Fernandez filling assistant vacancies

New Nets coach reportedly adds Hetzel and Howard

April 30, 2024 John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Former Michigan head coach Juwan Howard has reportedly joined the Nets' staff as one of Jordi Hernandez's assistants. AP Photo by Carlos Osorio

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With the 2024 Summer Olympics looming, new Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez has been busy making arrangements to lead Team Canada while also picking out the coaching staff that will oversee Brooklyn’s roster while he’s trying to earn another medal in Paris.

According to several sources, including ESPN, Fernandez has added former Portland assistant Steve Hetzel as well as ex-University of Michigan coach and Fab Five member Juwan Howard to his bench for the 2024-25 season.

Fernandez, who helped Canada grab its first-ever medal, a bronze, in men’s basketball at last summer’s FIBA World Cup, has three months before the games begin in the City of the Lights.

Officially hired here in Brooklyn last Wednesday, Fernandez wasted no time talking about his coaching philosophies.

“You want to be process-oriented for a long time and sustain it,” Fernandez said in an exclusive YES Network interview. “If we win as a team, everyone is going to be OK.”

“We’re gonna fight really hard,” he added. “(The fans will) be proud watching a real competitive team. … A team that is connected so everybody sees that they do it together.”

Fernandez, of course, knows he can’t coach the Nets alone.

After spending the past two seasons as Mike Brown’s top associate in Sacramento, the 41-year-old Badalona, Spain native is picking an NBA staff for the first time.

Hetzel was first reported to be headed to our borough by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski even before Fernandez took the podium at Industry City’s HSS Training Center last week.

An assistant in Charlotte and Orlando previously, Hetzel spent the past three years on Chauncey Billups’ bench with the Trail Blazers. He coached the franchise’s 2022 Summer League squad to a championship.

Ex-Blazers assistant Steve Hetzel (center) is bringing his talents Downtown in the same role with the Brooklyn Nets. AP Photo by Erin Hooley

Howard, of course, broke into the NCAA alongside Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Austin Ray Jackson at Michigan in 1991, helping the Wolverines reach the Final Four in 1992 and 1993.

Following a 19-year NBA career that saw him win a pair of titles in Miami with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, the 51-year-old Chicago native earned Associated Press Coach of the Year honors at Michigan in 2021.

While Hetzel, a Michigan State alum who never played in the NBA, may be a candidate to lead the Nets’ Summer League team in Las Vegas in mid-July, Howard will be a valuable resource to every man on the roster based on his long and productive career.

He averaged 13.4 points and 6.1 rebounds in 1,208 regular-season games during stops in Washington, Dallas, Denver, Orlando, Houston, Portland and Miami.

After five years at his alma mater, Howard will be trying to help the Nets bounce back from their first non-postseason campaign in six years.

Fernandez is still formulating his coaching style and how he hopes to get the most out of the Nets’ roster.

“I don’t know if I’m good or bad, but I can tell you I try,” he said. “We gotta fight. That’s what’s going to make everybody proud.”

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While the Nets prepare for a busy offseason, the New York Liberty have already opened training camp in Downtown Brooklyn ahead of their much-anticipated 2024 campaign.

The team officially announced its preseason roster on Sunday, including a septet of returnees, spearheaded by starters Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart, Courtney Vandersloot, Sabrina Ionescu and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton.

Rookies Marquesha Davis, selected 11th overall in this year’s WNBA Draft at the Brooklyn Academy of Music earlier this month, figures to be the most-watched new addition in camp.

Second-round picks Esmery Martinez and Jessika Carter will also be at Barclays Center, along with training-camp signees Rita Igbokwe, Jaylyn Sherrod, Brianna Fraser and Stephanie Mawuli.

Sabrina Ionescu and the New York Liberty have opened training camp at Barclays Center ahead of their 2024 campaign. AP Photo by Darron Cummings

New York also revealed that Okako Adika, the Liberty’s 30th pick in 2023, will also be in Brooklyn until the team breaks camp next month ahead of its May 14 season opener in Washington.

The Liberty also brought in a trio of free agents, including Kennedy Burke, Leonie Fiebich and Ivana Dojkić, each of whom has international and WNBA experience.

The defending Eastern Conference champions will begin their exhibition slate on May 7 at Chicago before visiting Connecticut two days later.

New York will open the home portion of its regular-season schedule on May 18 at Barclays vs. Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.