Devin Harris and Avery Johnson are ready to start over.
Harris, who clashed with Johnson when both were with the Mavericks, was on hand to welcome the new Nets coach at his introductory press conference today.
“We butted heads, we’ll probably still butt heads going forward,” Harris said. “But it’s all about winning and that’s the only thing we both respect.”
Brook Lopez also was on hand, and Johnson told him with a broad smile, “Don’t believe everything Devin tells you about me, I’m a nice guy.”
Harris, who even today referred to Johnson as a “dictator,” has said Johnson as coach was too hard on him when the point guard was beginning his career in Dallas. Later, Harris said Johnson’s tough love was, in hindsight, the best thing for him.
“Devin Harris is a better point guard (now), so I won’t have to dictate as much,” said Johnson, who acknowledged that it meant a lot to him that Harris attended.
Harris was a second-year backup on the team Johnson coached to the 2006 NBA Finals, where the Mavericks lost to the Heat.
“Obviously I would like to have a little more trust on the sideline,” Harris said. “I’m at a different point in my career. I think he has learned a lot from his absence in coaching and I think we will be a good fit.”
Nets president Rod Thorn said the coach with the best winning percentage in NBA history will bring “accountability” to a team that finished 12-70 last season.
“We’re going to have a (defensive) system from day one and hold each other accountable while supporting everyone,” Johnson said.
Johnson said he began to think about coaching the Nets during the middle of this season. He said the “sky is the limit” with young talented players on the roster, the third pick overall in next week’s NBA Draft, and a rich Russian owner who seemingly will spend money during next month’s free agent bonanza that might include LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
“I am all about the positive,” Johnson said. “I am about hard work. I am about dreaming. I have a big dream right now in my mind in terms of where this franchise can go and where we can take it and I see all the possibilities.”
With AP