As the Brooklyn Nets ready to meet the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, the Brooklyn Nets have extended the contract of third-year head coach Kenny Atkinson and his staff, but the decision was made before the playoff berth was official.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski the Nets plan on extending Atkinson and his assistants in the near future.
The move shows how much General Manager Sean Marks values Atkinson. The two have worked together to remake the franchise through impressive personnel decisions and strong player development, but more importantly leadership and a reshaped organizational environment.
“Kenny and I are fortunate to have a great group of people who are putting in a lot of sweat equity behind the scenes so our organization can be successful on and off the court,” Marks told KCP. “There’s been some nice changes, some nice additions to our culture, but I think what makes us special is the people we have here and Kenny is certainly one of those people who gives us the exact culture we want here.”
What has made Atkinson stand out most isn’t the win totals, but the development of numerous players that have been under his tutelage. Since taking over, the Nets have seen young players like Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, Jarrett Allen and Joe Harris take major steps in their development process.
But it’s D’Angelo Russell’s improvement that stands out most. While Russell has put up solid numbers since his rookie season, he’s been an extremely inconsistent player up until this season. Not only have his numbers improved but under Atkinson, DLO (as Russell is known) has become a first-time All-Star and is a candidate for Most Improved Player of the Year Award.
Though there are still no details about the contract, the extension could be coming soon.
Atkinson, who has been an assistant coach for the Rockets, Knicks and Hawks before taking the Nets job, has drawn tremendous praise from around the league, but more importantly his players. During his three seasons as Nets head coach, the Long Island native has taken Brooklyn from a 20 win team to 39 win team currently fighting for a playoff position in the Eastern Conference.
For the Nets as an organization, the extension continues to show signs of the culture change in Brooklyn. In the five seasons prior to hiring Atkinson, the Nets had five different head coaches—Avery Johnson, P.J. Carlesimo, Jason Kidd, Lionel Hollins and Tony Brown. Now it looks as they’ve got their coach of the future.
NBA sports pundits are also talking about Atkinson for Coach of the Year honors, along with Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer. Incidentally, Atkinson and Budenholzer did a stint together as assistant coaches for the Atlantic Hawks before moving up to become head coaches.
