Larry Brown

[Guest Vitamin X]

Funny how things work out...

 

76ers' new era might include return of Larry Brown

By DAN GELSTON, AP Sports Writer

December 21, 2006

 

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The revamping of the Philadelphia 76ers could include the return of Larry Brown.

 

The day after Philadelphia traded away Allen Iverson, 76ers president Billy King said he was talking to Brown about the possibility of rejoining the franchise he coached to the 2001 NBA finals.

 

Brown's already been acting as an unofficial adviser to King.

 

"We will certainly continue to talk, but at this point, we are not sure if anything official will come of it," King said in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Wednesday night.

 

Brown's agent, Joe Glass, indicated Brown could return to Philadelphia. The Knicks fired Brown in June after he went 23-59 in his only season in New York.

 

"However it's going to be characterized, will come out in the next couple of days," Glass said.

 

Glass was vague on what kind of announcement should be expected.

 

"I'd much rather have it come out of the Sixers office," Glass said, ending a brief phone interview with the AP on Wednesday night.

 

Brown, who had a contentious relationship with Iverson during his six seasons as Philly's coach, moved back to the area after he was fired by the Knicks. King consulted with Brown on the Iverson trade, which ended with the former MVP dealt to Denver on Tuesday.

 

"I will still be talking to Larry. Beyond that, I am not sure," King said before the 76ers' game against Indiana on Wednesday night.

 

Brown has been King's mentor since he hired him as an assistant coach in Indiana. When Brown came to Philadelphia in 1997, he brought King with him as vice president of basketball administration. King was named team president after Brown resigned in 2003.

 

"Larry is a great friend and tremendous asset who I have talked to numerous times during the season," King said.

 

While Brown has stayed behind the scenes in Philadelphia, he's visited some Sixers practices this season and attended a game against Miami. He also is still friends with team chairman Ed Snider.

 

"It's strictly up to Billy King. I'd welcome him if Billy decided he wanted him," Snider said at halftime Wednesday night. "He's a basketball man. He's also a coach, but he has a tremendous basketball mind."

 

A Hall of Famer and one of basketball's most well-traveled coaches, Brown's job with the 76ers was his longest tenure with any team in his 34-year coaching career. He then took the job at Detroit and led the Pistons to an NBA title in the first of his two seasons there before bolting for one disastrous year in New York.

 

Brown criticized players through the media and talked to the press without a public relations official present, both violating Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan's policies. Also, the Knicks said Brown undermined team president Isiah Thomas by making trade offers to other teams, which he wasn't authorized to do.

 

The Knicks withheld the remainder of Brown's contract, which had four years and more than $40 million remaining, saying they fired Brown for cause. The dispute went before commissioner David Stern, but the sides agreed to a compromise in October before Stern's ruling, in which Brown got $18.5 million and both sides were freed of any future obligations to each other.

 

Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said he would welcome Brown's input.

 

"I've never had a problem with Larry Brown being around," he said.

 

What do you guys think of this one?

[Guest "Go, Mordecai!"]

I'm sick of Larry Brown and his "I come and go like the wind!" shit. Leave and stay gone; all you do is leave a trail of fucked-over teams in your wake.

[2GOLD 0]

I'm sick of Larry Brown and his "I come and go like the wind!" shit. Leave and stay gone; all you do is leave a trail of fucked-over teams in your wake.

 

To be fair, the Knicks were screwed up well before he got there.

[JHawk 0]

Brown criticized players through the media and talked to the press without a public relations official present, both violating Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan's policies.

 

If a coach isn't allowed to say his team sucks, what is he supposed to do when his team sucks?

[2GOLD 0]

Brown criticized players through the media and talked to the press without a public relations official present, both violating Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan's policies.

 

If a coach isn't allowed to say his team sucks, what is he supposed to do when his team sucks?

 

Get a Myspace and set the blog to private of course.

[Guest Princess Leena]

Typical Larry Brown here...

 

Go to a struggling team, he'll probably improve them into a lower playoff team. He's a great coach, yadda yadda.

 

I guess I'd like to see it, because I wouldn't like to see his career end with that Knicks disaster.

 

But, is Brown fine healthwise? I thought the biggest reason he wanted to quit because of his bowel issues.

 

Oh, and we need to see Iverson cry like a baby on Screamin's show again.

[Fökai 0]

You know, I recently started watching ESPN again...it was fun while it lasted.

 

But really, he needs to stay away from the coaching position for a few years. Have him go back to college ball or something. The Sixers could really be something in two or three years and a media magnet as their coach is a detriment.

 

Now what was wrong with Jim O'Brien again?

[naiwf 0]

Larry Brown is the biggest locker room cancer ever. Just go away.

[lomasmoney 0]

He's not going to be the coach, just probably a team consultant or something like that

[Precious Roy 0]

He's not going to be the coach, just probably a team consultant or something like that

 

And of course he'll bolt the job in a year to go coach the Bobcats or the Grizzlies or the F'n San Antonio Silver Stars

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Awful. I like Larry Brown as a coach. But the Sixers have now started enjoyed the services of five different coaches in the last five seasons. At some point you have to stick to your goddamned plan.

[LivingLegendGaryColeman 0]

Larry Brown should have one more job so he doesn't go out with that Knicks disaster, but if he coaches in Philly, it won't help. I would not hire Larry Brown if I was a coach of a young team, he shouldn't have done New York in the first place and that means no Philly, no Charlotte, no Boston, no team that is based around the young stars (like Philly is going to become). Larry Brown still has the old school mentality when it comes to young players and that won't help in any of those franchises. I really was glad they named Nelson in Golden State instead of the slight Brown rumors because Nelson has turned the Warriors around by giving guys like Biedrins and Monta Ellis a chance. That's not Brown. He should get one more shot, but it needs to be with a vetern heavy franchise.

[alfdogg 0]

I'll jump in with the "just stay away" crowd. You've got your title, you're in the Hall of Fame, and you're not going anywhere with the Sixers. Just quit already.

 

And yes, I'm aware that it doesn't say anything about him coaching, but, just like with Pat Riley, you know it'll come to that eventually.

[Guest NYankees]

Lets not forget that Larry Brown was paid over 20 million dollars for coaching the Knicks for one season.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

I usually attend five 76ers games a year, and went to 10-12 from 1999-2002, and will stop that trend if Brown is re-hired.

 

Seriously. He abandons ship and then tries to jump on when the ship is already at the bottom of the ocean? Be gone. This 76ers young core CAN NOT PLAY DEFENSE WHATSOEVER. What difference would Brown make? This isn't a young team with workhorse defenders anymore. It's a bunch of average NBA players who occassionaly make enough shots to win, like 1 out of 5 games.

 

Brown wouldn't make a difference unless he was brought in for say, the 2009 season after lots of draft picks were to be made.

[Guest "Go, Mordecai!"]

Larry Brown can certainly clean up messes, but he seems to always leave a bigger mess than the one he found.