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Jacque Vaughn who the Nets rewarded with a four-year extension near the end of last season will have a new cast of assistant coaches sitting next to him on the bench when the 2023-24 season begins in October.
Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted the news Monday afternoon...
ESPN Sources: Jacque Vaughn and the Nets are reshaping coaching staff for his first full season as head coach next year, parting with Igor Kokoskov, Brian Keefe and Tiago Splitter. Hawks did same on weekend with staff that Quin Snyder inherited late in season.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 1, 2023
Pistons, Rockets and Raptors will be hiring largely new assistant coaching staffs with arrival of new head coaches and these veteran assistants will be available for that mix.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 1, 2023
Assuming Woj’s list is complete, that would leave the Nets with four assistants: Adam Caporn, Royal Ivey, Ryan Forehan-Kelly and Trevor Hendry. The Nets started last season with eight assistants including Vaughn. After they dumped Steve Nash for Vaughn first as an interim, then permanently, the Nets did not replace Vaughn.
Those who won’t return to the Nets bench include the assistants who served as the team’s offensive and defensive coordinators under Nash who hired both of them.
Kokoskov has been an assistant coach for 19 years in the NBA, working with eight teams. He was also, for a short time, the head coach of the Suns. The 51-year-old handled offensive duties for Brooklyn. He had been hired by Nash last summer.
Keefe, who worked on the Nets defensive schemes, is also an NBA veteran having served as a video coordinator or assistant with six teams. He, too, was a Nash hire. The Detroit Pistons interviewed him recently for their open head coaching position.
Splitter, the Nets big man coach, is the most senior of the three coaches let go. He joined the Nets staff five years ago under Kenny Atkinson first as a scout in 2018, then as an assistant. He continued on under Nash.
On Tuesday, Splitter bid a bi-lingual farewell...
"É hora de dizer adeus ao Brooklyn após 5 anos incríveis com os Nets. Foi uma jornada cheia de altos e baixos, mas principalmente de felicidade. Eu não poderia ter feito isso sem o esforço e dedicação de todos os envolvidos, especialmente da minha família, que me apoiou em tudo.… pic.twitter.com/V68TlBwpqG
— Tiago Splitter (@tiagosplitter) May 2, 2023
Of the remaining assistant coaches, Forehan-Kelly has been with the franchise the longest, joining the Long Island Nets staff in 2017-18 after a long playing career both overseas and in the G League. He spent extensive time with Nic Claxton last summer, accompanying him to Dallas where Claxton worked with his personal trainer, Tim Martin.
Caporn was hired by the Nets from Australia’s Centre for Excellence, first to coach the Long Island Nets in 2021-22, then as an assistant with the Brooklyn Nets last season. Ivey, who played 10 seasons in the NBA, was hired by Brooklyn in 2019-20. He was a close friend of Kevin Durant from their time as teammates in OKC. Both Caporn and Ivey will be on the sidelines at the FIBA World Cup in August, Caporn as an assistant for the Australian national team and Ivey as the head coach for South Sudan.
Hendry has been with the organization the longest, starting as a basketball operations intern in 2015. Over the years, Hendry has served as a video assistant, a video coordinator with Long Island and since last season an assistant coach in Brooklyn.
- Jacque Vaughn shaking up his Nets coaching staff in major way - Brian Lewis - New York Post
- Nets coach Jacque Vaughn to let go three assistant coaches, source confirms - Evan Barnes - Newsday
- Jacque Vaughn is building out his coaching staff. Who could the Nets hire? - Alex Schiffer - The Athletic
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