Philadelphia 76ers Elton Brand: A Snowball Starts The Avalanche

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Apr 10, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown goes over a play with his team during the third quarter of the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center. The Milwaukee Bucks won 109-108 in OT. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports /

One spirit to find them all, and in the court bind them

The Philadelphia 76ers all share a love of the game of basketball, and have come from the four corners of the earth to play the game for Philadelphia. But as passionate as the team is, they need a mentor, a gold-standard to emulate, a person to look up to and try to emulate.

Elton Brand is that person.

As the team prepares to pare from 20 to 15, Brand had a difficult choice. He can still play the game. He can still perform on a basketball court. But Elton Brand is much to compassionate to ignore that his presence on the 15 man roster denies a younger player with dreams of basketball that chance.

Selflessness is not a common quality in professional sports. But it is perhaps one of the most noble. It allows a man of vast experiences to share his wealth of knowledge with newcomers. It allows a proud NBA player to retire while he still has some gas in the tank.

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Elton Brand’s retirement is just one more example of his paying it forward. He is surrendering his seat for a younger player to try to realize the dream of becoming an NBA star.

It was the gentlemanly thing to do.