Nets Notebook: The culture shift in Brooklyn is real

Culture had been in short supply for the Nets and Knicks for a while. Both franchises have had their moments in the spotlight. Brooklyn made itself a real contender in the Eastern Conference with its Big 3 a few years back. Last year, New York enjoyed its first 50-win season since 2012-13. But the Nets have not appeared in the NBA Finals since 2003, the Knicks since 1999, and an inability to establish a winning culture has been one of the biggest reasons why.
The Knicks have steadily improved in each season under Tom Thibodeau since he was first hired as head coach. His hard-nosed mentality has been adopted by his team. And the Nets could be experiencing something similar under Jordi Fernandez. Brooklyn’s never-quit attitude has been on display in each game this season, and it starts with their first-year head coach.
Establishing a winning culture has been Fernandez’s No. 1 priority since he was hired in April. He came in with a plan, and while it is still early, so far, he has executed it flawlessly. These Nets have an identity, a culture has been established, and that is the first step in getting back into contention.
“I think that comes with what you do in your day to day, right?” Fernandez said. “Are you willing to get 1% better every day? Are you willing to build relationships with your players? Are you willing to accept your role and not just accept it, but embrace it?
“You know, those things are at the end of the day, what’s going to keep building our identity. Like I said before, so far, I’m very proud of the guys. You guys can see the games and how these guys fight. Again, if the mistakes are honest mistakes, we’re trying, it’s all good, but you guys don’t see the day to day, what they do in practice and how they interact with each other, and I’m very happy with how the process is going so far. We’re not close yet, but we’ve made progress. So, you know, it’s just the beginning, and we have a plan.”
The Nets have been on fire when it comes to coaches challenges this season, and Fernandez credited the team’s success in that regard to assistant Connor Griffin. He called Griffin “the best challenge coach in the NBA”. Ahead of Sunday’s game against the Knicks, Fernandez explained some of the team’s process when it comes to using challenges.
“We have a lot of rules,” Fernandez said. “Obviously I don’t want to share it, because I don’t want other teams to steal our rules. But yeah, we have a system in place with analytics. And, you know, analytics helps and then the coaches. And obviously the goal is to win every single challenge, because that’s a competitive advantage. Not a lot of times you can do it. A lot of times teams, as you know, they do it if one of your main players gets in foul trouble, you want to protect, right, all that stuff. But realistically if you want to use challenges to win possessions and to take points, and when their points are involved it’s different, there’s no points involved, and so and so forth. So again, we have rules. We agree on certain things with our analytics group, with Connor, he has more time, he has the film. And then between all of us as a team, we make those decisions. And so far, I’m very happy how we’ve done.”
Nets forward Trendon Watford finally made his season debut on Sunday after missing extended time because of a hamstring strain suffered in training camp. While the 24-year-old was itching to get back on the court, Fernandez did not want him to push too hard, which was understandable considering how many games he had missed.
“Just don’t overthink it,” Fernandez said. “When you’re open, shoot it. Get to your spots. Defensively, pressure the ball. Don’t be too focused on, ‘Am I going to make shots?’ I don’t care about that. Just feel good. You’re going to help the team, whatever the minutes are.”