Tag: Brett Brown

Sixers’ Joel Embiid singles out Brett Brown after dropping 70 vs. Spurs

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid singles out Brett Brown after dropping 70 points on the San Antonio Spurs in a win.

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid continues to be one incredible player in this league. In Philadelphia’s 133-123 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday, the big fella made Sixers history.

The reigning league MVP dropped a ridiculous 70 points on 24-for-41 shooting with 18 rebounds and five assists. The 70 points are not only a career-high, but also a franchise record, breaking Wilt Chamberlain’s record of 68 for the Sixers.

Former Sixers coach Brett Brown is an assistant in San Antonio and watched the outburst. Brown was the coach of the Sixers from 2013 through 2020, and he was a huge part of Embiid’s development.

“I’m glad I did it in front of him,” Embiid smiled. “Nah, but obviously, I started with him. My first coach. He’s taught me a lot. Not just on the basketball side, but off the court, too. Just maturing. He’s a big part of it so it’s always good to see him.”

Brown had a 221-344 record as the coach of the Sixers, but it was mostly due to The Process era. He coached Philadelphia through some tough times before Embiid was able to play in the 2016-17 season, when Brown guided the Sixers back to the playoffs.

“He’s done a lot,” Embiid added. “Not just for me, but for the whole city of Philadelphia, too. When you think about everything that happened and the losing seasons and to still come out on top and have the success that he had, that’s pretty cool. It’s always good to see him, but I’m kind of glad I did it in front of him so he can kinda see the product of what he created.”

Embiid had 24 points in the first quarter, 10 in the second and 25 in the third. As the Spurs rallied to make the game somewhat closer in the fourth, Embiid re-entered and scored the final 11 he needed to get his 70 points. He wasn’t sure if he would even get to it.

“It was hard to say because, obviously, I came out hot,” he recalled. “I had 24 in the first and then, in the second, I was kinda messing around and I had over 30 at the half. I had a pretty good start to the third quarter and it was also depending on the game. At that point, I had 59, and the game was still pretty close. So it felt like I needed to go back. Once I got back, I was like ‘There’s my chance’ so I might as well go and do it.”

While Brown may be in San Antonio, it’s obvious he has a real connection with Embiid that will always be there.

[lawrence-related id=89425,89422,89416]

Gregg Popovich, Sixers pay tribute to former coach Brett Brown in return

Gregg Popovich and the Philadelphia 76ers pay tribute to former Sixers head coach Brett Brown.

PHILADELPHIA — Brett Brown was coach of the Philadelphia 76ers for seven seasons from 2013-2020. He guided the team through The Process era. He helped the team make the playoffs in 2018, 2019 and 2020 and had it one win away from the conference finals in 2019 before the Kawhi Leonard shot.

Brown compiled a 221-344 record during his time in Philadelphia, but he went through a lot to guide the team back to success. He was always an optimist, and he was beloved by his players.

After taking two years off, Brown is back. He is an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs and returned to Philadelphia on Saturday for the first time since being let go after the 2019-20 season.

Popovich gave a lot of love to Brown before the game started.

“At this stage of my career, he’s saving my life,” he said of Brown. “He’s got a great sense of humor. He’s a great basketball guy, so it’s fun to bounce things off of him. Ultimate competitor. What he put up with for those years is beyond my comprehension because he did it with class, with discipline. He went to work every day. He loved those kids even though nothing special was gonna happen. There aren’t too many people like that so to have him back with us and with this young group is very special and very important to me personally.”

The Sixers also gave a tribute video to Brown in his return to the Wells Fargo Center.

Spurs guard Josh Richardson, who played for Brown in the 2019-20 season, discussed what it’s like to play for him again as an assistant.

“Brett’s kind of always the same, you know what I’m saying?” said Richardson. “Real upbeat, real joyful, real invested, so it’s been a joy to kind of work with him again and him being in a different role has been interesting to see, but I’ve enjoyed it.”

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=69794]

[lawrence-related id=69834,69831,69815]

Joel Embiid discusses return of former Sixers coach Brett Brown vs. Spurs

Joel Embiid discusses the return of former Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown on Saturday with the San Antonio Spurs.

The Philadelphia 76ers will welcome the San Antonio Spurs into the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday looking to get into the win column after an 0-2 start. The Sixers faced two title contenders and now face a talented but rebuilding Spurs team.

The matchup with the Spurs offers the return of Brett Brown. The former Sixers coach of seven seasons landed a job with the Spurs as an assistant to Gregg Popovich in the offseason.

Brown was with the Spurs before landing a job with the Sixers in the 2013 offseason. He led the team through The Process era and to three playoff appearances from 2018-2020 before being let go and being replaced by Doc Rivers.

Joel Embiid talked with Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer to discuss the return of Brown on Saturday:

“He meant a lot,” Embiid said. “Obviously, he started the whole thing and things didn’t work out the way they should have. But he did a great job and he’s one of the reasons why we’re in this position.

“So I’m going to be excited to have him back and really have him back in the building.”

Brown sported a 221-344 record during his nine seasons in Philadelphia, but that is due to The Process era. The Sixers went 52-30, 51-31 and 43-30 in his final three seasons with the team. He took two seasons off before rejoining the Spurs in the offseason.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=69794]

[lawrence-related id=69815,69808,69805]

Brett Brown regrets failing to make it work with Jimmy Butler, Sixers

Former Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown has some regret for not being able to make it work with Jimmy Butler.

When Jimmy Butler bolted for the Miami Heat after just 55 games played with the Philadelphia 76ers, it left some questions that needed to be answered.

After coming so close to making the Eastern Conference finals with the Sixers, why not run it back with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons? Especially, when considering it took a miracle shot from Kawhi Leonard in Game 7 just for them to be eliminated in that series?

A lot was pointed to Butler’s icy relationship with then-coach Brett Brown. Butler even sat down with JJ Redick on his podcast and discussed some issues that bothered him about Brown and how he ran things during his time in Philadelphia.

Brown, now an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs, sat down with “The Rights to Ricky Sanchez” podcast and he discussed his time with the Sixers and how tough it was to adjust after being fired as well as his regret with Butler and the Sixers:

Extraordinarily difficult. Really, really hard. My ego—we all go back to like our personalities—that DNA, what what makes us go. I love competition. I love a team. I love that environment of a team. I always said that I’d rather be a (expletive) coach than a (expletive) leader and I ended up not being the leader, if I’m truthful, that I needed to be trying to connect the dots with Jimmy and Ben and Joel, it still haunts me. And so when you have some things like that swirling around and you know, as I said it’s truthful, you like almost pull over, it’s on your shoulders so much and you say well, you know, you had back to back 50 win seasons the first time in 30 years, you lost in the in the Eastern Conference semifinals with the ball hovering on the rim four times.

The Butler era was short-lived in Philadelphia, but he had a terrific playoff run. He averaged 19.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in the 2019 playoffs with the Sixers, but he clearly did not get along with Brown. He let the Sixers know he did not like their decisions including choosing Tobias Harris over him after his Heat eliminated Philadelphia in the 2022 playoffs.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=65775]

[lawrence-related id=65786,65783,65772]

Gregg Popovich turned his all-time wins record into an NFT collection for charity and everyone had the same reaction

Brett Brown really came out of nowhere with NFTs.

Gregg Popovich is now the NBA’s all-time coaching leader in wins after the Spurs got him his 1,336th victory on Friday against the Jazz.

Pop is an absolute legend in the NBA in every way, shape and form. The dude is on the shortlist for the greatest coaches of all time. There’s absolutely no denying that now.

So, of course, Pop and company had to do something special to commemorate this moment. It is a big moment, after all.

But I don’t think anyone had Pop dropping an NFT collection in their 2022 bingo book.

It looks like we can all mark that spot down now because that’s what actually happened. Popovich turned his big win into an NFT collection for charity, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The idea was originally pitched to Popovich by his former assistant, Brett Brown. All proceeds are going to the San Antonio Food Bank, which is really cool and good.

Here are the details, per Woj.

“With Popovich surpassing Nelson on Friday night with a 104-102 victory over the Utah Jazz, the Spurs are making 1,336 NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, that will include five of his hand-drawn offensive play cards and five Spurs court designs over his 26 seasons as coach. Among Pop’s plays: “Lock and Lob” and “Side Out of Bounds.”

This is all well and good and it sounds like a pretty cool idea. But still. Gregg Popovich? NFTs? Those are just two things no one ever saw mixing together in any way, really.

Everyone was so confused by this. NFTs? Really? And where did Brett Brown even come from with this? We need answers, y’all.

Former Sixers coach Brett Brown apologized to Mikal Bridges’ mom over trade

Former Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown apologized to Mikal Bridges’ mother for making the trade.

With the Phoenix Suns in the NBA finals for the first time since 1993, a lot of the talk concerning the Philadelphia 76ers goes back to the 2018 draft when they selected Villanova guard Mikal Bridges 10th overall. They then flipped Bridges to the Suns for the 16th pick which then became Zhaire Smith.

Smith is no longer with the Sixers while Bridges is a starter and has played a big role for Phoenix making the finals this season. So there is a lot of disappointment on Philadelphia’s side.

What made matters worse was that Bridges’ mother worked for the organization. It almost seemed like a perfect match for a team needing somebody who can provide good play on both ends of the floor.

Former Sixers coach Brett Brown, who was also the acting general manager at the time after the Bryan Colangelo fiasco, was the one who was pulling the strings for Philadelphia and he has apologized to Bridges’ mother over and over again for making the trade.

Bridges scored 14 points in Phoenix’s Game 1 win over the Milwaukee Bucks in the finals and he will now look to help the Suns take a 2-0 lead before the scene shifts to Milwaukee on Sunday.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=48104]

[lawrence-related id=48235,48232,48210]

Tobias Harris explains how Doc Rivers has helped improve his game

Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris discusses how Doc Rivers has helped improve his game.

The Philadelphia 76ers have been having a terrific season under the guidance of Doc Rivers in his first season coaching the team. The Sixers had high expectations for the 2019-20 season, but they fell short and were swept out of the first round of the playoffs.

Rivers has come in and changed everything as he has implemented a culture that is focused on winning and getting better every single day.

The new changes have impacted everybody on the team, but there is one player who has stood out under Rivers and that is Tobias Harris. He has taken a big step forward on the offensive end and he has completely changed his game from what it was under former coach Brett Brown.

Harris is averaging a career-high 20.5 points per game while shooting 52.2% from the floor and 40.1% from deep. He has taken big steps forward in efficiency and he has stepped up as the team’s closer down the stretch of games.

Harris sat down with Basketball News and he explained just what Rivers has done for him and his game:

“I would say that just the way that he’s pushed me [has unleashed the best in me],” Harris said. “I think a lot of people look at it and think like, it magically happens, but he’s a coach that pushes me a whole lot — on the floor, off the floor — and he puts me in those positions to make things happen. He shows a lot of trust in my game and knows where is best for me on the court, but also, lets me know where he kinda doesn’t want me in different situations.

“I think that has been a great deal to the success, and then on top of that, things are better when you win. So when you’re out there and we’re playing winning basketball, that only enhances everyone else’s game, and that has helped myself as well.”

Under Brown, Harris shot 32.6% from deep in the 2018-19 season and then 36.7% from deep in the 2019-20 season. He also only shot 46.9% overall in 2018-19 and then 47.1% in 2019-20 under Brown. Those percentages under Rivers have obviously gone up and he has been able to continue to grow as a player.

The Sixers will need this and more from him once the playoffs roll around so this is a big step for him and the team right now. Rivers has clearly had a positive impact on him and the rest of the Sixers.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f1jxkahtwnvzepyp image=https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[lawrence-related id=44415,44411,44408]

Tobias Harris discusses Sixers under Doc Rivers compared to Brett Brown

Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris discusses the difference between having Doc Rivers as the coach compared to Brett Brown in the past.

The Philadelphia 76ers are a team that is still working out the kinks under new coach Doc Rivers, but they are also at the top of the Eastern Conference and they have a legitimate MVP candidate in Joel Embiid as well as two other All-Star candidates in Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris.

Harris, in particular, is having the best season of his career numbers-wise as he is averaging a career-high 20.8 points per game, 7.7 rebounds, and he is shooting 51.8% from the floor and 42.6% from deep. These were numbers he could not obtain under former coach Brett Brown and similar to what he put up under Rivers when he was with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Harris joined “The Jalen & Jacoby Podcast” and he was asked the difference with Rivers coaching them rather than Brown:

I would say, it’s just been a transition for our whole team. I think we grew from last year to this year just in terms of maturity, and then you bring coach Doc in and Doc, he warrants respect the minute he walks in the door, and he’s a coach that, for this team, he’s always pushing us each and every day. Win or loss we’re trying to find something in a different way to get better. He just has guys locked in. He’s holding us accountable night and night out and really the goal that he’s trying to get this whole team to realize is, we have a chance to win a championship and we need to get there. So he’s holding us to that standard each and every game that we play and it’s been a pleasure to be back with Doc, and to be coached by him this season. I’m having a lot of fun and so are the guys.

There has always been talk in the past that Brown did not hold the Sixers accountable and so far, that has been the opposite under Rivers as he is making sure guys understand what they need to do in order to win games.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

https://embed.sendtonews.com/oembed/?SC=DVM1pEmtoU-1160656-8780&autoplay=on&V=2&format=json

[lawrence-related id=42649,42646,42608]