Philadelphia 76ers Blog – Page 54 – NBA Blog

Brett Brown praised by head coach of Hawks

Since Larry Brown left for Detroit after the 2002-03 season, the 76ers have tried seven different coaches to hold down the position. Seven coaches have been hired during the past 10 seasons, and seven have gone, from Randy Ayers to Doug Collins (with Chris Ford, Jim O’Brien, Maurice Cheeks, Tony DiLeo and Eddie Jordan in between). Cheeks lasted three seasons plus 23 games into a fourth. Collins had the second-longest tenure during that time, having stepped down in April after three seasons at the helm.

Yesterday, a source close to the situation confirmed to the Daily News that Brett Brown, who spent the past seven seasons on the bench as an assistant coach to Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, had reached an agreement in principle for a 4-year contract to become the eighth head coach in the past 11 seasons.

“He’s going to be a great coach, he’s really knowledgeable, has great energy, great vision at both ends of the court and a great way with players,” said Mike Budenholzer, who was an assistant with Brown in San Antonio before taking the Atlanta head coaching job in late May. “Players respect him. He’s demanding but they love him. He’s got a great sense of humor but he’s a great competitor, too. The competitive nature for Brett may be with his good nature, but he’s a tough, competitive dude and that’s more important to him than anything. In that city he’s a fit, because he’s blue-collar and he’s a tough dude. He’s a competitive person in every way, shape and form at every moment. At this level everyone is a competitor, but Brett has that extra level of competitiveness.”

Reported by Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News

Sixers offer coaching job to Brett Brown

The Philadelphia 76ers should be one of the league’s worst teams this upcoming season. The roster lacks talent. It’s packed with bench-level players. The greatest coach in the world could run the team next season and they’d still struggle. As a result, many coaches may hesitate before taking such a job.

Still, somebody’s got to do it.

Barring a snag in negotiations, Brett Brown will become the 76ers’ next head coach. The team has offered the job to the San Antonio Spurs assistant, according to sources. The two sides were working on a contract to bring the 52-year-old to Philadelphia.

If he accepts, Brown will become the team’s eighth head coach since Larry Brown resigned after the 2002-03 season.

The news comes as no surprise. Brett Brown for some time has been the candidate the Sixers coveted to replace Doug Collins, who resigned on April 18.

The New York Daily News reported during the June 27 NBA draft that the Sixers had decided to hire Brown. General manager Sam Hinkie later denied the report. Then on July 31, a league source told The Inquirer that Brown was the preferred candidate for the job.

Brown takes over a team that finished 34-48 this past season and appears to be seriously rebuilding.

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Even if the team does struggle as expected, we’ll still be watching rookies Nerlens Noel (when healthy enough to play) and Michael Carter-Williams to see how they develop.

Sixers hope to make Brett Brown their next head coach

The Sixers continual coaching search might be coming to an end.

San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown has been offered the Sixers head coaching position.

If he accepts, Brown, 52, will become the 24th head coach in franchise history, and will take over a team that has fully embraced a rebuilding phase.

While many are relieved that the team has finally selected someone to you know, coach the players, Brown remains relatively unknown to the average NBA fan.

His dexterity at player development was tagged as his calling-card throughout the Sixers search, but Brown brings a lot more than that to the Sixers’ bench.

Brown’s impressive basketball background began in high school. He attended South Portland High (in Maine) where he played for his father, New England Basketball Hall of Fame coach, Bob Brown.

Reported by Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com

Brown should bring a winning attitude to an organization expected to struggle. He learned from three premier coaches on three levels: his father, Bob Brown; Rick Pitino; and Gregg Popovich.

Brett Brown joined Popovich’s Spurs staff in July 2002 as an assistant coach/director of player development. He moved to the bench as an assistant coach before the 2006-07 season.

The Spurs have won three NBA titles during his tenure. They just missed out on a fourth, losing in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to the Miami Heat in June.

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Philadelphia 76ers roster is fairly empty

Speaking of players, who is going to be on this roster?

Right now you’re looking at Thaddeus Young , Evan Turner, Spencer Hawes and rookie Michael Carter Williams as possible starters. There is still no shooting guard on the roster – or any other legitimate shooter, either. Three players on the roster – Royce White (anxiety disorder), Jason Richardson (knee surgery) and Nerlens Noel (torn ACL) – may not even step foot on the court this season. Kwame Brown is under contract, but it would be a shock if he’s in the team’s plans at all. Justin Holiday is available and the team has an option to keep him at $790 thousand this season, but what is his future in the NBA? That leaves Lavoy Allen and Arnett Moultrie as the remaining serviceable players.

Not real enticing, huh?

The Sixers will have to sign some free agents to fill out the roster.

Reported by Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News

Interviews for 76ers coaching job continue

Like the waves crashing on the beach down the shore, the 76ers’ coaching searching appears endless. It was April 18 when Doug Collins announced he wouldn’t be coming back for his fourth season, and since then, there have been rumors and reports and speculation as to who may become the team’s eighth head coach in the past 11 seasons.

Yesterday, a report by Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski said the Sixers would bring back assistant coaches Kenny Atkinson (Atlanta), Brett Brown (San Antonio), Adrian Griffin (Chicago) and Jay Larranaga (Boston) for second interviews. The report also said Portland assistant David Vanderpool might get a second sit-down.

Reported by Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News

Sixers poised to do big things in 2014 NBA Draft

By setting themselves up to struggle (understatement) in the upcoming season, the Sixers are clearly looking ahead to the 2014 NBA draft, which by all accounts, is going to be one of the strongest in recent memory.

Finishing next season outside of playoff positioning, which is likely the case, will land the Sixers a lottery pick. The draft day deal that sent Jrue Holiday to New Orleans landed them another one – as long as the Pelicans don’t make the playoffs and the pick falls out of the top five.

These picks, along with future free agent acquisitions and a couple of carry-overs from the current roster, most likely rookies Michael Carter-Williams and Nerlens Noel, are supposedly going to form the foundation of the franchise going forward.

It sure seems that the 2014 draft, which has become known as the “Andrew Wiggins Sweepstakes” to many, will be very important to the future of the franchise.

Unlike last June’s draft, where the top pick remained unknown until seconds before the selection, Wiggins is already the consensus first-overall selection. His size, athleticism and offensive ability have franchises foaming, as the kid has surefire superstar written all over him.

Reported by Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com

Philadelphia 76ers hire Chris Heck as Chief Revenue Officer

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced that long-time industry executive Chris Heck has been named the organization’s new Chief Revenue Officer, effective immediately. In this role, Heck will implement strategies and oversee all initiatives related to revenue growth for the Sixers, including corporate partnerships, ticketing and premium sales.

“I am thrilled to have Chris join us at the Sixers as we continue to build and grow this organization,” said Chief Executive Officer Scott O’Neil. “Chris brings a wealth of experience and tremendous relationships to the team, and has worked in-market with the Philadelphia Eagles and Comcast-Spectacor – a background that is invaluable in his new role. Having Chris here instantly raises the ceiling for our business potential in the coming years.”

Most recently, Heck served as the President of Business Operations for the New York Red Bulls (MLS), where he oversaw the business and commercial facets of the team and Red Bull Arena.

Prior to the Red Bulls, Heck spent seven years with the National Basketball Association (NBA) as senior vice president in the teams best practices group, team marketing and business operations. During his tenure with the league, he advised NBA teams on ticket sales and service, sponsorship development and marketing; managed the NBA’s Canadian business; and oversaw marketing for USA Basketball’s Senior Men’s and Women’s National Teams.

Before his tenure with the league, Heck was vice president and general manager for Villanova Sports Properties, where he managed Villanova Athletics’ corporate partnerships on all platforms. Additional roles have included director of corporate sales and service for the Miami Heat, and corporate sales and training camp supervisor for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Heck holds a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University.

Sixers not expected to be competitive anytime soon

The Sixers grabbed Nerlens Noel because he is potentially a first-pick talent who slid to the No. 6 pick in the draft because the market was scared away by his knee injury. They took Michael Carter-Williams, a very athletic, tall point guard who was available at the 11th pick only because other teams thought he was less attractive than players who can shoot and take care of the basketball.

“We’ll focus on building something that will end in a place everybody will be proud of. If our young players play great, then things will move on quickly. If they don’t, then it will move along more slowly,” Hinkie said. “It’s a little early right now. [Noel and Carter-Williams] are both under contract for four years. That allows you to look around the bend a little bit, and look past a turnover or be patient with an injury.”

It will remain a little early for the Sixers to be truly competitive for some years to come. They get the benefit of upcoming draft picks as long as they are not very good, so it isn’t logical to rush the process. They can also delay giving up the two first-round picks they owe – to Miami in the Arnett Moultrie deal, and to Orlando in the Andrew Bynum deal – by continuing to finish poorly. (It is even possible that the Orlando pick will turn into a pair of second-round picks in 2018 and 2019 if they stink long enough. Not sure local patience could stretch that far, but just throwing it out there.)

Among the other undervalued players collected by Hinkie for very little risk are James Anderson, a guard whose resumé is underwhelming, and Tim Ohlbrecht, a 6-foot-11 German national with D-League experience, both of whom were claimed off waivers from Houston.

Reported by Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Sixers CEO apologizes to fans over Andrew Bynum

It’s no secret that the 76ers’ Andrew Bynum experiment was a disaster.

The acquisition of the 7-foot center in last summer’s four-team trade ultimately set the Sixers back several seasons. Bynum, who made $16.9 million last year, never played for the team because of chronically injured knees.

After being urged by WIP-FM (94.1) host Angelo Cataldi, new Sixers chief executive officer Scott O’Neil apologized Thursday morning to fans who bought tickets with the hope of seeing Bynum play.

“I apologize on behalf of the Sixers to any fan who invested and thought Bynum was going to be their guy and be the savior,” O’Neil said. “At the end of the day that’s our apology to every fan, not just to [Cataldi].

“However, we are going to take some chances when we can take some chances. And sometimes they’re not going to work. And sometimes they are.”

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Philadelphia 76ers introduce first-round pick Nerlens Noel

The Philadelphia 76ers officially introduced Nerlens Noel, acquired in the draft-day trade that sent All-Star Jrue Holiday to the New Orleans Pelicans, Tuesday afternoon at the Philadelphia College of Orthopedic Medicine.

Noel was joined on-stage by Sixers GM Sam Hinkie. A head coach was noticeably absent.

Before addressing the addition of the 6-foot-11 center from the University of Kentucky, Hinkie discussed the departure of all-star point guard Jrue Holiday.

“To lose [Jrue] is not easy,” he began. “We wish him nothing but the best in New Orleans, and for the rest of his career.”

“With that being said, we’re very excited,” Hinkie continued. “To acquire Nerlens and the [2014 lottery] pick that came with him, we think is a very big step for us.”

Reported by Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com