointment were far less devastating to the reputation of the organization than those that followed. Irving reposted an antisemitic film taking the world of Twitter by storm as the Nets organization desperately yearned for normalcy.

The outrage was furthered by the lack of a sincere remorse displayed toward the communities and fans he disparaged for reasons we may never fully comprehend. An indefinite suspension was handed down to Irving due to these remarks, forcing visible panic by Nets General Manager Sean Marks. After the five game suspension, Irving’s return to the team has led them to a 3-2 record. The Nets stand at 10-11 in the NBA season thus far and only time will tell if they can keep up in such a competitive Eastern Conference.