The Brooklyn Nets are in a pretty precarious state right now with Jacque Vaughn calling the shots on an interim basis. As most know, Kenny Atkinson parted ways with the Nets in what some are calling as a falling out with several players losing confidence in the 52-year-old mentor.
Earlier this month, Nets beat writer Anthony Puccio reported that some players wanted Atkinson out. He broadly referred to these unnamed people as "some" but somehow the name of Kyrie Irving and even Kevin Durant cropped up. Being the two main stars, critics felt that if both or either wanted Atkinson to stay, they would have fought for it. Neither did.
From there, the name of Tyronn Lue cropped up. Irving reportedly wanted his former mentor to take over the post. Both were part of the Cleveland Cavaliers squad that won the 2016 NBA title. And now it appears Las Vegas oddsmakers have picked the 42-year-old to be the next Nets head coach, Newsday reported.
If this is the direction the Nets are heading into, the next question is when. Lue is currently serving as an assistant coach to Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers so moving out may not happen until the NBA officially ends the 2019-20 season. Right now, it remains to be seen when this would happen with the league on a 30-day hiatus. Worse, the wait could be longer with the Center for Disease Control and Protection recommending all in-person events to be called off for the next eight weeks.
Brooklyn is at the 7th spot of the NBA Eastern Conference with a 30-34 win-loss record. They are only half a game ahead of the Orlando Magic but were riding on a three-game winning streak. This is even though Vaughn had to play with a depleted roster. Durant is not expected until next NBA season while Irving has been ruled out indefinitely. The Nets are jockeying with the Magic although both face tough top-seeded teams. That could either be the Milwaukee Bucks or the Toronto Raptors.
As for the Clippers, it is unlikely that they will allow Lue to lose focus at this point. They are running second in the Western Conference behind the Los Angeles Lakers with a 44-20 card. With everything on a standstill, the Nets may only discuss the head coaching vacancy with Lue when things normalize. For now, all that is up in the air.
