Kyrie Irving soured on Kenny Atkinson early in the season, league sources told Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo! Sports. 

Atkinson and the Nets mutually parted ways on Saturday.

Irving reportedly prefers Tyronn Lue as the next coach of the Nets.

Lue is currently an assistant with the Clippers.

Atkinson also wasn't fond of coaching Irving or Kevin Durant, and pushed to resolve his situation now before the end of the season.

“Kenny pushed for the parting just as much, if not more than Brooklyn,” sources told Yahoo! Sports.

Interim coach Jacque Vaughn is said to have a strong relationship with Irving.