Reflecting on the Winningest Head Coach in the Sean Marks GM Era

Nobody knew what to anticipate when the former MVP was initially asked to guide this All-Star Brooklyn team to victory given he lacked coaching experience. Still, Steve Nash became the winningest head coach in the Sean Marks era with him as the GM.

He did have some great times with the Nets, no doubt. Let's revisit the NBA legend's greatest head coaching achievement as head coach of the Nets.

The greatest accomplishment of Nash's career was going toe-to-toe with the Milwaukee Bucks in seven games during the 2021 playoffs despite a crippled Nets team. Ultimately, the Bucks would win the series and become NBA Champions. Due to a hamstring injury, James Harden had to leave Game 1 early. Even with the loss of the team's best player, Nash led the group to a 2-0 lead over Milwaukee.

Without Harden, Brooklyn appeared to be a formidable force. That is, up until the third game. Despite losing by a narrow margin of three, the Nets still had enough games remaining on the road to return home up 3-1. As Game 4 rolled along, Irving went down with an ankle injury, making Durant the lone superstar still playing for the Nets. With a roster advantage, the Bucks would win Game 4 by double-digits. Because of this, Nash found himself in a difficult situation.

Given that Harden was obviously still injured, was it time to call him? Since this was the real deal, only time would tell.

Though not at full strength, Harden made a comeback by the start of Game 5. He was limping across the court. For that crucial Game 5, Nash and the Nets took a risk on the injured Harden, and it paid off. To balance out Durant's valiant efforts, Nash had him play 46 minutes, and his contributions were just sufficient to benefit the team.

Without letting up, the Bucks won Game 6 convincingly by 19. In Game 7, Milwaukee needed overtime to secure a four-point victory, capping one of the greatest playoff series in history. Even though the Nets were eliminated, you have to give them credit for their perseverance in managing star injuries.

Additionally unnoticed were Nash's plans to keep the Nets competitive in spite of everything. Fast forward to today, the Phoenix Suns GM admitted after being swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves that the franchise failed to "maximize" Durant.

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