The Brooklyn Nets will be hoping to usher in a new era of dominance with the likes of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the lines. But this isn't the first time a star acquisition is expected to change the franchise's fortunes. The Nets have had several big names join them over the last decade and most have flattered to deceive. Among them is 3-time All-Star Deron Williams.
Deron Williams recalls inconsistent phase with Brooklyn Nets
Deron Williams joined the Brooklyn Nets back in early 2011, after an extremely successful run with the Utah Jazz. The Nets thought that they had their main guy to build around but a run of ankle injuries severely impacted his tenure.
In an interview with the New York Times, Williams explained why things didn't work for him in Brooklyn.
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"I started getting injured. I started losing confidence. And so it started eating at me. I started losing my love for the game when I was there because it was just like, everything was going wrong.”
Deron Williams did lead the Brooklyn Nets to the playoffs thrice but the franchise didn't make much noise in the postseason.
Deron Williams unhappy with too many coaching changes at Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets had come under new ownership just a season prior to Deron Williams joining the team. As such, the franchise was prone to several changes in the years that followed and there was little consistency with regards to personnel, especially on the coaching side of things. Williams lamented the same. He explained:
“It was tough from a basketball standpoint. For me, looking back, I played for four coaches in [four and a half] years. As a point guard, you’re talking about a point guard who is coming from this system [with the Jazz], that’s run perfectly, that’s coached perfectly, and then, now I’m learning a new offense with new players every single year. And there was just no consistency. Hard to get into a rhythm.”
The Brooklyn Nets will be hoping that their two current stars Kyrie and KD don't have to face any bottlenecks as they hope to lead the franchise to a title run.
Also read: Predicting the Brooklyn Nets' Starting 5 for the 2020-21 NBA Season
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