The Brooklyn Nets are in search of a new head coach after losing Game 7 to the Chicago Bulls and firing interim head P.J. Carlesimo, who took over after Avery Johnson was pushed out earlier in the year and one reason was because he didn't win a championship.
According to ESPN.com, Carlesimo spoke about his firing on the radio on the Dan Patrick Show on Monday and said that general manager Billy King was honest with him about expectations and he said that he felt King and the team wanted a championship or bust based on his job. Carlesimo said that he would not be receiving a new contract and he mentioned that even with winning Saturday, the team likely wanted a championship to sway the idea of keeping Carlesimo.
The Nets said they were not going to keep Carlesimo the day after the loss to the Bulls despite his 35-19 record after taking over for Johnson and Carlesimo mentioned later on ESPN Radio that the team may want to bring in a coach that more directly has their style, roster and ideas in mind, since they didn't directly hire him as coach in the first place.
Carlesimo mentioned, and media reports confirmed, that the Nets will try to go after former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson as an option, hoping to lure him to NY, where he once played for the Knicks. King said Sunday he would call Jackson to see if the 11-time champ has any interest in taking over the job and if he did, it is likely he would get the nod. While Carlesimo said he didn't feel that Jackson would end up returning, it is more likely than him going to the Cavs or the Bucks, which has also been floated.
Carlesimo said that Jackson would rather be in a Pat Riley type situation and since he can't do that in Brooklyn with King as the GM, he likely won't take the job. Other names that could jump in for Carlesimo includes Larry Brown as well as Jerry Sloan and the two Van Gundy brothers.
"I think short of winning a championship, it wouldn't have made any difference. I mean, Billy [King] was pretty candid," Carlesimo said during an interview on "The Dan Patrick Show" on Monday, a day after the Nets general manager notified the interim coach he would not be offered a new contract. "Had we won Saturday and advanced and were getting ready to play the Heat tonight, I think anything short of winning a championship wasn't going to change his mind or [ownership's] mind."
