Nets assistant Kevin Ollie commands respect in locker room
Kevin Ollie, then the head coach of Connecticut, reacts in the first half against Kansas during the second round of the 2016 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena on March 19, 2016 in Des Moines, Iowa. Credit: Getty Images/Jonathan Daniel
ATLANTA — The Nets needed a swift kick after their one-point loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Not in the backside, but in the gut where they felt the pain of that 129-128 defeat.
The coaches and players knew it was disappointing not because of the Hornets’ sub.500 record, but for how lackadaisical they looked. Enter assistant coach Kevin Ollie, who delivered a passionate pregame message before Saturday’s win over the Magic.
“He was fired-up for sure, I’ll say that,” Cam Thomas recalled Wednesday. “He got us hyped up and we came out physical, came out fast and got a win.”
Added Dorian Finney-Smith: “Oh man, I didn’t even play that game. I was ready to run through a wall after KO stopped talking.”
The Nets won by 28 points, their largest win of the season. As much as Mikal Bridges dominated with his 42-point game, including 26 points in the first quarter, Ollie was also praised for giving the Nets a verbal push they needed.
Ollie’s in his first year on the Nets bench but he’s no stranger to the sidelines. He served six seasons as UConn’s head coach, winning a national title in 2014, and two more as an assistant. Before being hired by the Nets this offseason, he spent two seasons in Atlanta with Overtime Elite as head of coaching and basketball development.
Add in his 13-year NBA career and he commanded instant respect from coach Jacque Vaughn’s staff. He also wasn’t afraid to speak his mind, something the players appreciated.
“Sometimes you just need that other voice, that kind of stern voice,” Spencer Dinwiddie said. “Everybody has that uncle that might be on him a little bit tougher than your pops, right? You tune out your pops sometimes but your uncle steps in and keeps you on track. So I think it’s that kind of vibe.”
Ollie also fits in with a Nets team that started this season as the ninth-youngest team. During his final season with the Thunder in 2009-10, he served as a mentor to players like Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green.
On a podcast in 2014, Durant told then-Grantland editor Bill Simmons that Ollie was a “game-changer” being a veteran on a young team. They were inspired by his professionalism and Durant said Ollie changed the whole culture around the team.
It wasn’t a surprise to Vaughn, who’s known Ollie since both grew up in the Los Angeles area. Vaughn recalled playing against Ollie as a high school freshman and later admiring his coaching style as both transitioned from their NBA playing days.
When he reshuffled his staff this summer, it was a no brainer to reach out to Ollie. Vaughn also was fine with Ollie speaking up to challenge his team.
“I let these guys be who they are and so someone’s pregame might be different than another guy’s,” Vaughn said. “And so be who you are, try to bring the best out of our team, and he did a great job of doing that against Orlando for sure.”
It’s another way Vaughn has further shaped the Nets in his image after taking over as interim coach last season before being promoted. As for Ollie, it won’t be the last time he speaks up to keep the Nets in check.
When that comes, the Nets are ready to listen knowing Ollie’s words carry significant weight.
“It's good to have another voice in the locker room where your head coach can sit down and just let somebody else take the stage.” Finney-Smith said. “That's the trust that we all need to build with each other. So that showed a great example of a coach that’s trusting, you know, the people around him.”
Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
