The Brooklyn Nets fired Avery Johnson with the team reeling at 14-14, replacing him with assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo and slapping him with the interim tag. However, 13 games and an 11-2 run later, the Nets will likely let the fiery Carlesimo ride out the season before re-evaluating their coaching needs. (You don’t need a source to tell you that one, though for whatever it’s worth, I’ve heard this from two Nets officials.)
But before they re-evaluate, we must evaluate. Why are the Nets so much better? What’s changed? Ahead are five theories on why the Nets are so much better under P.J. Carlesimo than they were under Avery Johnson.
