Within hours of Avery Johnson‘s dismissal as head coach, there was instantly speculation that the Nets would reach out to Phil Jackson about the vacancy. If they do, it won’t be the first time that the Nets have made a bid for the Hall of Fame coach. In the summer of 1999, the Nets offered Jackson what would have been the most lucrative deal in the NBA – a three-year contract worth $21MM – to take over for John Calipari‘s interim replacement, Don Casey. Jackson spoke with Lewis Katz, the charismatic principal owner of the Nets for about a month leading up to that but ultimately turned them down. Based on comments from Jackson’s rep Todd Musberger earlier today, it sounds like they can expect a similar outcome if they go down that road again. Here’s more out of Brooklyn..
- Johnson speculated that players went above his head to ownership to get him fired, tweets Stefan Bondy of the Daily News (on Twitter). Johnson’s biggest supporters on the team included Jerry Stackhouse, Gerald Wallace, and Joe Johnson, Bondy tweets.
- In today’s press conference to announce Johnson’s dismissal and P.J. Carlisemo‘s promotion to interim coach, General Manager Billy King made it known that he’s willing to make a move in order to turn things around, tweets Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. “I’m not one to shy away from a trade… its figuring out what pieces to change,” King said.
- Charley Rosen of Sheridan Hoops isn’t so sure that Jackson won’t entertain the idea of coaching in Brooklyn. Rosen argues that the Zen Master isn’t the type to rush into any decisions and is likely to consider any interesting oppportunity that comes his way.
- Johnson has a history of clashing with point guards, writes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. Johnson butted heads with Devin Harris in Dallas, leading to him being traded to the Nets for Jason Kidd. Kidd and Johnson lasted together just three months before the coach was let go.