The time of Nick Nurse con Toronto Raptors has come to an end. The Raptors have fired Nurse after a 2022-2023 season that ended with a Play-In Tournament loss to the Bulls. The information, advanced by Shams Charania (The Athletic) and Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN), has already been made official.
Nurse first joined the Raptors as an assistant coach in 2013. He eventually replaced Dwane Casey as head coach in 2018 and led the franchise to its only title in his first season in charge.
Why did Nurse and the Raptors part ways? Everything we know about the situation.
Official statement from the Raptors on their coaching change: https://t.co/Ep4B8Ya4JF pic.twitter.com/dSw2BYkGll
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) April 21, 2023
Why did the Raptors fire Nick Nurse?
There were rumors throughout the season that 2022-2023 was going to be Nurse’s last with the Raptors.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported in late January that Nurse’s future with the Raptors “it was expected to focus” during the offseason. It had been a disappointing season up to that point for the Raptors, who were struggling to get above 50% wins.
“There has been frustration across the roster and staff with the team’s play at times this season.”Charania wrote, “and that has also been directed at Nurse at times, according to sources.”
Nurse raised some eyebrows a couple of months later when he said before a game against the 76ers that he was “it would take a few weeks to see where I am” after the season. He added that the 10 years he had with the franchise as an assistant coach and head coach “It’s a pretty good run.”
“When this season gets done, we’ll evaluate everything, and even personally, I’m going to take a few weeks to see where I’m at.”
Before tonight’s Raptors vs. Sixers game, Coach Nick Nurse spoke about his future with the organization. pic.twitter.com/ISKFjfrnCW
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 1, 2023
On April 7, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports wrote that Nurse’s comments “certainly suggested that he might leave the franchise of his own free will” and that the Raptors had been “openly evaluating” his current fit as a coach.
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Nick Nurse’s record as a coach
The Raptors achieved a balance of 227-163 in five seasons under Nurse, ranking him in the top 50 all-time in winning percentage among coaches. In addition to winning a championship in 2019, he was named Coach of the Year in the 2019-2020 season.
| Season | Record | Playoffs | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-2019 | 58-24 | 16-8 | champions |
| 2019-2020 | 53-19 | 7-4 | Conference Semifinals |
| 2020-2021 | 27-45 | – | Out of the Playoffs |
| 2021-2022 | 48-34 | 2-4 | First round |
| 2022-2023 | 41-41 | 0-1 | Loss in Play-in |
Who will be the next Raptors coach?
According to Wojnarowski’s information, Making Udoka is a strong-sounding name on the Raptors.
The 2021-2022 season was Udoka’s first as a head coach in the NBA. He led the Celtics to the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and finished fourth in Coach of the Year voting behind Monty Williams, Taylor Jenkins and Erik Spoelstra.
Joe Mazzulla replaced Udoka as Boston’s coach for the 2022-2023 season after Udoka earned a one-season suspension for violating team policies. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Udoka had “an inappropriate intimate and consensual relationship with a female team staff member.”
Udoka is said to be close with Raptors president Masai Ujiri.
Where will Nick Nurse coach in the future?
The Rockets seem like the most likely destination for him. Houston not only has an opening after not taking the option on Stephen Silas, but Nurse has ties to the organization. Before joining the Raptors as an assistant coach, Nurse coached the Rockets’ G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
The Vipers won the G League championship with Nurse in the 2012-2013 season.
The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the NBA or its organizations.
2023-04-21 14:09:26
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