Sixers rumors: Mike D’Antoni among candidates for head coach

By Christopher Kline | Sep 13, 2020

Mike D'Antoni (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

The Sixers are expected to consider Mike D’Antoni for their head coaching vacancy.

Mike D’Antoni is expected to inform Rockets ownership that he will not return to Houston next season. Not long after that report dropped, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that D’Antoni will be among the candidates considered for the Philadelphia 76ers’ head coaching vacancy. This is not a surprise.

Before he took the Rockets job, D’Antoni was the Sixers’ associate head coach under Brett Brown. There was a time when Bryan Colangelo wanted D’Antoni to succeed Brown as Sixers head coach, but he underestimated the support from Brown inside the locker room and around the organization.

While Colangelo is no longer the Sixers’ GM, virtually everyone who worked under him is still in the front office. Elton Brand was a Colangelo understudy, Alex Rucker and Ned Cohen are somehow still on the payroll, and despite declarations of imminent change, no dominos have fallen yet.

More from Rumors

With Colangelo’s influence still rampant in the Sixers front office, it’s not surprising to see D’Antoni’s name so swiftly connected to Philadelphia. He’s also a well-respected coach with decades of NBA success under his belt, even if a championship has alluded him so far.

I’ve long been a fan of D’Antoni. He’s a revolutionary basketball mind — made clear by the Seven Seconds or Less Suns with Steve Nash, then reaffirmed by the Rockets’ uniquely analytical approach to offense. D’Antoni has proven that he’s willing to bend tradition and push boundaries. He’s one of the most innovative offensive coaches in NBA history.

With that said, transitioning from the small-ball Rockets to the Sixers’ bully-ball slogfest would be quite a challenge. D’Antoni would need to construct a system unlike anything he ever did in Phoenix or Houston. He would need to center his attack around a post-dominant big in Joel Embiid and a non-shooting playmaker in Ben Simmons.

It would be a difficult, whiplash-inducing adjustment. With that said, D’Antoni’s innovative past and the general success of his teams on the offensive end provide hope. The Sixers need someone to figure out how to squeeze points out of this roster. Maybe D’Antoni is the one to do it.

Also, while it pains me to consistently tie coaching rumors back to a fringe hypothetical, it’s still worth mentioning the Chris Paul connection. If the Sixers can indeed pull a rabbit out of the hat and trade for Paul, D’Antoni is someone who knows how to coach him. Another candidate tied to Philadelphia — Billy Donovan — also happens to have Chris Paul ties. Worth a footnote, at least.

Next. 10 head coaching candidates to consider. dark

Right now, D’Antoni, Donovan, and Tyronn Lue are the names to watch in Philadelphia — but far from the only candidates worth consideration. We will see how events unfold over the coming months.