Brooklyn Nets new head coach Steve Nash is adding a familiar face to his growing bench. It's former Phoenix Suns All-Star teammate Amar'e Stoudemire, who most recently played for Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Stoudemire, 37, is returning stateside to become an assistant coach for Nash's staff.
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
Amar'e Stoudemire and Steve Nash spent six seasons together with the Suns—Stoudemire's most successful seasons in the NBA. They parted when “STAT” signed a big deal with the New York Knicks in the summer of 2010. Nash later signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, ending his storied run in Phoenix.
Nash agreed to a deal to coach Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and the Nets last month—his first gig as a head coach in the NBA. Following retirement, the former two-time MVP consulted for the champion Golden State Warriors, where he grew a connection with Durant.
The Nets are expected to be title contenders next season with Durant and Irving leading the way and Nash coaching from the bench.
Durant missed the entire 2019-20 season recovering from his Achilles tear, so he will certainly be motivated to get back on top of the basketball world next season. Irving, meanwhile, put on a show in the 20 games he played in for the Nets in 2019-20. However, he suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery and wasn't able to play in the 2020 playoffs.
Without Durant and Irving, the Nets got swept by the Toronto Raptors in the first round of the playoffs at Walt Disney World.
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