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Steve Nash was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2018
Photo:
Elise Amendola / AP
The Brooklyn Nets have a new head coach.
As the NBA team announced on Thursday, Canadian ex-professional Steve Nash is coming to New York City to look after the team around the two superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
For the 46-year-old it is the first coaching job after the end of his active career in 2015. The contract will run for four years, reported the US broadcaster ESPN.
In March, the previous coach Kenny Atkinson resigned from his post.
Then Jacque Vaughn took over as interim coach and finished the main round in seventh place.
In the playoffs, the Nets were eliminated against the Toronto Raptors.
With Nash, someone is getting the job who so far has little experience as a basketball coach.
As a player for it: Between 1996 and 2015 Nash played for the Dallas Mavericks, Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers.
At the beginning of his career, the former development player formed a successful duo with Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas before triggering a tactical trend in Phoenix.
A revolutionary is coming
Phoenix played in the noughties under Mike D'Antoni, who now coaches the Houston Rockets, a basketball that has become a model for many modern teams.
Speed was more important than size and instead of trying to finish from the middle distance or with your back to the basket, the priority was on three-point throws.
Hardly any team played faster than the Suns, whose offensive system was named "Seven Seconds or less" - it shouldn't take longer to complete.
It was the beginning of the three-point revolution in basketball.
Nash was the key player for this approach.
As a brilliant passer and distance shooter, he was the engine of the NBA's best offensive and was voted the league's most valuable player (MVP) in 2005 and 2006.
In the playoffs, however, Phoenix never survived the conference final.
In 2005 the Suns failed to Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs, a year later to Nowitzki and the Mavs and in 2010 to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.
After joining the Lakers in 2012, Nash struggled with back problems and other wear-related injuries until 2015 was finally over.
Since then, Nash has worked on projects as a consultant for the title teams of the Golden State Warriors and the Canadian national basketball team and was an expert on Champions League broadcasts on the US broadcaster TNT.
In addition, Nash, who is known as a football fan, is a shareholder in two football clubs, the Vancouver Whitecaps from Major League Soccer and RCD Mallorca from the second division in Spain.
At his first coaching position, Nash now has the opportunity to work with two exceptional players: Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.
The two superstars had an appointment in Brooklyn in the summer of 2019 and gave the team the first realistic prospect of a title in many years.
Last season was missed by Durant, who tore his Achilles tendon in the NBA final a year ago, but completely - Irving was also long out with a shoulder injury.
In the coming season, Nash should build a top team around Durant and Irving.
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