Nets looking to hire suspended Boston coach after sacking Steve Nash eight games into NBA season

The Brooklyn Nets have parted ways with head coach Steve Nash after just seven games of the NBA season.

It has been a tumultuous time for Nash and the Nets, taking over a Brooklyn team containing Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden, with many believing they were the favourites for the 2020 and 2021 championships.

What unfolded from there was pure chaos, with Irving refusing to get vaccinated and finding himself in hot water whenever he opened his mouth, Harden essentially gave up on the team and was traded for Ben Simmons, who then couldn’t get on the court because of a back injury and has looked incredibly rusty upon his return this season.

ESPN is reporting that the Nets wish to hire Celtics coach Ime Udoka as their Nash replacement, which has raised eyebrows across the league.

Boston suspended Udoka for the entire 2022-2023 season for an ‘improper relationship’ with a staffer over the off-season.

A report into Udoka’s relationship with the subordinate found he used crude language inappropriate for a workplace superior.

And yet despite the suspension at the Celtics, he could be coaching the Nets in the immediate future.

Udoka led Boston to the NBA Finals last season and hasn’t actually been sacked by the organisation, however it has been reported the Celtics will let him leave for another job.

Udoka has previously spent time with the Nets, working as an assistant coach throughout the 2020-21 season, immediately before he was hired for the head role at Boston.

Brooklyn has started the season with a 2-5 record and has one of the worst defensive ratings in the league.

Simmons, previously a defensive player of the year candidate, has been poor while finding his feet after two years off the court.

They play the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday morning before traveling to Washington on Saturday.