We have plenty of ways to show that the Brooklyn Nets season wasn’t going according to plan this year – the main one is currently staying at home, even though they’re hiring Kevin Durant – but the assistant coach is using ESPN to announce his departure. Kyrie Irving is quite illustrative.
Former NBA star Amarie Stoudmeier has spent the last two seasons as an assistant on the coaching staff of former teammate Steve Nash. During a series of ESPN appearances on Thursday, he revealed that he will not return to Brooklyn after a second disappointing exit from the playoffs.
And then Stoudemire started talking all about Kyrie Irving.
In a discussion with Stephen A. Smith about First Take, Stoudmeier openly admitted that Irving missed much of the season due to his refusal to be vaccinated, affecting the Nets’ ability to form a functioning team:
“Yes, I think it hurt us. It definitely hurt us because we didn’t have enough consistency with Kyrie to build chemistry for the group with the team. He only plays away depending on which city he is, he can’t play in New York, so you have different lineups and different matches depending on the game schedule.
“So for us coaches, it was hard to figure out who would play despite Kyrie. Chemistry is not where we want it to be, so it was difficult for us to deal with it. So, yes, it was definitely part of that. “
Irving’s status in Brooklyn has been an active topic of discussion since the Nets were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the first round.
The team had many problems – age, coach and lack of Ben Simmons among them – but general manager Sean Marx stressed that the team needs players who are “available” in a new conference after the series. Stoudmeier apparently agrees, and it’s hard to imagine being alone in the Nets.
Kyrie Irving and the Nets are facing uncertain off-season weather. (AP Photo / John Minchillo)
Meanwhile, Irving, who has a player option for next season, said he looks forward to continuing to run the organization with Durant, Marx and team owner Joseph Tsai.
The story continues
Speaking to Max Kellerman and Jalen Rose about Get Up, Stoudemire applauded Marx for trying to gain control of the situation:
“I think Sean Marx is doing a great job trying to get power back and making sure he’s in control. But I think he needs to have a real date with Kevin and Kai. Because Kyrie has missed more games than played since signing with the Nets.
“So I think you need to have a conversation. Two of your star players have to sit in a room and say, “Kyrie, what’s your goal? Do you want to be the best player in the game? Do you want to achieve more in this league? What are your goals going forward? ”And if they both find out that“ hey, we want to make this thing special here, we want to win the championship ”and he commits to playing in those games, then I think you’ll bring him back. “
Although Stoudemire was candid about the problems between Irving and the Nets, he fired back when Smith said the team needed to get rid of either Nash or the defender. He even claims that Irving was contemptuous of the team for the 75th anniversary of the NBA, which is an argument for another day:
“I do not agree with that. I think both Steve and Kyrie can understand that. I feel that Kyrie needs to make a commitment to herself and to the game of basketball. about how dedicated he is to being a great player, because I feel that Kyrie should have been on the Top 75. But at the same time, now you have to accept that as a motivation to go into next season and prove to yourself that you are top player and do it consistently throughout the season. “
We’ll see if Irving and Nash eventually make it work, or if the defender ever gets the message.
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