Steve Nash called Igor Kokoskov “an offensive encyclopedia” early in training camp. The Brooklyn Nets hired the assistant coach this summer to lead an offensive overhaul with the arrival of point guard Ben Simmons.
Kokoskov has coached in the league for over 20 years, spending four seasons with Nash with the Phoenix Suns from 2008-12 before serving as the organization's head coach. Now working together on Brooklyn's staff, Nash said the veteran coach has been a valuable addition as the team revamps an iso-heavy offense from last season.
“He helped me in the summer to really plan and organize how we want to disseminate our sets and our actions,” Nash said of Kokoskov. “So he’s been fantastic as far as just helping me get clarity and organization, and bounce ideas off him to start to build something.”
Several offensive changes were noticeable through Brooklyn's first two preseason games. The Nets implemented far more off-ball screens and actions than last season. The goal? More ball movement and less standing around watching Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Take the play below for example. The Nets run a veer screen with Day'Ron Sharpe screening for Simmons before ejecting to set a pindown for Joe Harris. On the opposite side, Harris sets a back screen for Royce O'Neale before coming off Sharpe's pindown. The simultaneous actions lead to confusion from Philadelphia and a wide-open three for Brooklyn's best shooter.
Brooklyn has also implemented some Spain pick and roll, something they did not show last season. The set includes a pick and roll with a third player setting a back screen for the roll man following the initial pick.
Another Spain PnR based action as an ATO. 45 cut by Joe Harris to get himself into backscreen position. "Chicago" action (pindown into DHO) for Patty Mills. The timing's off, but the idea's there. They'll work on this in practice for sure.
The Igor Kokoškov influence is showing. pic.twitter.com/VCEVHRcOBh
— Joe Viray (@JoeVirayNBA) October 4, 2022
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't remember the Nets running Spain p&r last season. pic.twitter.com/2TsHHxfxUV
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) October 4, 2022
These actions are not just a wrinkle in the offense; they are the foundation upon which it is being built. Nash said the team wanted to implement more movement and screening last season, but a lack of commitment to the philosophy prevented it.
“We wanted to do a lot of that last year,” Nash said via Matt Brooks. “And for various reasons, we didn’t quite get the buy-in a lot of times. So this year, we’ve got a group that seems bought in, that’s willing to work with different philosophies, different concepts offensively, we’ve been putting in more offense.”
The Nets led the league in isolation frequency last season, per NBA.com/stats. Durant carried a massive offensive burden with Irving absent early in the year. A January knee injury sidelined Durant and the team later imploded with James Harden forcing his way to the Philadelphia 76ers. With Simmons replacing Harden, the Nets hope to avoid the iso-heavy offenses of past seasons. And Nash has been complimentary of the team's commitment to building a sustainable style of play thus far.
“We’ve had such disparate kinds of teams throughout the last two years, it’s been really hard,” he said. “Hopefully this year we can prevent any issues with the adversity that comes or doesn’t come and be super organized and dialed into sustaining the way we want to play.”
“I think our roster can sustain more adversity this year,” he added.
Kyrie Irving's comments throughout training camp indicate he's on board with the stylistic change under Nash and Kokoskov. Irving has spoken frequently about a team-oriented offense, saying Brooklyn relied too heavily on isolation last season.
“That offense, when the ball sticks, it’s just not the greatest brand of basketball you can play,” Irving said early in camp. “We’re giving the defense some nights off when we just go one-on-one.”
“We’re aware of our talent offensively,” he said Monday. “But we want to make the game a lot easier for each other this year instead of utilizing all that energy just to get a bucket.”
After a tumultuous offseason, things appear to be changing in Brooklyn. Nash and Kokoskov acknowledged Simmons' return to his old form will take time. Same for Durant and Irving getting acclimated to the new offensive philosophy. However, unlike last season, Brooklyn's stars are said to be buying in.
Ten years removed from their time in Phoenix, Kokoskov is playing a huge role alongside Nash in a major offensive shift, one they hope will serve as a foundation in an all-in year for the Nets.
Follow Us
Subscribe