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It was weird enough to see Steve Nash get hired as a head coach in Brooklyn, but now he’s added another piece to his coaching staff from his Suns days, and it keeps getting weirder.
Amar’e Stoudemire will reportedly join the Nets’ coaching staff, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Six-time All-Star Amar’e Stoudemire has agreed to a deal to join new Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash’s staff as an assistant coach, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Nash and Stoudemire starred together in Phoenix.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 23, 2020
The duo, of course, played together for six seasons in Phoenix, forming the backbone of the Seven Seconds or Less teams that changed the NBA. Nash has long praised Stoudemire’s underrated basketball IQ and work ethic despite Stoudemire’s reputation for being pretty laid back and occasionally hard to get through to.
In a follow-up tweet, Charania reported that Stoudemire’s focus in Brooklyn will be player development.
Stoudemire and Nash formed the league's lethal pick-and-roll duo for years in Phoenix -- one Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are sure to duplicate. Stoudemire will focus on player development in Brooklyn, sources said. https://t.co/t1eXm2TuSZ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 23, 2020
It’s cool to see Nash put his own spin on this staff right away, though it will be interesting to see how Stoudemire takes to coaching. After his NBA career was shortened by injury, Stoudemire has focused his efforts on the team he owns in Israel, Hapoel Jerusalem. Most recently, Stoudemire had signed with the powerhouse Maccabi Tel Aviv (Dragan Bender’s old team), leading Maccabi to the Israeli League championship and winning Finals MVP.
Stoudemire is clearly still a difference-maker as a player, so jumping ship to coach under Nash shows the bond the two have as well as potentially Stoudemire’s interest in getting into coaching in addition to ownership.
No matter what comes of this staff, though, it will surely be exciting for Suns fans to see the pick-and-roll duo on the Nets’ bench next season.