Nets fire head coach Jacque Vaughn 5 days after 50-point loss to Celtics
Jacque Vaugn was in the middle of his second season as the Nets head coach
The Brooklyn Nets announced on Monday that they have fired head coach Jacque Vaughn. The move was first reported by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Brooklyn Nets have relieved Jacque Vaughn of his head coaching duties. An interim head coach will be named in the near future.
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 19, 2024
The Nets are promoting assistant coach Kevin Ollie to replace Vaughn on an interim basis for the rest of the season, according to ESPN. Ollie, the former UConn head coach, joined the team as an assistant last summer.
The Nets are 21-33 and currently in 11th place in the East, and while that's far from the worst in the NBA, they have been struggling significantly. According to SNY reporter Ian Begley, several players had "lost confidence" in Vaughn.
The Nets' last game before the All-Star break may have been the final straw for the front office. Brooklyn got absolutely embarrassed by the Boston Celtics, losing 136-86. There have been some pretty lopsided scores in the NBA this season, but a 50-point pantsing is hard to ignore.
Vaughn had been with the Nets since 2016, when he was hired to be part of Kenny Atkinson's coaching staff. Prior to that, he spent several years as the head coach for the Orlando Magic, then served as a scout for the San Antonio Spurs after he was fired in 2015.
With the Nets, Vaughn spent the vast majority of his time as an assistant before being named the interim head coach after the firing of Steve Nash in Nov. 1, 2022. Just eight days later the Nets removed "interim" from his title and made him the permanent head coach. He departs the Nets with a 64-65 record.
The Nets' next game is Thursday against the Toronto Raptors.
