Colangelo said to want Nets job; reportedly would hope to bring Krzyzewski

While Nets president Rod Thorn awaits word of his fate with the franchise, incoming Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov is being lobbied by several NBA insiders to bring in one of the league's power players, Jerry Colangelo, to run the franchise as it makes the transition from New Jersey to Brooklyn.

"He wants the job," said a person with knowledge of the situation. "He wants it and he's going after it."

Colangelo reportedly is going after it with a plan that would appeal to Prokhorov's well-known affinity for stars, beginning with trying to lure Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski to leave Duke and take over as coach. This scenario was first reported by the Bergen Record, Daily News and Yahoo! Sports on Friday.

The Record on Friday also reported that Thorn will meet with Prokhorov's representatives this weekend in Dallas at the NBA All-Star Game. According to the paper, if the meeting goes well, Thorn will head to Vancouver to meet with Prokhorov about a contract extension. Thorn's chances are hardly solid, though, because of the Nets' 4-48 record.

The official transfer of majority ownership from Bruce Ratner to Prokhorov is expected to be completed in April at the next NBA Board of Governors meeting. If the Nets let Thorn go, he is expected to quickly get offers from other franchises - including the Knicks, who are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday - to join the front office.

Colangelo, who is the national director of USA Basketball, is said to be intent on getting back into running an NBA franchise at the age of 70. He previously spent 40 years with the Phoenix Suns and most recently was chairman and CEO.

Colangelo has a strong relationship with Krzyzewski, whom he hired to coach the gold medal-winning Redeem Team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But with or without Colangelo, Krzyzewski, who turns 63 Saturday, would remain a target for the Nets.

A source told Newsday that Krzyzewski would need to be financially overwhelmed to leave the extremely comfortable situation he has in Durham, N.C., where he has been the head coach since 1980. His Duke salary reportedly was $3.6 million last season, which doesn't include endorsement deals. Prokhorov, a Russian billionaire, never has had an issue with spending money.

With the Redeem Team, Krzyzewski coached LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh - all of whom will be free agents this summer - which is the main reason Colangelo and Prokhorov would view Krzyzewski as a valuable asset. Knicks president Donnie Walsh considered the same thing when he hired coach Mike D'Antoni, who served as Krzyzewski's top assistant with that 2008 Olympic team. Krzyzewski, with four decades of college experience, knows how to recruit, which will matter this summer.

If Krzyzewski is not interested - and many in college basketball believe he doesn't have pro aspirations - another option could be Kentucky's John Calipari, a former Nets coach. Louisville's Rick Pitino has attempted to gain consideration for the job, but his interest was not reciprocated.