Brooklyn Nets Coaching Candidates

Lionel Hollins
Lionel Hollins (AP)

Jerry Sloan

Jerry Sloan
Jerry Sloan, whose tie game remains serious. (AP)

LATEST: Jerry Sloan met with the Milwaukee Bucks regarding their open coaching position, two sources told Sam Amick of USA TODAY Sports, adding that while the Nets expressed interest in Sloan, a “a reunion with former Jazz point guard Deron Williams is not on the horizon.” The 8th-seeded Bucks finished the season 37-45 before losing in four straight to the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs.

The latest: Jerry Sloan has said he’d “definitely listen” if the Brooklyn Nets called, and Deron Williams has said he’d “love” to play with Sloan again. The Nets are reportedly uninterested in his services.

Update: Sloan told Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune that he’s received exploratory calls from “a couple” of teams to gauge his interest in a return to coaching. Sloan added that Brooklyn is not one of those teams, but at his “advanced age” of 71, would like to return to a team that has a chance of winning immediately.

The skinny: Sloan retired from coaching after 23 years with the Utah Jazz in February 2011, shortly before the Jazz traded Deron Williams to the Nets for Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, and two first-round draft picks. Sloan is best known for his simplified pick-and-roll flex offense that he ran with success for nearly two decades with Karl Malone & John Stockton, before doing the same with Williams and Carlos Boozer. His offense is predicated on constant movement, both of the ball and the players, and can change in an instant depending on the defense’s decision-making.

Sloan has admittedly clashed with players, and there were rumors that his clashes with Deron Williams were a factor in his decision to retire (rumors that both Sloan and Williams tried to quell).

Important blog about his hands: Sloan Hands

The verdict: Like Larry Brown, Sloan is one of the league’s great coaches, and the Nets would be lucky to have him on the sidelines. But it’s hard to imagine Sloan as a long-term solution as a coach, especially since he retired citing fatigue two years ago.

Next: Jeff Van Gundy

Larry Brown | Mike Dunleavy | Lionel Hollins | Phil Jackson | Nate McMillan | Doc Rivers | Brian Shaw | Scott Skiles | Jerry Sloan | Jeff Van Gundy | Stan Van Gundy