The Nets reportedly have their replacement for Ime Udoka on Steve Nash's coaching staff.
According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Nets are finalizing a deal to hire David Vanterpool, who has spent the last two seasons as the Associate Head Coach in Minnesota, to join the staff.
Vanterpool, 48, began his career as an assistant in Russia for CSKA Moscow, the team he finished his 12-year international career with. He was also the Thunder's director of player personnel for two seasons (2010-12), then spent seven seasons on the bench alongside Terry Stotts in Portland.
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As a player, Vanterpool played just 22 NBA games with the 2000-01 Wizards, but his career spanned the NBA, ABA, and CBA, as well as China, Italy, and Russia. He won two Russian League and Russian Cup titles, as well as the 2006 EuroCup, in his two seasons with Mikhail Prokhorov's CSKA Moscow (2005-07), a CBA title with the 1999-2000 Yakima Sun Kings, the 2001-02 ABA title with the Kansas City Knights, and both the Italian League and Supercup crowns in 2004-05 with Montepaschi Siena.
Vanterpool is known as a defensive guru, with Portland's Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum and Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns speaking out on social media about his influence when he was up for both the Rockets and Wolves' jobs in recent years.
He will take the spot vacated on Nash's staff when Udoka became the head coach of the Boston Celtics. So far, Udoka is the only Nash assistant to leave in an off-season full of flux; Mike D'Antoni, Nash's lead assistant, was a top candidate for the Blazers' job that ultimately went to Chauncey Billups, while Jacque Vaughn was a top target in the Pelicans' coaching search before pulling his name out of the running.
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