Getty Sean Marks answers questions during a 2016 press conference at Barclays Center.
The Brooklyn Nets have elected to defer the Sixers NBA Draft pick they received in the trade for All-NBA guard James Harden until 2023. The pick would have been the 23rd overall in this year’s draft. After already forfeiting their 2022 first-round draft pick to the Houston Rockets as a result of acquiring Harden in January 2021, Brooklyn has no picks in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Still, Nets general manager Sean Marks and his front office can find a way to insert themselves into this year’s draft via trade. That remains a possibility as they have continued to hold workouts for draft prospects, including Scottie Pippen Jr., son of Hall of Famer and six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen. Per NCAA, Pippen Jr was one of college basketball’s leading scorers, ranking 14th in the nation at 20.4 points per game.
Per fortyeightminutes.com, Pippen Jr. was one of six draft prospects that the Nets held workouts for on June 8. The others included Davion Mintz, Marcus Bingham Jr, Justin Minaya, and Davion Warren.
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Kenny Atkinson Hired as Hornets Next Head Coach
When Nets head coach Steve Nash was hired to replace former Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson, the decision to do so was a bit of a head-scratcher. Mainly because Atkinson was one of the reasons that the Nets had become relevant again after leading them to the playoffs in 2018 for the first time since the Joe Johnson era.
After stepping down as head coach of the Nets in 2020, Atkinson spent time with the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors as an assistant. And just two years after resigning from the Nets, Atkinson has decided to take the reigns of another franchise, as he will be the next head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, per ESPN.
“Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson has agreed to a four-year deal to become the new head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Friday,” ESPN reports.
“The Hornets had narrowed their search to Atkinson and Mike D’Antoni. Both candidates already had two meetings with management, including with general manager Mitch Kupchak, and then met with owner Michael Jordan this week.”
Kyrie Dispels Rumors of Friction Between He & Atkinson
Atkinson and the Nets mutually agreed to part ways in March 2020. Upon his departure from the Nets, there was speculation that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant’s rocky relationship with their former head coach played a part in his exit. Kyrie was quick to shut down those rumors on a 2021 episode of Durant’s podcast “The ETCs”.
“I want to give a shout-out to Kenny Atkinson because some people came out and were like ‘Yo, Ky and KD got Kenny fired.’ Look, that was completely false. Kenny was great for the group that he served, and I was very appreciative of what he was giving us throughout the season when we were playing,” Irving said on “The ETCs” via the “New York Post”.
“I want somebody, I need somebody that’s going to understand that I am a human being first. It’s no disrespect to Kenny or any other coaches I played with; it’s just Steve Nash coming in at this moment and then following up with putting together a great coaching core was going to make us more successful.”
The Nets have their work cut out for them in terms of building a roster that can compete with the NBA’s top talent. With the clock ticking on their championship window, it will be interesting to see what the outcome will be.
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Nets Linked to Son of Former NBA Superstar, Top Scorer