76ers Rival Nets Avoid Hiring Ime Udoka to Replace Steve Nash

The Brooklyn Nets were the first team to cut ties with their head coach during the 2022-2023 NBA season. As the championship hopefuls got off to an underwhelming start, it was clear that changes were coming in Brooklyn if the Nets couldn’t figure out a way to quickly turn things around.

Once the Nets fell to 2-5 on the year, Brooklyn’s front office announced that Steve Nash and the organization agreed to part ways.

Considering the Nets didn’t have a replacement lined up as the move was sudden, Nash’s assistant Jacque Vaughn was named the temporary replacement. While Vaughn would coach Brooklyn in the approaching games following Brooklyn’s big move, rumors indicated that he wasn’t the permanent replacement.

Former Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder was linked to the Nets. So was the suspended Boston Celtics head coach, Ime Udoka. While it seemed Brooklyn would do its due diligence on potentially bringing in Snyder, Udoka was rumored to be the runaway candidate.

With several reports hinting that Udoka could reunite with the Nets within days of Nash’s departure, it seemed it was only a matter of time before the Celtics allowed him to walk.

At this point, it seems Udoka will stay put in Boston as the Nets decided to put an end to their coaching search this week. On Wednesday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announced that the Nets are removing Jacque Vaughn’s interim label and will make him the new head coach.

The Nets are making Jacque Vaughn head coach.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 9, 2022

Per Wojnarowski, Vaughn’s promotion with the Nets coach comes with a deal attached, which runs through the 2023-2024 season.

Since taking over as Brooklyn’s head coach, Vaughn has gone 2-2 with the Nets. While there is still a lot of work to be done moving forward, as least Brooklyn can feel comfortable knowing they have settled on a new leader for the remainder of the year.

Meanwhile, Vaughn picks up his second official head coaching job. After getting his start as an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs in 2010, Vaughn earned his first head coaching position with the Orlando Magic in 2012.

During his third season in Orlando, Vaughn was let go 52 games into the year. After his stint in Orlando, Vaughn joined the Brooklyn Nets as an assistant in 2016. While he did become the interim head coach in 2020 following the firing of Kenny Atkinson, he didn’t garner the head coaching position. Instead, the Nets hired Nash.

At last, Vaughn will have an opportunity to run the Nets his way without worrying about a potential replacement coming in. The Nets are set to continue their schedule on Wednesday night when they host the New York Knicks. Soon enough, they’ll face the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time on November 22.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.