After hiring Jordi Fernandez, Nets general manager Sean Marks said his new head coach had to assess his strengths and weaknesses and build his staff accordingly.
With Brooklyn in a patient rebuild — no matter how much its basketball people try to avoid using the term — Fernandez opted against a grizzled former NBA head coach for a right-hand man and doubled down on player development. He leaned into coaches with firsthand playing experience — which means he’ll lean on Juwan Howard.
“The common thread is bringing energy on the court, a lot of player development-oriented coaches — and also coaches with a lot of experience as players,” Fernandez said this month. “Obviously, I’ve played at a good level growing up in Spain, but I was not a professional basketball player. So it’s important that we have enough guys that have done it.
“Juwan obviously has done [it] at a very high level. And some other coaches that have played at a high level, and they can still hoop with the guys. That’s important, because a lot of times you have to connect in different ways, and we have different backgrounds to connect with our guys in a different way.”
The “we” includes a nine-man staff that will be one of the biggest in the entire NBA. Fernandez added assistants Howard, Steve Hetzel, Deividas Dulkys, Connor Griffin and Travis Bader to holdovers Jay Hernandez, Adam Caporn, Ryan Forehan-Kelly and Corey Vinson.
None have been NBA head coaches. The most recognizable of the lot is Howard, 51, who has two NBA championship rings in nearly as many decades of playing experience. He’s clearly got the best playing résumé on the staff, and some might say the best coaching résumé as well.
“The NBA is a small league. At the end of the day … we all know each other. I didn’t know Juwan well, or had a personal relationship, but I knew a lot of people that I trust that have worked with him,” Fernandez said. “Obviously you respect his career as a player, his presence, what he represents, his career as a coach with the Miami Heat with that special culture they have, being a head coach in college.
“So we had a few conversations. We connected very well. And I could tell right away that he’s gonna be a big part of what we’re trying to do here. So I’m going to rely on him in a lot of things. And like I said, he’s very unique, his background, and I’m excited to have him with the group.”
After being part of the Fab Five, Howard put together a 19-year career in the NBA. He was an All-Star and won rings in his final two seasons with Miami before retiring in 2013. But he stayed on as an assistant coach for the next six years soaking up that vaunted Heat culture under Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley.
Howard eventually struck out on his own, returning to Michigan as head coach in 2019. He was the 2021 AP National Coach of the Year after leading the Wolverines to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament but got suspended during the next season for slapping a Wisconsin assistant coach in the face in a memorable brawl.
Howard had other issues off the court, including a heated physical disagreement with the school’s strength and conditioning coach about treatment over his son Jace’s leg injuries during the 2023 season.
Ultimately Howard got fired after five years and an 87–72 record, including a dismal 8-24 record and 3-17 conference mark in 2023-24. But without a veteran NBA head coach on staff (like Steve Nash had enjoyed Mike D’Antoni and Steve Clifford), Howard will be key for Fernandez.
“For a guy like Jordi, he has to be able to look at himself and say, ‘OK, what do I need? Where are my faults? Where am I not quite up to speed here?’ ” Marks said. “Does that mean I need an ex-head coach on my staff? If so, great. If it’s not, then I need to focus on player development.”
