Philadelphia 76ers: 10 head coaching candidates to consider

Sixers coaching candidate: Tim Duncan

This is admittedly a wild card, and frankly, it doesn’t seem likely that Tim Duncan would leave San Antonio… at all. He may wait and take over the Spurs job when Popovich retires. Or, he may return to retirement shortly. The idea of Duncan as head coach — especially outside San Antonio — feels strange, as if it’s a thought you’re not supposed to have.

And yet, he would make a lot of sense on paper. If he did have interest, it’s hard to conjure up a more perfect coach to engage and challenge Joel Embiid. Few humans understand the challenges of Embiid’s position and style more than Duncan. He’s someone who can help Embiid individually, while hypothetically building a more schematically helpful offense around him.

Duncan was the Spurs’ lead assistant during the regular season. You don’t normally get that gig without some level of competency, even if your name is Tim Duncan and you work for the Spurs. It was Duncan who stepped into the head coaching vacancy when Popovich was out, not the more experienced Becky Hammon.

If Duncan does have interest in pursuing a full-time head coaching gig, the Sixers should knock down his door in pursuit of an interview. Get him in the same room as Embiid and Simmons, let them converse, and see if Duncan is the right voice to lead this team forward. He’s a total wild card, but one of the few wild cards who can plainly benefit Philadelphia in an area of need. That area of need, of course, being Embiid.