Report: Nets name Kevin Ollie as interim head coach

The Brooklyn Nets still have the mindset of turning around their season in time to get back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture with 28 games left. After firing Jacque Vaughn on Monday, the Nets have quickly pivoted to someone who’s already on the coaching staff to be the interim head coach.

Per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Brooklyn is naming Kevin Ollie their interim head coach. After Vaughn was fired on Monday following a season in which the Nets began with a 13-10 record only to go 8-23 heading into the All-Star break, Brooklyn has found their replacement for Vaughn with minimal time lost.

After Vaughn’s firing, the Nets announced that they would be searching for an interim coach to appoint in the near future, but with Brooklyn resuming its season on Thursday at the Toronto Raptors, it made sense to find the interim coach as soon as possible. Ollie was hired by the Nets heading into this season to be a part of Vaughn’s coaching staff.

Ollie, 51, played in the NBA from 1995 to 2010 before transitioning into coaching, beginning his coaching career as an assistant coach for the University of Connecticut. Ollie became the head coach of the Huskies in 2012 and remained in that role until 2018 when he was fired from the university after the NCAA began an investigation into the program.

After going through almost four years of litigation against the University of Connecticut over whether he was fired with just cause, he eventually won his case against the school and was given back pay. Ollie has experience with Overtime Elite as he was hired by the league to be the head of coaching and player development.

Story originally appeared on Nets Wire