NBA rumors: Sean Marks to return as Nets GM, lead coaching search despite letdown season (2024)

Despite a disappointing season during which his team posted the NBA's ninth-worst record, Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks is not going anywhere. The eighth-year GM is set to return next season and hire the team's next head coach, according to a report from the New York Post.

After firing Jacque Vaughn and promoting Kevin Ollie to interim head coach at the All-Star break, Marks insisted he and owner Joe Tsai remain in lockstep.

“Joe [Tsai] and I have always been in complete partnership,” he said. “Joe and I will make the decision [of hiring the next head coach] and he has given me no reason to believe that I won't be able to make that decision. We’ll take a lot of factors into account as we make this. We’ve got time, we’re not gonna be in a rush, there’s gonna be a robust search, and by the end of this I have no doubt that we’ll find the best person fit for this job.”

The partnership remains intact entering the offseason despite a dissapointing finish to the 2023-24 campaign. Marks said he wanted to see “movement” toward a playoff berth after the midseason coaching change. That never came to fruition, though, with Brooklyn posting an 11-16 record while ranking 24th in offense and 15th in defense under Ollie.

Sean Marks' track record with the Nets

With no draft capital or premium talent upon taking over the Nets, Marks earned league-wide praise for building a playoff team in less than three years. His scrappy 2018-19 squad attracted Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, who he signed during the ensuing offseason with two max slots he opened by manipulating the salary cap. Marks parlayed his young players and future draft picks into a trade for James Harden, creating what many considered the most talented big three in NBA history.

However, injuries derailed a 2021 playoff run, and Irving's refusal to comply with New York's workplace COVID-19 mandate derailed the following season. With Irving ineligible to play in home games and Durant injured, Harden asked for a trade at the 2022 deadline. Durant and Irving followed suit over the next year, leaving the Nets with Ben Simmons' monstrosity of a contract and a cohort of veteran wings.

Despite his star trio asking for trades within a year, Marks has spoken confidently about his ability to attract marquee names again.

“They feel they can recruit players. That 100% is their belief… They believe that guys will want to play in New York… Between talking with agents and players, they have a feeling they can attract players.”

–@NYPost_Lewis on Nets' plans

Full pod here: https://t.co/Ky6TJpzOki pic.twitter.com/nJBjM2uKor

— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) March 22, 2024

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Sean Marks preparing for fourth coaching search with the Nets

Marks has a proven track record as an elite drafter, finding Caris LeVert (20th), Jarrett Allen (22nd), Nic Claxton (31st) and Cam Thomas (27th) with late first-round selections. He's produced similar results with free-agent signings, plucking Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris from the G-League, who both turned into starting-caliber players..

However, Marks has had less success identifying the coach to lead his team, one of the most critical tasks of a GM. His most exhaustive coaching search produced his first and best hire: Kenny Atkinson. However, after signing Durant and Irving, he fired Atkinson in 2019, a decision many believe his star duo played a significant role in.

Marks then hired Steve Nash, who underwhelmed in his first coaching gig. After reports that Brooklyn intended to hire Ime Udoka following his controversial exit from the Boston Celtics, he backtracked and elevated Vaughn to replace Nash.

The Brooklyn Nets plan to hire Ime Udoka as their new head coach, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Boston granted the Nets permission to speak to Udoka and will allow him to leave freely, sources said. https://t.co/lFeHY8hUiS

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 1, 2022

With Vaughn out the door, Marks will now hire his fourth head coach, a rarity for a GM with such little playoff success.

While the Nets have severely underwhelmed this season, they're positioned with a treasure trove of draft assets from the Durant and Irving deals. Brooklyn has seven tradable first-round picks, including three distant unprotected firsts from the Phoenix Suns (2027, 2029) and Dallas Mavericks (2029). They also project to have over $40 million in cap space after Ben Simmons' contract expires next season.

With known aspirations to lure another star to the Nets, those avenues to improve the team will be at the center of the Marks' pitch to prospective coaches. After a season that drew calls for his firing from a loud segment of the fanbase, a failure in either pursuit will represent the end of the GM's time in Brooklyn.