#4 – Chris Fleming of the Brooklyn Nets
Chris, at 49-years-old, goes a bit under the radar though it’s hard to see why. He’s a well decorated coach overseas as he’s a four-time German Cup Winner, four-time German League Champion, three-time German Supercup Winner and was named German League Coach of the Year in 2011.
Fleming began his coaching career as an assistant with QTSV, a German club, in 1998. Two years later he became the head coach and kept the position for 6 seasons until 2008. He helped the squad get a promotion to a top-flight league and to a German Cup title.
After that, he became the head coach of Brose Bamberg for four years before extending his contract for another four years. However, two years into that contract he parted ways with the club, after capturing those four German championships and three German Cup titles.
He was a member of the San Antonio Spurs coaching staff for the 2014 Summer League. For the next two seasons, he was the head coach of the senior German national basketball team. From there, he became an assistant coach of the Denver Nuggets in 2015. In 2016, he became an assistant for the Brooklyn Nets.
He likes to run a wide open, point guard-dominant offense and his tempo is not for the faint of heart as it tests the physical endurance of the players. What does that mean? A lot of fun if the Suns get him a point guard. It would open things up for both Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton.
Fleming has been a big boost with his assistance in player development for the Nets and is a big reason why the team had the year they had this season.