Sixers rumors: Mike D’Antoni is ownership’s preferred candidate
Sixers ownership reportedly has a favorite in mind.
When Mike D’Antoni’s departure from Houston was announced, it took only minutes for him to be connected to the Philadelphia 76ers job. He has quietly been on the Sixers’ radar for some time now, and recent reports paint him as the favorite.
Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer recently reported that D’Antoni is “the candidate [Sixers ownership] wants.” While GM Elton Brand was adamant that he would conduct the Sixers’ search for a new head coach, ownership always has the final say.
The Sixers’ relationship with D’Antoni has been brewing for years, ever since he was associate head coach under Brett Brown in 2015. When Bryan Colangelo was hired as GM, his initial plan was to have D’Antoni succeed Brown. Support within the organization and the locker room saved Brown, and D’Antoni eventually took the Rockets job. But D’Antoni has been on the Sixers’ radar before.
That connection is made even more noteworthy by the simple fact that Colangelo’s entire front office structure remains in tact. While Colangelo himself is no longer present, the likes of Elton Brand, Ned Cohen, and Alex Rucker are all stowaways from the Burnergate era. The Sixers promised change in the front office, but no such change has occurred yet.
Also of note is the connection between Brand and D’Antoni. When D’Antoni served as an assistant under Brown, none of the current players on the roster where in Philadelphia. Brand, however, did play for the Sixers in 2015. He therefore has firsthand experience with D’Antoni’s coaching style.
Many believe D’Antoni and Philadelphia are incompatible on a stylistic level. He is now infamous for his small-ball experiment in Houston. The Sixers, on the other hand, gravely lack shooters and have a roster flooded with big men.
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The Sixers’ personnel does not fit the traditional mold of a D’Antoni team. But D’Antoni has adapted in the past, and Philadelphia could use an infusion of pick-and-rolls — one of D’Antoni’s foremost areas of expertise. If the Sixers are able to acquire a star guard in the vein of Chris Paul or Jrue Holiday, then a D’Antoni hire makes even more sense.