Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez was tasked with turning around a team that was hoping to get back to competing for a playoff spot sooner than later when he took the job two years ago. Brooklyn hired Fernandez thanks in part to his unique background in player development and he explained how he has kept the team positive despite the past couple of seasons.
“I’ve learned that from especially Mike Brown, Michael Malone, and Sergey Scariolo is when somebody’s investing in you, you almost work, not just hard, but harder because you want to give back,” Fernandez said during his appearance on the “Nets Pod” when asked how he keeps the entire team positive amidst the losing. The Nets have posted a 46-118 record over the past two seasons combined, but you wouldn’t know it from the outside looking in.
“it’s like the feeling that somebody believes in you and that you’re responsible to do a job, it makes you have that willingness to do it right, do it for the team and for the right reasons,” Fernandez continued. “You want to grow and you want to take those steps, whatever your goals are in your career. But, I think also, as all of us, it’s not about one person. It’s about how we’re all organized and how we work together for the team to be the best that the team can be.”
Despite the fact that the Nets haven’t won much over the past two years, Fernandez has received praise from various coaches around the NBA for the way that he motivates his players to leave it all on the court. Fernandez and the rest of the coaching staff were signed to contract extensions this offseason so it seems like general manager Sean Marks believes in what this team is trying to accomplish under Fernandez.
“That’s something that stood out to me about Jordi and the coaching staff. They’ve embraced that. They’ve embraced a competitive culture. Guys know exactly where they stand, but it’s a fun environment,” Marks said during his exit interview in April. Fernandez has shown many times that he wants to win every game possible, but he also understands that keeping the environment positive is important.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets’ Jordi Fernandez discusses how team remains positive amid losing
Reporting by Sharif Phillips-Keaton, Nets Wire / Nets Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
