Still The Same
All the while, time moves on. Players contracts expire. The team will lose five players in the upcoming offseason. For now, the team has plenty of opportunity to restock the shelves. But for far too long, the front office has delivered players with “some assembly required”. Head coach Brett Brown has spent virtually his entire time with the Philadelphia 76ers teaching basketball to raw prospects.
This was the year that would change. Not much has.
South Bound & Down
This is neither the time to hide, nor the time to feed the head coach to the wolves in the media. The front office manages the roster, and if the heat is on, the front office had better find a camera, a microphone, and the courage to talk to the what who and when.
Nerlens Noel and Noel’s agent are acting in a very expected manner. They are scheming in every way possible to get Noel on another team’s roster, where he can showcase his talent before trying to land his next NBA contract.
Head coach Brett Brown is acting in a very predictable and responsible manner as well. He has advocated selflessness to his players. Why wouldn’t the guy react to a selfish “it’s all about me!” player on his roster?
The person who is not acting in the way either expected or predicted is Bryan Colangelo. A man who has run two NBA teams previously seems to have forgotten the politics, the end game, and the need to defend his coach, while dealing with personnel issues directly and privately.
If you are a fan of Bryan Colangelo, I feel for you. My jury has been out. But this crises has shown Bryan Colangelo doesn’t have the skillset I had thought he brought. Tossing his coach under the bus over a crises of his own making is disappointing at the least.
Next: Joel Embiid: “The Process” Play of the Week of December 12th
In the first Philadelphia 76ers crises, Bryan Colangelo has failed. I hope he learns how to do better before the next one.