Earlier this week, Jacque Vaughn was named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month, a fait accompli after he guided the Nets to a 12-1 mark in December. Now it’s time to start considering him for NBA Coach of the Year.

It’s not so far-fetched.

Vaughn took over midstream, trying to steer a ship that had sprung numerous leaks. The dysfunctional Nets were 2-5, in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, and dealing with the controversy around Kyrie Irving, who was about to get suspended by the team. Since replacing Steve Nash on Nov. 1, Vaughn has instilled a no-nonsense, basketball-first culture and gone 24-8 including Friday night’s 108-102 win over to the Pelicans.

Going into the weekend, Vaughn was the second favorite to win Coach of the Year, behind the Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla, at roughly 3-1 odds. And with all the Nets have overcome, his players say the question isn’t how can he be a leading candidate, but how can he not be one?

“Yeah, the potential has always been here, [but] he was put in a situation that’s tough to try to figure things out with the firing and with Kyrie,” Markieff Morris told The Post. “He did a great job of letting us know when we get in here basketball [takes precedence] over everything. … We’re going to finish well, so how can you not after all that s–t that we’ve been through, and then where we are now and where we’re going in the future?”

‘Getting his flowers’

The Nets have the best record in the NBA since Vaughn took the reins — playing at a roughly 61-win pace — and are now tied (with the Nuggets) for the second-best record overall, one game behind the Celtics. The Nets are the only team since Nov. 1 in the top 5 in both offensive and defensive rating.

Chances at a ring are precious, and Vaughn’s guidance has given them that. It’s not hyperbole to say he has saved the Nets’ season and salvaged their championship hopes for this June, regardless of whether Irving leaves after that or not. That alone should put Vaughn in the Coach of the Year conversation.

“He should be getting his flowers,” starting center Nic Claxton told The Post. “He’s definitely changed it, turned things around for us. And everybody can see it. Everybody in the organization can feel it. And people around the league should definitely take notice. … He should definitely be a candidate for Coach of the Year. I don’t think there’s many coaches in the world that could turn around what we had going on here.”

Vaughn was off the board when he took over on Nov. 1. A month later, he was still a betting long shot. A few weeks ago, he was third behind Mazzulla and Willie Green, whose Pelicans the Nets knocked off Friday night for the 17th win in their past 19 games.

Former Nets assistant GM Bobby Marks believes Vaughn’s guidance has been an invaluable part of the Nets’ resurgence.

“I think the coaching change has helped,” Marks, now an ESPN insider, told The Post. “I think Jacque has really done a good job managing these guys. They’re freer — I think that has probably played a big role in it.”

In winning Coach of the Month for the first time in his career, Vaughn became the sixth Nets coach to earn the honor in the two decades of its existence. Only one of them (Byron Scott) ever reached the NBA Finals, and none earned Coach of the Year. Vaughn will be aiming for the first, but should be considered for the second.

Starting wing Royce O’Neal agreed.

“For sure. The way we started the season is not what we’re capable of,” O’Neale told the Post. “The situation he got dropped into, he responded really well. He trusted us, and we trusted him. He took accountability that he was going to coach us, and he said he’s holding everybody else accountable and making sure everybody’s playing hard and playing the right way. I think everybody’s just locked in and focused and then listening to him.”

Vaughn’s style and influence

The coach’s leadership has helped Durant to an MVP award candidacy and what could be a career-best season at the age of 34. Vaughn has also helped keep the franchise player happy, quieting any fears of him repeating his summer trade request.

And Irving readily admits the 47-year-old’s guidance has made him a better point guard even after seven All-Star berths at the position. This season, he’s well on the way to an eighth, ranking as the leading vote-getter among Eastern Conference guards in early balloting released Thursday.

“I think he adds a level of … he gives you an ease,” Irving said of Vaughn. “When you come into the locker room, nothing’s forced. You know, he’s not too high or too low. He’s just holding himself to a high standard and exemplifying what a leader should look like.

“So as our head coach, as a leader, I’ve been able to learn some things from him, and that’s just being able to have relationships with everybody and being able to get the best out of everybody. That’s been the lesson for me this year is just learning how to get the best out of everybody instead of trying to do it all yourself or trying to overthink the game. We’ve got good pieces in that locker room, the coaching staff. The level of play should raise, and it should get easier.”

One of the oldest and most folksy sayings in college football is: “It’s not the X’s and the O’s, but the Jimmys and the Joes that make the difference.” It’s also one of the most accurate, and it applies here as well. Whether it’s talking to a Kyrie Irving or a Joe Harris, Vaughn has shown the ability to make his message understandable and to help make it stick.

“I think it’s a great responsibility for a head coach to learn each individual as an individual,” Vaughn said. “Even though a lot of times I address the team, there are a lot of conversations that happen one-on-one.

“I do believe people take criticism, accountability, knowledge, thought, all in different ways. So it’s up to me to garner that attention in how I use the time to talk to each individual guy. I take pride in that. I think it’s important. We all want to be heard, seen and celebrated. I think you do that individually and amongst a team.”

An original Brooklyn Net signs off

Mandy Gutmann left her position as Executive Vice President of Communications and Community Relations for Nets’ parent company BSE Global at the end of 2022.

Gutmann started with BSE the day it opened its Brooklyn office in March 2012 and went on to play a pivotal role in the launch of the Brooklyn Nets, the opening of Barclays Center and several other milestones for the company. She worked closely with team owner Joe Tsai and several BSE CEOs during her tenure.

It’s unclear who will replace Gutmann.

Back on the road

Nets superfans and road warriors Dawn Risueno and her husband, Richard Johnson, are back on the road after their excursions were interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. They drove to recent road games in Atlanta and Chicago, and were planning to hit New Orleans on Friday and Miami on Sunday — with a side jaunt to Las Vegas thrown in last week while the Nets came home to host the Spurs.