Nets great Derrick Coleman says team just needs time to find chemistry

The Nets had a much-needed day off Monday after losing four of their past five games to fall to a disappointing 3-4 record in the first full season with stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving together in search of a title. But former Nets great Derrick Coleman was available during a promotional appearance for the organization, and while he offered some pointed criticism, he likes the big picture with Durant and Irving leading the way to the future.

Coleman said Durant, who is averaging 28.3 points but has been ruled out of Tuesday’s game against the Jazz at Barclays Center because of health and safety protocols, looks like his All-NBA self after an 18-month layoff for Achilles tendon surgery. But he noted that Durant and Irving are playing together for the first time under a first-time head coach in Steve Nash and need time to build chemistry with the group.

"[Chemistry] comes from Kevin, it comes from Kyrie, guys being out there talking and vocal on the defensive end of the court," Coleman said. "Kevin Durant is going to be one of the greatest scorers we’ve ever seen play the game of basketball. To me, nobody can mess with Kyrie Irving. He comes from a lineage of point guards. I mean, when your godfather is Rod Strickland, I need not say any more about that.

"The potential is the sky is the limit with that team. I’m not really concerned about the offense. I’m concerned about the defensive side of the ball. That goes with communication, everybody talking to each other out there on the basketball court and being on the same page . . . I just see the struggles right now are going to be better for you later on in the season."

Coleman said the loss of guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who underwent successful surgery on Monday to repair a torn right anterior cruciate ligament and is expected to make a full recovery, definitely hurts the Nets. He compared Dinwiddie to Golden State star Klay Thompson as an all-around player who impacts both ends of the court.

"That’s a part of that glue," Coleman said of Dinwiddie.

Coleman noted that some of the Nets’ growing pains might be caused by an adjustment to new roles. "You look at Caris LeVert last year, and he was the leader of the team," Coleman said. "Now, you come back and you take a backseat. It’s just really getting the chemistry going."

Although he described veteran starting center DeAndre Jordan and young backup Jarrett Allen as "two talented guys," Coleman added, "I love Jarrett Allen’s energy. I don’t know why he’s not starting."

The Nets made Coleman available to promote their game against the 76ers on Thursday when they will wear the tie-dyed jerseys he wore in his rookie of the year season of 1990-91. Coleman admitted he didn’t like them at first because he thought the Nets might "look soft." But they grew on him, and he missed it when the Nets dropped them.

That’s more than he can say for the one-piece uniform he once was required to wear at Syracuse. Coleman laughingly told the story of how he refused to come out of the locker room for a Georgetown game because he didn’t want to wear a uniform that "looked like a leotard."

Coach Jim Boeheim came storming into the locker room just before introductions and confronted him. "Coach comes in the locker room and says, ‘What are you doing?’" Coleman recalled. "I’m like, ‘Coach, I can’t go out there with a leotard on.’ He’s like, ‘I know, Derrick, the uniforms are terrible, but we’ve got Georgetown. If you don’t put that uniform on, you’ll never play at Syracuse University again.’ Right when they went to introductions and called my name, I ran on the court.

"We looked at the [Nets’] tie-dyed the same way in the beginning, like, ‘They’re going to crack jokes on us the whole time.’ But it was great. It became so popular."

Just before jumping off the zoom video with the media, Coleman couldn’t resist offering one last bit of advice to the current Nets. "Get them guys to go rebound, man," he said with a laugh. "You need a rebound coach? I might need to hit somebody in the chest."

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.