P.J. Carlesimo could finally take a breath.
Since taking over for Avery Johnson on Dec. 27, the Nets’ interim coach has worked in a nearly two-week whirlwind, overseeing six games in nine days before finally having an off-day on Sunday and the team’s first practice at home yesterday.
Despite taking over a team that had lost five of six games, Carlesimo never felt the need to hit the reset button, but he’s glad he finally had a chance to hit pause in this rare, two-game week, starting tonight at Philadelphia.
“It was good to have a day where you could just spend as much time as you want looking at stuff, toying with ideas … doing all kinds of stuff that we just haven’t had a chance to do,” Carlesimo said after yesterday’s practice. “It’s been kind of on the fly since then or we’ve been on the road since then.
“Did a lot of reassessing [Sunday], [yesterday] was more points of emphasis and trying to clean up some stuff. We’ve been playing pretty good in games, which is great, but when you go as many days as we went with only one practice, you get slippage because you haven’t had a chance to work on stuff.”
Since the coaching change, the team’s energy has noticeably improved and the results have followed, winning five of six games since Carlesimo took over. The voice on the sideline changed, bellowing rather than shrieking, language coming out coarser, but center Brook Lopez said there hasn’t been much of a difference in the two coaching styles.
“A lot of it’s cosmetic, honestly,” Lopez said. “They’re both very vocal and demanding. I think they’re both defensive-minded coaches as well, so you are going to have similarities as well. [Carlesimo] is a big stickler as well.”
Deron Williams, who has cut his turnovers down from 3 to 1.7 per game and improved his 3-point shooting from 29.5 percent to 44 percent under Carlesimo, said he’s playing with more confidence, though he still is not quite where he wants to be. Helping him, though, has been the coach’s straightforward approach.
“He’s helped a lot,” Williams said. “He’s prepared us well. He’s been pretty straightforward with us with what we need to get better at, individually and as a group, and that makes us better.”
Carlesimo, who was fired from previous coaching stints at Portland, Golden State and Seattle/Oklahoma City, appreciated the praise, but knows too well that what’s relished today may be bemoaned tomorrow.
“The straightforward approach when you are not winning is, ‘He is too hard on us and he’s not a players’ coach;’ when you are winning, it’s good,” Carlesimo said. “I mean, I appreciate the comment. I appreciate the way the players have responded so far. … It just strikes me most of the people who have been successful in this league are able to let their players know when they are not doing something right.
“I think it’s more of the players being accepting of your particular style. You have to kind of be the way you are, and if the choice is direct or not direct, I am probably direct. We’ve said from the beginning if we are saying something, hear what I am saying, don’t hear how I am saying it. They’ve been very good, very good about it.”