Jacque Vaughn earned the first Coach of the Month honor of his coaching career in December.
BROOKLYN – The Brooklyn Nets and Head Coach Jacque Vaughn have agreed to a multi-year contract extension. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released.
“Jacque has made an immediate and immeasurable impact on our entire organization since assuming the role of head coach earlier this season,” said Nets General Manager Sean Marks. “On the court, he’s clearly demonstrated his leadership through his ability to connect and communicate at a very high level while displaying tremendous instincts for the game. As a person, they don’t come any better than Jacque. His character is impeccable, and there is not a better representative for our team and our borough. We are thrilled to have Jacque lead the Nets for years to come.”
🗣 It's official, #NetsWorld!
The Brooklyn Nets and Coach Vaughn have agreed to a multi-year contract extension. pic.twitter.com/Gw3ZHxoPxh
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 21, 2023
Vaughn took over as Brooklyn’s acting head coach on Nov. 1 and assumed the position on a full-time basis on Nov. 9. Since Nov. 1, Vaughn has guided the Nets to the fifth-best record in the league (32-19), trailing only Boston (38-15), Denver (37-15), Philadelphia (34-15) and Milwaukee (35-17), and the third-best road record in the league (16-11), behind only New York (17-9) and Boston (16-9). Under Vaughn’s command, Brooklyn is one of just three teams in the league to boast a top-10 offense (seventh in the league in offensive rating) and top-10 defense (ninth in the league in defensive rating), joining Boston and Philadelphia, and the Nets are the third-best team in the league in ‘clutch’ games since Nov. 1 (18-9), trailing only Milwaukee (19-6) and Boston (16-7). With Vaughn at the helm, Brooklyn has ranked in the top 10 in the league in 3-point percentage (first), blocks per game (first), field goal percentage (second), opponent field goal percentage (second), opponent points per game (fifth) and assists per game (eighth). Since Nov. 1, Brooklyn is the only team in the league to rank in the top five in both field goal percentage and opponent field goal percentage.
In December, Brooklyn posted a record of 12-1, representing the winningest month in franchise history and earning Vaughn the first Coach of the Month honor of his coaching career. Vaughn joined Jason Kidd as the only two men to play for the Nets and garner Coach of the Month honors as the franchise’s head coach, and he became just the sixth coach in Nets history to secure Coach of the Month honors. The Nets won 12 straight games spanning from Dec. 7 to Jan. 2, matching the longest winning streak in the league this season and marking the third-longest win streak in franchise history and the longest since a franchise-record-tying 14 straight wins in the 2005-06 season. Brooklyn also notched seven straight road wins spanning from Dec. 10 to Dec. 31, which stands as the second-longest road win streak in franchise history, trailing only an eight-game road win streak in the 2020-21 season, and the second-longest road win streak in the league this season, behind only an eight-game road win streak for Philadelphia.
Vaughn is in the midst of his second stint as head coach of the Nets after he led the team for 10 games in the 2019-20 season. He compiled a 7-3 record and led Brooklyn in the team’s first round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors in the Orlando Bubble. Across his two stints as Nets head coach, Vaughn is 39-22 (63.9 winning percentage), good for the second-best win percentage among head coaches in franchise history. Vaughn was originally hired by Brooklyn as an assistant coach ahead of the 2016-17 season and has spent the last seven seasons with the franchise. Prior to landing in Brooklyn, Vaughn served as head coach of the Orlando Magic for two-plus seasons (2012-15) and previously spent two seasons (2010-12) as an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs. In his final season before he joined the Nets, Vaughn served as a pro scout with the Spurs during the 2015-16 season. Vaughn enjoyed a 12-year playing career in the NBA after being selected with the 27th pick in the first round of the 1997 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz. In 776 career games with the Jazz, Hawks, Magic, Nets and Spurs, Vaughn averaged 4.5 points and 2.5 assists in 16.3 minutes per game. The Kansas alum made nine playoff appearances in his 12 seasons in the league and was a member of the 2007 NBA champion Spurs.
