How Jordi Fernandez’s no-nonsense approach has changed the Nets culture

Noah Clowney was having a decent night last Wednesday in Philadelphia. The second-year forward started the Nets’ third preseason game of 2024-25 at center in place of Ben Simmons, who had been filling in for an injured Nic Claxton throughout exhibition play.

Even though the 20-year-old was playing out of position, he still held his own in the frontcourt against a pair of stronger, more experienced players in Andre Drummond and Guerschon Yabusele. He had nine points and six rebounds by halftime and had to be feeling good about his performance at that point.

But Jordi Fernandez did not allow Clowney to get complacent. The Nets’ first-year head coach pulled him aside for a critical teaching moment just 19 seconds into the third quarter. During the 76ers’ first possession of the second half, Clowney was guarding too deep in the paint and left his man, Yabusele, open in the corner.

Clowney barely contested the shot. Yabusele knocked down the deep trey and extended Philadelphia’s lead to nine.

Fernandez, fuming on the sideline, immediately called a timeout and chewed Clowney out. He did not praise Clowney for his all-around performance after Brooklyn’s 117-95 loss. Instead, he publicly criticized Clowney for not fighting hard enough. Veteran guard Shake Milton, who finished the night with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, was not clear of Fernandez’s wrath, either. Milton played well on offense but did not give his all on defense.

Those are non-negotiables in Fernandez’s court.

“The same things he tells [the media] is what he’s going to tell me,” Clowney said. “You can take it one of two ways. At this level, you’re either going to get better and learn from it or you’re going to go the other way.”

This may be Fernandez’s first head coaching gig in the NBA, but the 41-year-old served as an assistant under Mike Brown in Cleveland and Sacramento helped build a championship contender in Denver under Mike Malone, and led Team Canada to a fifth-place finish at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. He understands what is required to win and will not accept anything less than a player’s best.

Veteran players have spoken at length about how tough Fernandez was on the team throughout training camp. The physical intensity. The relentless conditioning. Fernandez’s strict, but fair approach. Dennis Schröder said this was his toughest preseason in his 11 years in the league.

“European coaches are a little bit crazy,” Schröder said. “I’m crazy too, so it matches.”

Fernandez is not the type of coach who will entertain nonsense. He is hellbent on holding his players to a higher standard, regardless of how trivial a situation may seem. And if the Nets’ goal is to return to playoff contention sooner rather than later, Fernandez appears to be the exact type of leader this rebuilding franchise needs.

Extreme change requires a vastly different mindset. It requires honestly and direct communication. Fernandez has made his expectations clear from Day 1. His players have responded exactly how they should.

“He means what he says and everything,” Jalen Wilson said. “When it comes to on the court, off the court, how he is as a person, it’s direct and it’s exactly what you want out of a leader. When it comes to someone who wants to see you improve on and off the floor, especially when we’re trying to build something here, he’s a guy that tells you how he feels and tells you how he wants us to play. And I appreciate that, just coming from Kansas, and Coach Self just being straightforward, that directly works for me. So, I like it.”

Fernandez and the Nets will open the 2024-25 season against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday at State Farm Stadium. It will not only be Fernandez’s official head coaching debut, but also the first time Brooklyn’s new-look culture will be put to the test.

“[We’re] really embracing the culture that we’re trying to build as in coming to work every day, playing hard, working hard, and just living with the results,” Cam Thomas said. “Win or lose, just coming here the same every day, keep the energy up, and everything will fall in line. So, I think it’s been great so far. It’s been good and we’ve really been embracing it as a team and coaches [have, too].”