Long Island Nets coach Ronnie Burrell wins G League Coach of the Month ... again

The G League announced Friday that Long Island Nets Head Coach Ronnie Burrell has been named Coach of the Month for games February. Burrell had also been named G League Coach of the Month in January, making him the first to win consecutive Coach of the Month honors in Long Island history. He is only the fourth coach to win back-to-back Coach of the Month honors in G League history.

Long Island has now won 14 straight games, seven in February, and are leading the East with a 20-3 record, four and a half games ahead of the . The Nets were the only unbeaten G League team last month.

During the month, the team ranked first in steals per game (12.0), third in 3-pointers made per game (15.4) and 3-point percentage (39.4), fifth in field goal percentage (49.7), sixth in field goals made per game (43.4), seventh in free-throw percentage (75.9) and eighth in points per game (119.0) and blocks per game (5.4).

On the defensive end, the LI Nets held their opponents to 101.9 points per game, the lowest opponent points per game in the league in February, 43.4 percent shooting from the field, the second-lowest opponent field goal percentage for the month, and 30.1 percent shooting from 3-point range, also the second-lowest opponent 3-point field goal percentage in the league in that time.

The team ranked first in the league in defensive rating (99.3) and net rating (17.0) in February, as well as seventh in offensive rating (116.3).

Burrell is a New Jersey native, playing high school ball at Montclair High School, in Montclair, then went on UNC Greensboro, From there, Burrell spent over a decade playing professional career in Europe. He would play in the Euroleague and also win three Polish League championships.

After his career, he got an M.B.A. from Florida Atlantic University, then returned to the game, He started as a G League assistant with Long Island and the College Park Skyhawks, the Hawks affiliate then as a player development coordinator with the Chicago Bulls before returning to Long Island this September as head coach.