The Nets handed Jordi Fernandez his first NBA head-coaching job partly because of his development ethos but also because of his international pedigree.
And on the biggest international stage of all — the 2024 Paris Olympics — Fernandez’s work has drawn rave reviews.
Fernandez, hired by Brooklyn in April, has led Team Canada to a 2-0 record in the group stage and the brink of the knockout round.
After guiding the Canadians to an opening victory over Greece and Giannis Antetokoumpo, then backing that up with a win over Australia, his tactics and adjustments have left onlookers impressed.
Team Canada is all but assured of reaching the knockout stage, win or lose Friday versus Spain.
But a victory would virtually ensure them finishing atop Group A.
After a lackluster first-half performance against the Aussies, Fernandez gave his players an earful at the break.
He got on them over their lack of physicality, and they stormed out of the locker room with a 19-8 blitz.
2024 PARIS OLYMPICS
“When you’re good defensively, you’re happy,” Fernandez said. “I was unhappy with our physicality in the first half, we just got to put four quarters together. It wasn’t perfect, but at the end of the day in the game of basketball there’s a lot of imperfections and you have to fight through it.”
Fernandez made some subtle tweaks as well.
After Aussie Josh Giddey had worn them out, Fernandez adjusted and put noted defensive glove Lu Dort on him.
That may have been the turning point, as Team Canada turned defense to offense.
Veteran NBA scribe Josh Lewenberg wrote, “[Y]ou could certainly argue that his finest work to date came on Tuesday, in Canada’s Group A showdown with Australia and big 93-83 victory.”
Now Fernandez leads his team against his native country — and his mentor. Team Canada plays it’s group finale at 11:15 a.m. Friday against Spain and Sergio Scariolo, the international icon that Fernandez has called his “basketball father.”
Meanwhile, he calls David Blatt — a consultant for Team Canada — his guardian angel.
And Blatt has gushed over his work in Paris.
“I really predict a great [NBA] future for him. He stepped into a situation that allows him to develop and grow the program,” Blatt told BasketNews.
“The expectations for that organization will focus on those two aspects initially. I don’t think he needs to be a playoff team in his first or second year, but he must help the team develop, create an identity, and grow patiently, purposefully, and consistently. I believe he’s very much built for that.”
“One of the reasons I strongly recommended him is not only because we’ve known each other for years but also because his European background fits well with the evolving NBA landscape. The NBA is increasingly appreciative of and aligned with the European style of play. He fits that very well. He’s a great communicator and a relationship guy, and that’s going to help him a lot in his new role.”
The Nets’ point guard is also all but assured of reaching the knockout stages.
Dennis Schroder, who earned MVP in leading Germany to a win in last year’s FIBA World Cup, has them 2-0 in the Olympics as well.
Schroder had 20 points on 7-for-13 shooting and 4-for-9 from deep with six assists in a win over Brazil.
Host France is the other unbeaten in Group B, and face Schroder at 11:15am on Friday.
After Brooklyn re-signed Nic Claxton, details of the center’s contract have emerged and the four-year deal looks even more team-friendly than assumed.
It’s heavily front-loaded, with the Nets rebuilding.
Claxton earns $28.4 million this upcoming season and $26.1 million the next.
But over the back end of the deal, he’ll make a total of $45.5 million.
With the salary cap ballooning thanks to the huge TV pact, Claxton’s salary decreases from 16.8 percent of the cap per Spotrac in the first year to just 11.5 and 9.5 percent in the last two.
That puts him on par with players like Grayson Allen, Deni Avdija, Dort and Kevin Huerter, as well as vets like Tim Hardaway Jr., Caris LeVert and Klay Thompson.
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