OCEANSIDE, Calif. — The same day Robert Saleh ended his tenure as New York's coach, Jordi Fernandez began coaching.
Fernandez played for the NBA in front of a packed FrontWave Arena crowd that included team owner Joe Tsai and his wife Clara Wu Tsai during the Nets' 115-106 loss to the Clippers in the preseason opener. He made his head coaching debut.
It's just the preseason opener, and every exhibition season comes with a public service warning that these games mean little.
Especially since there are vacancies on both rosters, with the Nets missing starting center Dayron Sharp and four reserves and the Clippers without star Kawhi Leonard.
Cam Thomas led the Nets with 12 points and Keon Johnson had 14 points off the bench.
However, the talent-starved Nets were unable to take advantage of the Big 3 era of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but were forced to succumb to former star James Harden, who scored a team-high 14 points in the first half alone. Looking at it was a chilling experience. I don't bite.
The Nets are embarking on a rebuild and have Fernandez at the helm.
“Obviously, this is my first game as head coach of the Nets, and it's always special. Of course, I'll always remember it being here,” Fernandez said. “As I said to the players, game day is great. It's an opportunity to compete and we can do it together. So it's a good day to start this. And , we have to make sure we bring it every day and every night.
“I'll never forget this game. It's unique. …Now I get to be the first head coach of a team that gave me an opportunity and believed in me. It's very special.” So…it's another day I'll never forget.”
In some ways, this game was a microcosm of the Nets.
Fernandes, who had just taken over as head coach of the Canadian national team, was shrouded in mystery about his style.
But there was at least a vague idea of how he wanted to play when healthy.
The Nets wanted to escape, so they scored 27 fast break points. Their half-court offense is still developing and they need to be successful in transition.
Fernandes was clear about what he wanted.
“Defensively, we put pressure on the ball and were very physical,” Fernandez said. “And offensively, how many times can we get into position and run fast and make plays? Not just moving the ball, but moving our bodies. How hard we play determines how good we get.” Masu.
“They've performed incredibly well in training camp so far in their purpose, work ethic and cohesion. And that's what I want to see. I know it's not perfect. I'm not looking for perfection. I'm just looking for that goal and getting 1% better. So if I come here tonight and get even 1% better, I'll be happy. Then I'll move on to the next game. .”
The start was terrible.
The Nets scored the first 12 points of the game.
Harden's three made it 9-0, and Terrence Mann's free throws put them in a 12-0 hole just 2:49 into the game.
The Nets were out until Ben Simmons found Dorian Finney-Smith for a powerful dunk with 8:56 left in the first.
But the Nets still trailed by 18 points, 23-5 on Norman Powell's jumper and 26-8 on Mann's pull-up moments later.
However, the Nets were without Claxton and backup Sharpe, forcing Simmons to play out of center and trailing 35-18 at the end of the first quarter.
But once Simmons was able to play his natural point guard position as a secondary, the Nets regained their energy.
After falling behind 40-29 on Amir Coffey's hook shot, the Nets went on a 16-1 run to get back into the game.
Fernandez preached competitiveness, and veteran Dorian Finney-Smith showed his competitiveness by diving to the floor to pick up a loose ball and scoring on a drill three seconds later to pull the Nets within 42-40. Ta. Cam Johnson capped the run for a 45-42 lead.
However, once both teams returned to their benches, the Nets were outscored 21-4 on third and fourth points.
They led 74-67 thanks to the efforts of Jalen Wilson and Wan-Wan, but they were unable to stop the Clippers' flow and fell back to double digits.
Still, Fernandez, who served as the Cavaliers' G League coach for two years from 2014-16 while Ty Lue was a Cavaliers assistant, impressed his former colleague.
“Jordi did a great job. [Canada] Everyone was playing hard. They understand what he was running and what exactly he wanted to do offensively and defensively,” Lue said. “He demanded of all those players, you see when you see him on the floor, he's coaching the players, attacking the players. So he's really good I did my job.”
