Wohl Is Fired as Coach of the Nets; MacKinnon Takes Over Team Again

Dave Wohl was dismissed Wednesday as head coach of the New Jersey Nets after failing to produce a winning record in more than two seasons.

Assistant general manager Bob MacKinnon was named the team’s interim coach for the second time.

Wohl’s firing was the first in the NBA this season and came just one day after the Nets’ 13th loss in 15 games. The 98-91 defeat by the Lakers Tuesday night was New Jersey’s ninth consecutive loss.

A former Net player and native of New Jersey, Wohl, 38, had a 65-114 record during his tenure, which was marked by key injuries that kept many of his best players out of the lineup and the league banishment of point guard Micheal Ray Richardson in 1985 because of a drug problem.

“It was a culmination of things,” General Manager Harry Weltman said at an afternoon news conference. “It’s very difficult to pinpoint. We felt the way things were going recently made that decision one we had to make. We’ve been playing poorly. Our overall record is poor and we weren’t playing as hard as we would have hoped.”