The Philadelphia 76ers: Miracle From Down Under

By Dan Falcone | Jun 27, 2016

Jun 24, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers number one overall draft pick Ben Simmons (R) and his father David (M) and head coach Brett Brown (L) during an introduction press conference at the Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

The Philadelphia 76ers 2016 NBA Draft: Miracle From Down Under

The prolific 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey was recently picked up by the The Sydney Morning Herald. In other words, the first selection of the Philadelphia 76ers Ben Simmons, is more than a national story. It is world news because of the “Australian connection.”

It’s not that Australia is all of the sudden taking notice of the NBA’s first pick however, “because the NBA’s popularity is rising in Australia. Seven Aussies – Andrew Bogut, Patty Mills, Matthew Dellavedova, Aron Baynes, Dante Exum, Cameron Bairstow, and Joe Ingles – were on NBA rosters this season,” as Pompey notes.

More from History

Brett Brown was the assistant coach of the Melbourne Tigers of the National Basketball League in Australia in the late1980s and early 1990s. After that stint, Brown was named head coach of the North Melbourne Giants in 1993. To no one’s surprise, he was eventual coach of the year, won a title, and in 2012, named Aussie’s Olympic coach.

But it was while coaching the Melbourne Tigers, that Brett Brown first coached David Simmons, with the Tigers NBL pro-team. The rest is quite an amazing history.

Brett Brown remarked on NBA TV:

“[For the draft] we sit down and play through a lot of the scenarios that could unfold [and] to start with the probability of imagining myself [back] in1988 and coaching a player that came from New York City (David Simmons) to Australia and in a professional league.”

Brown continued,

“I knew both David and Julie, Ben’s parents, before they were even married, [when] Julie was on the cheer squad.” They [eventually] have a child . . . and fast forward to 2016 and I now have this opportunity to coach and take his son with an NBA program and first pick of the draft, and that is a story you cannot make-up.”

“To welcome Ben into the city of Philadelphia is a great thing [and] we are a proud basketball city; the fans of the city have great college teams and coaches and we are at a stage that the city can [start] to wrap their arms around this team.”

Twists and Turns: 76ers Player Draft and Coaching Timeline

1951 – Doug Collins is born

1961 – Brett Brown is born

1963 – Dave Simmons is born

1973 – Doug Collins is selected first overall by the 76ers

1975- Allen Iverson is born

1988 – Brett Brown coaches with the Melbourne Tigers

1989 – Dave Simmons plays for Coach Brown

1989 – Dave meets Julie Simmons a native Australian

1996 – Allen Iverson is selected first overall by the 76ers

1996 – Ben Simmons is born to Dave and Julie

1998 – Brett Brown is named Head Coach of North Melbourne

2010 – Doug Collins named 76ers Head Coach

2013 – Brett Brown named 76ers Head Coach

2016 – Allen Iverson is named first ballot Hall of Fame player

2016 – Ben Simmons is taken first overall by the 76ers

Let’s hope the team continues to make history.

Next: Where Are Bryan Colangelo's Former Trading Partners?

The Philadelphia 76ers have had the first overall pick of the NBA draft for just the third time. Doug Collins was the first to be selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1973. Allen Iverson was the second to be selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1996. Ben Simmons is the third to be selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2016.

But David Simmons has a bit of basketball history as well, and all that he knows about basketball has become the legacy of his son Ben. Perhaps this is how Destiny intended the story to be written.

Go Sixers.