Brett Brown doesn’t have a lot to work with as coach of the Sixers this year. That is by design, new coach Sam Hinkie has taken the “get good by getting bad” strategy and they are all in for this year’s lottery.
So what is Brett Brown going to try to do with this first year as coach.
Build a winning foundation. He’s taking a page from the NFL philosophy of trying to put players in positions to play to their strengths rather than put the square peg in the round hold, he told Dei Lynam at CSNPhilly.com.
For example, while the NBA trend is more three pointers don’t expect that in Philly because they don’t have the guys to knock those down (not Evan Turner or Thaddeus Young).
“I don’t have the analytic bug,” Brown said. “I listen to it but it does not consume me. We have players who traditionally have taken two-point shots like Evan, Lavoy [Allen] and Thad.
“Evan’s future is going to be developing his perimeter game,” Brown continued. “But he can shoot the mid-range shot. He is strong and he can get to the basket. That is tough to guard.”
The other focus is player development. The Sixers are not going to have a traditional lead assistant, what they will have is an offensive coordinator, a defensive coordinator and guys who are all about developing talent — a more NFL, compartmentalized style, Brown said.
“I won’t have a lead assistant coach,” Brown explained. “One guy will pay attention to offense, another to defense and then Lloyd (Pierce) is like my free safety. There will also be two coaches with development roles.”
“I used this philosophy when coaching in the Olympics in London and it works for me,” Brown added, referring to his 2012 experience coaching the Australian national team.
All you can ask of Brown and the Sixers this year is effort and development — build a foundation with what you have. Then wait for the front office to get you the talent.
