Scott Becomes Coach of Nets

Former Laker Byron Scott’s journey to become an NBA coach finally ended Tuesday when the New Jersey Nets picked him to lead their latest rebuilding project.

Scott, who had been rumored to be in the running for the top coaching jobs with Indiana, Vancouver, Atlanta and the Nets, was given a reported three-year contract worth $9 million.

“Im going to coach like the person who I am,” Scott, 39, told the Sacramento Bee. “I’m going to be honest with the players and I am going to be a disciplinarian. . . . I was with Riles [Pat Riley] for seven years and [then-Indiana Coach Larry] Brown for two and those are two of the greatest coaches in history.

“They are both disciplinary coaches. Larry is more vocal, but I’ll probably be more subdued like Riley. Like I told some of the guys on the Kings, there are certain guys who couldn’t play for me because of the way I want things done.”

Scott, a member on three championship teams with the Lakers, will replace Don Casey, who was fired after the Nets (31-51) missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year. Scott spent the last two seasons as an assistant with the Sacramento Kings after playing under Riley and Brown.

“[Sacramento Coach] Rick [Adelman] gave me good advice about putting together a staff and what I asked him to do was to leave the [telephone] line open,” said Scott.

Scott, who takes over a team that has the top pick in tonight’s draft, was the man New Jersey’s Rod Thorn wanted as soon as he left his job as an NBA executive to become the Nets’ president.

Thorn and Scott met in Chicago earlier this month and then returned there 10 days ago and spent five hours talking basketball. “During the interview, I was amazed with how astute he was with the X and O part of it,’ Thorn said.