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The Brooklyn Nets have added John Welch, Joe Prunty and Charles Klask to Jason Kidd’s staff as assistant coaches, General Manager Billy King announced today. The three new hires round out the coaching staff which also includes Lawrence Frank, Roy Rogers and Eric Hughes.
In addition, the Nets have named Jim Sann as advance scout.
Welch joins the Nets following eight seasons as an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets under George Karl. Before joining the Nuggets, Welch spent two seasons as an assistant coach/workout coach for the Memphis Grizzlies. Prior to his arrival in Memphis, he spent seven seasons as an assistant coach at Fresno State, serving under head coach Jerry Tarkanian. Welch joined Fresno State in 1995 and helped the Bulldogs to two consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, six consecutive 20-win seasons and seven straight postseason appearances. Welch began his coaching career with a three-year stint as a graduate assistant at UNLV, including when they advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1986-87. When the Rebels’ season ended, Welch also served as a player and coach in the New Zealand Professional Basketball League from 1986-89. Welch then served as an assistant coach under Seth Greenberg at Long Beach State from 1993-95. As a player, Welch spent three seasons at the University of Nevada, Reno and transferred to UNLV for his senior year. Welch played under Tarkanian for one year when the Rebels compiled a 33-5 record and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
Prunty enters his 18th NBA season and 22nd overall in coaching, most recently serving as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers for three seasons after joining the club in July 2010. Prior to his stint in Cleveland, Prunty was an assistant coach during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, after serving three seasons (2005-08) with the Dallas Mavericks as an assistant. He spent the previous nine seasons with the San Antonio Spurs where he won NBA Championships in 1999, 2003 and 2005. The Sunnyvale, Ca. native played collegiately at De Anza College in Cupertino, CA and is a 1991 graduate of California Poly San Luis Obispo.
Charles Klask joins the Nets following two seasons as an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons, where his responsibilities included game-plan preparation, statistical analysis and scouting. Prior to his stint in Detroit, Klask was on the staff of the Orlando Magic from 2002-2011, where he worked as a video coordinator, advance scout and the last three years as the scouting information manager. Klask began his NBA career with the Pistons in 2001, when he served as a video intern before being named the video coordinator of the Detroit Shock of the WNBA. A native of Livonia, MI, Klask is a graduate of Michigan State University.
Sann begins his second stint with the Nets organization, previously serving as assistant coach/coaching associate from 2005-06 to 2009-10, before joining the Chicago Bulls as an assistant coach/video coordinator the following season. Prior to the Nets, Sann was the advanced scout for the Houston Rockets during the 2004-05 season and served as an assistant coach with the Toronto Raptors in 2003-04. He began his professional basketball career with the New York Knicks organization, holding various positions over 11 seasons, eventually rising to director of basketball administration. The Larchmont, NY native graduated from the University of Colorado in 1991.
