Sean Marks knows a thing or two about a winning culture. Coming from the San Antonio Spurs, Marks knows that a winning culture extends from the court to the staff behind-the-scenes and into the community. He knows it doesn’t happen overnight, but as far as he’s concerned, building a winning culture in Brooklyn started Friday, when he was introduced as the Nets General Manager.
“We’ve got a culture that needs to be set and that starts from day one,” Marks said. “The people in the organization are going to define this culture. It’s the hires that will be made over the next two, three, four months, those people are going to be the right people to push that culture, drive that culture. We’ll all be on the same page with a clear vision.”
Naturally, the next question at Marks’ introductory press conference was about his vision and what his plans are for the second half of the Nets season, which kicked off against the Knicks later that evening.
“The vision is to evaluate immediately,” the Auckland, New Zealand native said. “Evaluating the roster, the staff, the needs [of the team] and finding out what can be put in, in the meantime. By no means is this a wasted year. You can still get some things out of this year. We’ve got some really talented young guys on this team who need to be developed.”
The Nets had a list of eight candidates for their vacant GM job, but Marks was a unanimous choice by the search committee, which included owner Mikhail Prokhorov, CEO Brett Yormark and Onexim President Irina Pavlova. Three things stuck out to the group.
“His vast experience in playing coaching and management is pretty unique in the league,” said Nets Chairman of the Board Dmitry Razumov.
The third was likely the deciding factor.
“The culture of the team that Sean is coming from was too persuasive,” Razumov said.
Marks said he learned a lot from Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich and General Manager RC Buford and their collaborative relationship. He wants to replicate that type of coach-GM collaboration in Brooklyn.
“It’s going to be my vision, but the staff that I bring in, it’s a collaborative approach,” Marks said. “The relationship Pop and RC had together, nothing was done with the other not knowing. That’s important. It’s inclusive, it’s a partnership. That’s what I’ll be looking for, not only in a head coach, but the relationship I have with ownership and all my staff.”
As for his current relationship with ownership, Marks praised Prokhorov for his investments into the Nets new HSS Training Center and the Nets new D-League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, saying Prokhorov was spending his money in the right places.
With a General Manager at the helm of the Nets, the search for a head coach officially begins. Razumov, seated next to Marks at the podium, said the process to find a new head coach was going to be driven by the GM, but would be similar to the extensive process the GM search committee went through. Marks didn’t offer names, but said he wants a defensive-minded coach and didn’t rule out the possibility of an international bench boss.
“The world is such a small place now, we’ll be scouting everywhere,” Marks said. “We have scouts all over the world and we’re finding the best for Brooklyn and bringing them here.”
(The General Manager added that he plans on expanding the Nets staff.)
As for what he wants to see from his team, he envisions vets – whether they are star players or bench players – playing a role and helping develop the Nets young talent.
“You look for players that fit within your culture,” he said. “You can bring in a star player, but if he doesn’t fit in the vision with where you are going, that can derail the system as well. Whoever we bring in here, they are going to play team basketball, they are going to be competitive on the floor… things accustomed to where I’ve come from.”
He comes from a winning culture. He’s here to bring it to Brooklyn.