Atkinson to take things from Spurs, Knicks, Hawks

BROOKLYN — It was an afternoon of beginnings at the brand new training center in Sunset Park, home to what the Brooklyn Nets are hoping will be better days in the franchise's history than its recent past.

A pair of those people the Nets are relying on to pull them out of the franchise's current morass — 21st Nets coach in team history Kenny Atkinson, and relatively new general manager Sean Marks — met with the media on Monday afternoon to outline their plans.

"Kenny has been one of the most respected coaches in the league," Marks said. "He's always been known for his player development. But although that was only a part of it for us. It was, above all else, his passion for the job."

A familial vibe surrounded the new room, with many of Atkinson's family members in the crowd on the left-hand side of the room, applauding boisterously as the media took notes and asked questions on the right.

Atkinson spoke at length about his kinship with Marks, marking the kind of collaboration between coach and general manager that has often been missing over the past few seasons in Brooklyn.

"This is a guy I wanted to work with on a daily basis," Atkinson said. "I'm excited to get in the trenches with Sean and build a strong, sustainable club ... There are certain people that you gravitate toward. So quite honestly, I said, 'I want to pursue this.'"

Atkinson also spoke of the need to bring in a strong staff, happily endorsing Jacque Vaughn as one of his top assistants. While some first-time head coaches might worry about a coach-in-waiting — Vaughn has that experience with the Orlando Magic — Atkinson said how eagerly he, personally, approached and lobbied Vaughn.

The sound of New York is unmistakable in Atkinson's voice, evidence of his rise from high school star at St. Anthony's in Long Island, his "Jersey guy" college coach Dick Tarrant, right through to the present. If the small plates of food available at the posh pre-conference meal can be considered authentic Brooklyn, so, too, is Atkinson's mode of conversation and style.

Atkinson gave clues into the kind of coach he'd be in the years ahead, though they sometimes seemed to conflict. His most recent boss with the Hawks, Mike Budenholzer, drew mention, one specific style of play, as did his former boss with the New York Knicks, Mike D'Antoni, the latter shoutout perhaps a welcome message to free-agent-to-be Jeremy Lin.

"Mike, as many of us know here, changed the way the game is played," Atkinson said. "I learned so much from him."

But at the heart of it, this is a San Antonio Spursian tree — Marks and Atkinson met in San Antonio half a decade ago, and Marks, formerly of the Spurs, and Atkinson sounded remarkably in sync, remarkable compared to some recent coach/GM pairings in Brooklyn.

"Definitely," Atkinson said. "But it's gonna be different. With the Hawks, Mike Budenholzer learned from the Spurs. But different market, we changed a lot of things. It's similar here. I have the luck of knowing Sean, who'd been with the Spurs, and doing things a little differently in Atlanta. The tough part will be figuring out how to put that together."

One tough part, that is. So will the coming years with a scarcity of draft picks. And then there's the biggest challenge of all — getting tickets for all his family members.

Or as Atkinson put it, "Mom, looking forward to seeing you come in on the LIRR."