According to Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thomsen, the Philadelphia 76ers will hire former Spurs assistant, Brett Brown, as their new head coach. The amount of the contract has not been disclosed, but Thomsen reveals the deal will be fully guaranteed four-year arrangement.
Brett Brown has been hired as coach of 76ers says league source. 4 yrs guaranteed. Story up on https://t.co/XH8uCfQTFG soon.
— Ian Thomsen (@SI_IanThomsen) August 12, 2013
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There had been whispers that some of Brown’s advisors had told him to leave the Sixers’ offer on the table since the team is likely to be awful this coming year as they rebuild from the Andrew Bynum fiasco last season. Philadelphia’s new GM Sam Hinkie traded their best player Jrue Holiday to the Pelicans for the pick that turned into Nerlens Noel and a top-3 protected first round selection next year in a loaded 2014 draft.
But head coaching positions aren’t that common, considering there are only 30 NBA teams. So Brown accepted the offer, which is fully guaranteed for four years. That guarantee will provide him plenty of time to get the team back into shape following all the personnel changes this summer as Hinkie attempts to rebuild Philly’s roster. Former coach Doug Collins resigned on April 18, and the team had previously been unable to find a suitable replacement for the ensuing four months.
In 1994, Brown was named the Coach of the Year in the NBL (Australian National Basketball League) after leading the Melbourne Giants to the NBL Title over the Adelaide 36ers. He coached Australia’s Men’s Team in the 2012 Olymics and had previously coached in Australia before coming to the NBA. He’s been a bench assistant under Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs since right before the 2007 season, and before that had been hired by GM R.C. Buford as the director of player development before the 2002 season.
What do you think of the hire?
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