Does Brett Brown Deserve a Contract Extension?

It’s an odd circumstance when someone asks if a coach that hasn’t won 20 games in either of his first two seasons as an NBA head coach should receive a contract extension. But, this shows the unique situation between Brett Brown and the Philadelphia 76ers.

After Doug Collins resigned following an abysmal 2011-12 season, the coaching search was on. The search went on, and on, and on…. AND ON. The Draft passed without a coach and so did most of the summer. Brett Brown was hired by the 76ers until early August 2013, a mere two months and change until the start of the NBA season.

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Brown was hired with a four-year deal (a demanded four-years, that is), the same length that Doug Collins signed for. Collins resigned after three years and Brown is coming up on his third year. Collins and Browns are on two different stratosphere’s in terms of coaching and the Sixers are obviously in a different place than they were in the Collins era.

Instead of asking if Brett Brown will resign, we have to ask: Does he deserve a contract extension?

Here are his words when he was hired, about the Sixers rebuild (via Jason Wolf) :

"“It is such a long ways away, in my eyes,” Brown said. “There is so much work that has to be done in order to even think about that. It’s fair to dream, it’s fair to think about it, but geez, there’s so much work and so much luck that we’re all going to have to have to get to that level. It’s a great place to think and aspire to get to, but it’s a long road.”"

That was two years ago. What has happened since then? The Sixers have endured two 60-plus loss seasons, winning 19 games last year and 18 games this season. Philadelphia finished with the second-worst record a year ago and the third-worst record this season. But, looking at the Sixers’ record is useless. This isn’t a franchise that is being graded on wins and losses (Scottie Brooks anyone?).

It’s easy to look from the outside and see all the losing and suspect that Brown has done a horrible job, but anyone that knows basketball and has watched the Sixers, knows this is the furthest thing from the truth.

Brett Brown has constructed a top-15 defense from a roster filled with undrafted players and second-round picks. The most impressive thing that Brown has shown defensively is his ability to pick things back up after a loss. When the Sixers traded K.J. McDaniels and Michael Carter-Williams, it was expected that the Sixers nearly top-10 defense pre All-Star break would fall flat on it’s face. The Sixers hit some road bumps after the trade deadline, but Brett Brown still found a way to make his team into a really good defensive club, even with the losses of K.J. and MCW.

Post All-Star break, the Sixers had the 17th-best defense, which is still remarkable considering the (lack of) talent on the team. Brett Brown and his club bounced back and Brown was able to really show his coaching expertise. Imagine what the man can do with actual NBA talent on his roster.

Feb 20, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown (L) runs drills with center Joel Embiid (21) prior to their game against the Indiana Pacers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

But, that NBA talent will take time to come to the team, like we’ve found out from last year’s NBA Draft. The Sixers had two lottery picks and neither played a game for Philly this season. The Sixers went BPA (Embiid and Saric) at each pick, while picking up an extra first-round pick in the process from Orlando, but it did set them back.

Regardless, Brown strutted his coaching expertise this season and while there was still negative coverage out about the Sixers, there was even more positive talk about Brown and the culture he was building. There is no losing culture in Philadelphia. These quote from Derek Bodner’s piece on the Sixers culture battle should influence that:

"“I’ve been on bad teams, losing teams, where guys are just counting down the days to go home,” Jason Richardson said. “Nobody was coming in and talking about summer vacation [here]. That’s a good testament to the type of guys that are in this locker room and how much they care about this organization. “It’s more than just basketball,” Luc Mbah a Moute said about Brown as a coach. “We’re still human beings. We still have to live, we’re not just basketball players. I think he does more than just draw X’s and O’s. “The fact that he talks to me is just a big difference right there,” Thomas Robinson, the former 5th overall draft pick turned NBA vagabond, said when asked how Brown was different. “I never had that from a coach in this league, to make me feel comfortable when I mess up.”"

These three players speaking this highly of a coach that won 18 games this season is remarkable. If you removed the names from these quotes, you’d probably think these were players on a team contending for a title (outside of the Richardson quote). While the front office makes all coaching decisions, it’s a good sign that Brett Brown has the respect of his players.

But, there is still improvement to be made. Brown will have more talent next season, inserting Embiid and another lottery pick (and who knows what else will happen in the Draft and free agency). The defense is expected to still be in the top-15 of the NBA, but the offense will also be expected to be moving up from it’s dead last position in the NBA. The first two years of the rebuild hasn’t been focused on winning, but there will be some weight placed in winning heading into 2015-16.

This next season could determine his future as the Sixers head coach. But, would you give Brown a contract extension before he has the opportunity to run away?