Nets head coach Jordi Fernández comments on Nic Claxton’s role this season

Fernández discussed his vision for the Brooklyn big in his first availability of the season.

Sep 26, 2022; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Nic Claxton (33) poses for a photo during media day at HSS Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

New Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernández provided insight into how he views Nic Claxton’s role this upcoming season in his press conference on Thursday.

“I don’t want Nic to be Nikola [Jokic], I don’t need Nic to be Domas [Sabonis],” Fernández said. “I need Nic to be Nic, and me and the rest of the coaching staff will help him with giving him those touches where he can be more of a playmaker.”

The 31-year-old Spaniard had previously mentioned how retaining Claxton — who signed a 4-year, $100 million contract this summer — was a priority. In those comments in April, Fernández outlined his belief in Claxton being a Defensive Player of the Year-level stopper while also fleshing out his offensive responsibilities in dribble-handoff situations.

“Obviously, [Claxton is] a great player screening and rolling to the rim, so I’m not worried about him trying to be those [other] guys,” Fernández added. 

In Thursday’s press conference, the Team Canada head coach mentioned ball movement, paint touches and pace as some of the Nets’ core beliefs this year. He also hinted at being open to using Claxton alongside the returning Ben Simmons, pointing to how the two had shared the floor during the latter’s first season in Brooklyn.

“If you go back two years ago when Ben and Nic played together, their minutes together were very good,” Fernández said. “Last year, the sample size was very small. They only played ten games together out of the 15 [Simmons] played, so you cannot use those numbers.” 

However, as training camp starts Oct. 1, there is nothing truly set in stone. Fernández reiterated on Thursday that “going through the process” of evaluating and assessing players is part of his job as head coach. That includes how Claxton might play alongside other bigs, including second-year forward Noah Clowney. 

“We’re going to put [Clowney] in situations that either he’s comfortable or not comfortable,” Fernández said. “And then we’ll see how he reacts, but [that’s] the same for everybody else.”

“I think he can be very good at playing the four, very good at playing the five,” the Nets head coach added. “The kid can shoot. His size is multipositional. He’s got a lot of good qualities and abilities to be successful.” 

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