Officially hired here in Brooklyn last Wednesday, Fernandez wasted no time talking about his coaching philosophies.
“You want to be process-oriented for a long time and sustain it,” Fernandez said in an exclusive YES Network interview. “If we win as a team, everyone is going to be OK.”
“We’re gonna fight really hard,” he added. “(The fans will) be proud watching a real competitive team. … A team that is connected so everybody sees that they do it together.”
Fernandez, of course, knows he can’t coach the Nets alone.
After spending the past two seasons as Mike Brown’s top associate in Sacramento, the 41-year-old Badalona, Spain native is picking an NBA staff for the first time.
Hetzel was first reported to be headed to our borough by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski even before Fernandez took the podium at Industry City’s HSS Training Center last week.
An assistant in Charlotte and Orlando previously, Hetzel spent the past three years on Chauncey Billups’ bench with the Trail Blazers. He coached the franchise’s 2022 Summer League squad to a championship.
Howard, of course, broke into the NCAA alongside Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Austin Ray Jackson at Michigan in 1991, helping the Wolverines reach the Final Four in 1992 and 1993.
Following a 19-year NBA career that saw him win a pair of titles in Miami with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, the 51-year-old Chicago native earned Associated Press Coach of the Year honors at Michigan in 2021.
While Hetzel, a Michigan State alum who never played in the NBA, may be a candidate to lead the Nets’ Summer League team in Las Vegas in mid-July, Howard will be a valuable resource to every man on the roster based on his long and productive career.
He averaged 13.4 points and 6.1 rebounds in 1,208 regular-season games during stops in Washington,…
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