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It was common knowledge in NBA circles that the Philadelphia 76ers needed to have a long playoff run – probably to the Eastern Conference Finals at least – in order to save the job of Coach Brett Brown. Alas, without an injured Ben Simmons the Sixers never had a shot in their first-round series against the Boston Celtics and were swept out easily. Brown was officially canned Monday afternoon, with the Athletic's Shams Charania reporting the Sixers will chase after Jay Wright.
For a while there, NBA teams were scared away from hiring college coaches after the high-profile failures of Rick Pitino and John Calipari in the league. However, the success former Butler coach Brad Stevens has had with Boston and ex-Florida coach Billy Donovan with Oklahoma City has altered the thinking of many general managers.
Wright makes obvious sense for all the success he has had at Villanova, where he has been since 2001. The Wildcats won the NCAA Tournament in both 2016 & '18 and Wright is one of only three active Division I head coaches with multiple national championships to his credit. He is a two-time winner of the Naismith National Coach of the Year award and has been named Big East Coach of the Year six times.
The 58-year-old is a Philly guy through and through, born in a suburb called Churchville, and he obviously wouldn't even have to uproot his family to take the 76ers job. NBA teams have chased Wright in the past, and UCLA reportedly offered to double his salary to take the Bruins' gig, but Wright passed and it went to Cincinnati's Mick Cronin in April 2019.
Some college coaches prefer having full run of their program instead of all the NBA politics – there's a reason guys like Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and Michigan State's Tom Izzo have both turned down multiple NBA opportunities. There's less pressure in college and much less travel.
The Sixers have been a bit dysfunctional for years. Yes, they have two of the NBA's best players in Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, but they don't get along that well off the court and might not be a great fit on it, either, since both prefer to play in the post.
Meanwhile, Wright's 2020-21 Villanova team looks loaded with every key player back but Saddiq Bey from last year's 24-7 team that won yet another Big East title (tied with Creighton and Seton Hall for first in the regular season). William Hill sportsbook lists Villanova as a +1000 co-favorite to win the 2021 NCAA Tournament along with Duke and Gonzaga.
Perhaps the only shot the Sixers have of luring Wright is making him an obscene financial offer. He reportedly makes around $4.4 million per season, which is sixth-most in the NCAA according to USA Today. Gregg Popovich makes the most among NBA coaches at around $11 million per year. Would $12M do it for Wright? Do the Sixers even want to pay that much to a coach during a pandemic and the possibility of a 2020-21 season without fans in the stands?
In addition to Wright, Charania lists current Sixers assistant Ime Udoka, Los Angeles Clippers assistant Ty Lue and former Kings head coach Dave Joerger as possible candidates. Udoka is also being considered by the Chicago Bulls for their opening.
Lue, who won a title in 2016 leading the Cavaliers, also has been linked to the openings with the Nets and Pelicans, but Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix reported there's mutual interest between Lue and the Sixers. Lue does know how to deal with stars who have big egos (LeBron James and Kyrie Irving) from his Cavs days.
The Nets and Pelicans are both better jobs right now than Philly, which is projected to be WAY above next season's salary cap and thus hamstrung to do much with the roster other than possibly trading Simmons or Embiid.
Via SportsLine NBA oddsmakers: Who will be the next 76ers coach?
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