The Brooklyn Nets have named Jason Kidd as their new head coach, as announced Wednesday night.
"This is a tremendous opportunity to be named head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, and it's a role I have been studying for over the course of my playing days," said the 40-year-old Kidd, who retired as a player earlier this month. "Championship teams are built on being prepared, playing unselfishly and being held accountable, and that's how I expect to coach this basketball team. I am truly excited about this next phase of my basketball career."
According to ESPN, Kidd signed a three-year deal and will be introduced as head coach at 2 p.m. ET during a news conference Thursday at the Barclays Center.
Kidd's hiring came after the Nets met with Brian Shaw for five hours Wednesday. Sources say that although Shaw had been one of the leading candidates for the Nets for some time and made a strong presentation for the job during Wednesday's interview, Kidd convinced Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov that he was ready to jump directly into the coaching chair on an NBA bench despite not having had prior coaching experiences.
"Jason Kidd has a long and legendary history with the Nets and with the city of New York," Prokhorov said. "He has the fire in the belly we need, and has achieved as a player everything the Brooklyn Nets are striving to achieve. We believe he will lead us there. Welcome home, Jason."
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