Adrian Fedkiw
Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown met Ben Simmons’ parents before they got married and has been following Simmons’ career for more than a decade.
Now they’ve all be re-united.
Brown sat down with The Vertical’s Chris Mannix Thursday to discuss Simmons and where the Philadelphia 76ers are heading.
He first spoke of the differences between the team and expectations now as opposed to the last few years when the Sixers were basement dwellers in the NBA.
“It’s extremely different. Some of it is just the excitement born out of watching the first pick out of the draft play and play for us. Some of it is the realization that Joel is around the corner … It’s just a more legitimate type of youth that we feel are ours for a while.”
Brown also gave his thoughts on what he saw out of Simmons’ workout with the team prior to him being selected with the No. 1 pick.
“For me the physical gifts that he had stood out immediately. You think you know when you see him on TV, you think you know when our scouts go watch him on the sideline, you think you study him enough to know, but you really don’t know as much as you do when you’re just 10 inches from him. You see him stand next to Joel Embiid and realize there’s only a few inches of separation and he has the skill package as we said that sometimes you dream of just giving him the ball and letting him be all the comparisons that I get myself in trouble … Physically that’s what stood out most to me.”
Brown explained why drafting Simmons first overall was a simple decision.
“I knew his parents before they were married. I know all of his junior coaches, the ones that were most significant and influential in his growth. And so when you start listening and learning and you hear a pattern of behavior, a pattern of a skill set, the evolution of his game. You just get more comfortable that you have a true knowledge of who he is.”
And now that the Sixers are going to have loftier expectations, how does Brown plan on handling them?
“We’re just going to focus on the things we need to. We have to have the fittest team they’ve ever been in their lives. They have to be in the greatest shape of their lives, career-best fitness. Everything starts there … If we can get that, then we can get to the next phase, development. We will go overboard on keying on the repetition of skill development. Then it’ll be on me to piece these guys together … I feel like the compass remains the same, crazy fitness and incredible attention to skill development.”
The start of basketball season can’t come soon enough!