With the Philadelphia 76ers hiring Nick Nurse as their new head coach, they enter a new era. Doc Rivers had a great deal of success during his time in Philadelphia, but three consecutive second round exits from the playoffs sealed his fate.
Nurse brings innovative thinking the Sixers hope will enable them to take that next step in the East. He is a proven coach. He has championship experience. And he has a history of maximizing the talent on his roster and putting it in position to succeed.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith gave his thoughts on the Nurse hire for Philadelphia:
I don’t think it’s the wrong coach. Nick Nurse is a champion. He’s proven that even though I thought he benefited tremendously so from the fact that his first year coaching the Toronto Raptors, they had Kawhi Leonard and, obviously, LeBron James is outside of the Eastern Conference, but nevertheless, a championship is a championship. You can’t take that away from the man. The man knows how to coach. I don’t think this affects Joel Embiid in a negative way. James Harden is a different animal because you’re going in there, how are you going to utilize James Harden? The reality is, is that what are you going to do? Are you gonna send them away? Are you going to keep them? I think that’s more of a Daryl Morey question than a Nick Nurse question. Nick Nurse has shown an ability to work with some talent that are lesser caliber than James Harden, but is it going to be enough for you to come out of the Eastern Conference with Boston still in the mix. With the Milwaukee Bucks still in the mix. With the Miami Heat still around, I think that’s a huge question mark right now did the Sixers have to modify their roster to some degree but obviously, I don’t think Nick Nurse is the wrong decision.
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The Sixers are going from a Doc to a Nurse and it will be interesting to see how they grow off this. Nurse will undoubtedly have a big impact on this roster, but how far the Sixers go will depend on how the players respond to his unique style of coaching.
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