Nothin' But Nets
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Brooklyn Nets: Kenny Atkinson Brings Experience to Franchise

By Malcolm Ireland

May 16, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets new head coach Kenny Atkinson during press conference at HSS Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
May 16, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets new head coach Kenny Atkinson during press conference at HSS Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 13, 2015; New York, NY, USA; World Team head coach Kenny Atkinson of the Atlanta Hawks (far right) instructs center Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz (27), guard Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks (34), guard Andrew Wiggins of the Minnesota Timberwolves (22), and forward Nikola Mirotic of the Chicago Bulls (44) during the second half against the U.S. Team at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 13, 2015; New York, NY, USA; World Team head coach Kenny Atkinson of the Atlanta Hawks (far right) instructs center Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz (27), guard Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks (34), guard Andrew Wiggins of the Minnesota Timberwolves (22), and forward Nikola Mirotic of the Chicago Bulls (44) during the second half against the U.S. Team at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

Atkinson’s most recent coaching position was with the Atlanta Hawks. In Atlanta, Atkinson was an assistant under Mike Budenholzer. Budenholzer has been very successful as head coach in Atlanta. This is mostly due to where Budenholzer started his coaching career. He started as a video coordinator for the San Antonio Spurs. In 1996, Budenholzer was bumped up to assistant coach, and he served as an assistant for 17 seasons under Gregg Popovich. Budenholzer’s Hawks play very similar to the Spurs and for good reason. The team focuses on ball movement and team play. Similarly, the Hawks have incorporated this into their system and have had much success since hiring Budenholzer.

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Anything Atkinson learned during his time with the Hawks is very valuable. Although he may not have learned from Popovich himself, Budenholzer is the next best person. If Atkinson can take what the Hawks do and tweak it to fit his roster, he will be a great coach for the Nets.

With that said, there is no doubt that Atkinson will struggle this season. He is going into a situation that is nothing like Atlanta. The Nets have only one All-Star player. On top of that, the Nets are in a rebuild. For Atkinson, this means developing all their young players. Atkinson’s goal should be to try to determine which lineups work together. Another thing that would benefit Atkinson is to play fast-paced, which would be a huge change from what he is used to. With this team though, he needs to take advantage of having so much youth. Luckily, the players on this roster somewhat resemble the players he worked with in Atlanta.

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