The Philadelphia 76ers gave their head coach a contract extension this year. The Cleveland Cavaliers fired theirs. What does this mean?
It was announced by the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday afternoon that head coach David Blatt had his position as head coach terminated, and Tyronn Lue would be replacing him. Now, although Lue has a lot of connection to Philadelphia–see Allen Iverson stepping over Lue in the 2001 NBA Finals–that’s not how this coaching move connects to the Sixers.
To my dismay, I saw a lot of comments on Friday regarding the Sixers when Blatt was fired. Comments that looked something like, “how could the Cavaliers fire their coach that led their team to the best record in the East when the Sixers gave their coach a contact extension for winning just six games?”
More from Sixers News
- 3 Sixers players who could help Team USA Basketball
- 76ers 2k24 ratings: 3 most underrated players on Philadelphia roster
- 76ers head coach Nick Nurse bares lofty plans for Paul Reed this season
- Grade the Trade: 76ers swap Tobias Harris for superstar PG in mock deal
- Breaking Down Bombshell Report on Sixers Star James Harden
I’ve said it before. A lot of people just don’t get what Brett Brown’s job on this team is. And his record doesn’t speak to the fire that he coaches with. There’s a lot we could question about him still–his lineups this year have been odd, to say the least–but it’s clear that complaints about Brown largely come from a crowd who hasn’t paid much attention at all to Brown.
I also saw some suggest the Sixers would be better off with Blatt as their head coach. I submit to you, that Blatt is not the type of coach you want around these players in the Sixers organization, or the type of coach you want to trust going into a massive rebuilding process.
Blatt was given all of the pieces to succeed with the Cavaliers, and he did. The Cavaliers are the general consensus best team in the East. But that doesn’t automatically make you a good coach. Unfortunately, it’s hard to coach LeBron. Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra went through the same power trip that Blatt went through when James was in Miami, but the two seemed to really start to work together towards the end of James’s reign in South Beach.
Blatt’s inability to get along with the players in the Cavaliers locker room says a lot about his coaching ability. Blatt showed a disconnect that has been well documented by Cavs beat writers, and one you could practically feel through the screen when watching Cavs games and interactions between players and Blatt.
Now, imagine him coming into the Sixers system. Blatt couldn’t even cultivate relationships with some of the best players in this league, how could we expect him to do so with players that need serious development? Blatt was handed, practically on a silver platter, all the components to be a Hall of Fame coach, but couldn’t be an effective locker-room coach. What if he was just handed some lower-level NBA players?
Brown has real connections with these players. You won’t ever even hear a question from media that resembles a question of mutiny within the locker room against the coaching staff. Questions like that were regular in Cleveland. And perhaps that’s a LeBron issue, but as far as I’m concerned, a large part of the issue was Blatt’s approach to coaching the team.
Development is what Brown does best. It’s why he is in Philadelphia. Casual fans obviously don’t get that, and look no further than the records that coaches show.
But in a league where Luke Walton can pick up coaching a team where Steve Kerr left off and lead them to a historic NBA start, it’s clear it’s not all about the coach. And in a league where the best team in the conference fires it’s head coach midway through the season, it’s clear that it’s not all about the record.
Next: Sixers Ahead of Others In Rebuilding Process?
Brett Brown is what’s best for this Sixers organization right now. Someone like David Blatt is exactly what they don’t need.