Philadelphia 76ers 2020 New Year’s Resolutions

Brett Brown

By: Sam Coltrane

Opinions on Brett Brown vary greatly among Philadelphia basketball fans. Some call for his head, others believe he is there with the elite and many fans alternate those sentiments between each passing game.

Thoughts around the league probably peg Brown as a top-half of the league coach who needs to learn how to close games out. Brown’s shortcomings in the fourth quarter are well-documented and perhaps are were never more on display than their five-game loss to the Boston Celtics in the 2018 playoffs.

Despite these shortcomings, they are explainable and the explanation is actually where his resolution lies. The questionable fit between Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons has been discussed ad nauseam. He can stagger minutes throughout the game as partial fix.

However, the two can simply be so talented it doesn’t matter, but come the fourth quarter and especially the playoffs those shortcomings must be addressed.

Brown’s biggest issue has been his failure to experiment solutions throughout the regular season and early in games. Simmons is an All-Star point guard. He could also be an All-Pro point forward. Draymond Green has made a living screening for a guard, rolling to the hoop, and playing downhill while still leaving room for a dunker in the lane. This might not work for Philadelphia, but Brown’s resolution has to be finding out. If it doesn’t, then keep trying. After all, his job is to figure it out.