Philadelphia 76ers Elton Brand: A Snowball Starts The Avalanche

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Mar 29, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand (42) lands on the scorers table after saving a ball from going out of bounds against the Charlotte Hornets during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Hornets won 100-85. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Sage Wisdom

By definition, wisdom is a quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment. Sage wisdom is the lifestyle of a wise person. In other words, its the manner by which a wise person chooses to live.

Modest in words. Bold in actions.

But while the experience of an NBA veteran on the right way to go about an NBA career does not register on all NBA players, so too the number who become good role models are far fewer.

Elton Brand excels at both.

#Sixers Okafor on Brand: 'He's been like a big brother to me. He's somebody I talked to about anything - it was rarely about basketball.'
— Tom Moore (@TomMoorePhilly) October 20, 2016

But like everything of this life, time passes and Elton Brand’s time is passing now too. Life’s lessons happen gradually. Sometimes wisdom arrives too late. To win a championship, an NBA team must fly ahead of the curve.

But this is a passing of the baton now. In the time Elton Brand wore the uniform, he has passed onto his teammates all that he could. And so, the snowball was tossed upon the slope.