When Elton Brand took over the Philadelphia 76ers general manager position from Bryan Colangelo in the summer of 2018, he was making a big jump after one year as the general manager of the team’s G League affiliate, the then-Delaware 87ers.
In a short amount of time and virtually zero experience, he has turned the Sixers into a legitimate title contender after making a lot of bold moves. With the trade deadline coming up quickly on February 6, Brand is in a position where he has to make another move to try and get his team in position to make a championship run in 2020.
Coach Brett Brown has been included in those talks as he says his relationship with Brand is strong as ever and that the Sixers should keep him in tow for a very long time.
“I speak to Elton Brand a minimum of two times every day and if you take that number and you got like ‘OK there’s seven days in a week, that’s 14 times’,” said Brown pregame on Friday. “I bet 10 of those 14 times are face time where I look at him and he looks at me and we talk. It’s a relationship that I value very much. I think the world of him. The club should sign him to a 50-year contract, he’s just incredible to me.”
It also helps that Brown coached Brand for a small amount of time with the Sixers. That type of relationship can allow a coach-general manager tandem thrive and in turn, it leads to success.
“The fact that I coached him and I’ve coached against him and now he’s my general manager, we talk all the time and it’s a very easy conversation,” the coach explained. “It’s all part of it day-to-day stuff, trade deadline, it’s all part of it. It’s just a relationship that I personally value very much and I respect him very much for the job that he’s doing.”
This is a job that Brand does not have to do. He has made a lot of money in a mostly successful playing career in the NBA and he did a lot in the game. Brown has been impressed with the way that he carries himself in a position of such importance.
“He doesn’t need to do this,” Brown added. “He’s not poor and he does it with such passion and pride and he’s in shape and you call him at 7:00 in the morning and he’s on his way to yoga. Like he’s in the game. He’s healthy, he’s in it to mean it. Like he really wants to do a good job here.”
For Philadelphia to make the title run that they plan on, they most certainly will need to add a shooter to space the floor for them. That will be on Brand to make sure he gets the job done and if history is any indication, he won’t be afraid to make that move. [lawrence-related id=23688,23641,23634]