The Philadelphia 76ers have added to their medical department in a big way.
Health has been a longstanding issue with this Philadelphia 76ers team. While injuries to Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons — among many others — haven’t necessarily be the medical staff’s fault the way they’ve been handled has been a constant point of concern for those around the team.
This offseason, the Sixers were proactive in upping their proficiency in that department, hiring Dr. Daniel Medina, the former Deputy Director of Sports Science and Medical for FC Barcelona — of one Europe’s foremost soccer clubs. His position, which is new to the Sixers franchise, will be Vice President of Athlete Care.
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This is obviously a huge get. Soccer is the talk of the town overseas, and getting the man who’s tasked with keeping some of the world’s most famous athletes in top condition is a massive boost for a young basketball team looking to sustain the health of their own players. Embiid and Simmons will now be in far more respected hands.
Bryan Colangelo had this to say in the team’s press release:
"“We operate in a competitive and complex industry that relies heavily on player health, and it remains our mission to excel and innovate at every possible facet of athlete care and performance,” Colangelo said. “He will plan, manage and implement our efforts to establish an elite and sustainable athlete care and performance model.”"
The conditioning it takes to play soccer at the highest level is extreme. The cardio and physical exertion that takes place over a 90 minute game is second to virtually no other major sports. Medina has ample experience in dealing with health-related issues that span across the body, and dealing with core and leg strengthening — which will likely be the primary focus with the team’s best players — is seemingly in his wheelhouse.
Fans have been waiting on a change in the team’s medical staff for quite some time now. Something he always been off base, and mixed messaging isn’t something a young team on the rise can afford when it comes to making sure it’s star players are healthy and ready to compete.
Liberty Ballers had this to say:
"“…One of Medina’s primary goals will be to make sure all personnel members involved in taking care of athletes are working in unison to keep the players in tip-top shape. This will seek to establish, for example, that the team chef, trainers, and other personnel are working together to build an individual, comprehensive day-to-day plan for someone like Robert Covington.”"
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Ideally, Medina’s stellar track record overseas will translate to Philadelphia — and give the Sixers’ health regimen a nice boost moving forward.