NBA: The Philadephia 76ers sack Brett Brown after series 4-0 blowout against the Celtics

The Philadelphia 76ers announced on Monday that they have fired head coach, Brett Brown, and that the team will consider changes to their front office structure. General manager Elton Brand, however, is expected to remain in place as the head of basketball operations, but the rest of the staff beneath him is subject to change.

The 76ers were swept out of the first round Playoff series by the Boston Celtics on Sunday, and Brown had been on the hot seat for most of the season. He took over as head coach of the 76ers in 2013, under Sam Hinkie, and survived 7 years as manager of the Philadephia team.

In a statement released by the Philadephia 76ers, GM Elton Brand says: “I have a tremendous level of respect for Brett both personally and professionally and appreciate all he’s done for the 76ers organization and the City of Philadelphia.

“He did many positive things during his time here, developing young talent and helping position our team for three straight postseason appearances. Unfortunately, we fell well short of our goals this year and I believe it is best to go in a new direction. This will be an important offseason for us as we look to get back on track towards our goal of competing for an NBA championship.”

Josh Harris, 76ers Managing Partner says: “I want to thank Brett for not only what he did as our Head Coach, but for the impactful community work he and his family did across the Greater Philadelphia Area over the last seven years.

“He is a high-character coach and leader and we’re fortunate to have had him here. This is a difficult decision, but one we believe is necessary. I wish Brett and his family well.”

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Brown, was the coach throughout Hinkie’s entire “Process” period of tanking for high draft picks, giving him such underwhelming rosters to work with that he only won around 39 percent of his games in Philadelphia despite later success.

After years at the bottom of the standings, the tandem of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid gave the 76ers hope again to meaningfully compete for championships. However, after three consecutive postseasons without a trip to the Eastern Conference finals, the 76ers are reportedly ready to pull the plug.

All season long, rumours about Brown’s job swirled around, and injuries made it especially difficult for him to keep the 76ers afloat. Key players including Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons suffered spells on the sidelines among several other players which gravely they suffered for in the bubble as Philadelphia’s championship hopes were dashed for good.

According to reports, a number of possible candidates have caught the team’s eye. They include incumbent assistant Ime Udoka, Villanova coach Jay Wright, former Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings coach Dave Joerger and former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Ty Lue.

They would need a coach creative enough to overcome the stylistic differences between Embiid and Simmons, two non-shooters that have struggled to mesh with a near-constant turnover on the rest of the roster.

The new coach would need to create an offense that can work with limited spacing and build continuity in an organization that has had little of it during Brown’s tumultuous tenure.

Brown was named the 25th head coach in franchise history on August 14, 2013, guiding the team for seven years, and into the playoffs in each of the last three seasons.