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“I know a lot has been made about the process and the length of time that it took for the final decision to be made on who is going to coach the Philadelphia 76ers,” Brown said. “For me, it was a tremendous opportunity to research a job that I was very interested in. Having spent so much time in New England and in Boston, I am acutely aware of the proud history of this city and the competitiveness of this city and how the city respects and demands the same type of people that I do as a coach. You get excited to be a part of the rebuild. We all know that the pain of rebuilding is real. We all will experience it. It isn’t something that happens quickly. That is a fact; that is the truth. There needs to be a tolerance, there needs to be a patience. It became very clear that if I was going to leave a position like San Antonio and the fantastic organization and the people I have worked with for 13 years, that it had better be for the right [situation]. We have a lot of work ahead of us.”
Brown, 52, spent the past seven seasons on the bench next to head coach Gregg Popovich in San Antonio after 6 years prior in different positions. He is considered to be a teacher of the game, a gym rat, a coach’s son who can’t get enough of the game and thrives on teaching the styles and intangibles that were a necessary part of four title runs during his time with the Spurs…
“I’m not a gypsy coach. I like staying someplace. I like a commitment from both sides. Can you imagine if we can get this thing right? Really. If we can this right with the culture and the history that this city has, and the pride and the toughness that this city has, that is very luring. It’s tempting. There were times I wasn’t sure, based on what I had, if I wanted to chance it. I think this is a very high-calculated chance. It’s dangerous. Rebuild is always a very hard thing, but I feel just thrilled to be here. Now it’s putting the right people in the right places. There’s a lot of work to be done, but I’m just thrilled to be here.”
Reported by Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News
