How should Sixers fans remember Brett Brown's time in Philadelphia?

On August 15th, 2013 the Sixers hired the 24th head coach in franchise history - Brett Brown. It has been 7 long years since the ever-positive, vibrant, first-time NBA head coach first made Philadelphia his home. The unique Boston/Australian accent and genuine heart endeared him to the city and its fans right away.

The Process has worn on few people like it has Brett Brown. Coaching in the NBA is one of the most publicly scrutinized jobs in the world. They get very little of the shine when things are good and nearly all of the blame when times are bad. Hired by Sam Hinkie, Brown is the last remaining piece of the original part of the Process plan. He was absolutely the right hire at the time and there are few guys who would've had the mental resolve to get through those dark years. In many ways, this firing signifies the end of an era in Philadelphia.

Brett Brown is a unique character. After college, Brown began working a sales job at AT&T. He was financially stable making really good money but did not find any passion for this. He was under 25 years old making 6 figures and having multiple properties. On the surface, his life was nothing but success, but in his heart, there was something missing. Looking to fill this void, Brown quit his job and booked a one-way ticket to as far away from America as he could get.

For over a year the young Brett Brown backpacked across countries like Fiji, Tahiti, New Zealand, and eventually Australia. Having met a girl that was too tough to leave behind, his now-wife Anna, Brown realized he needed to find a job. A coach's son, basketball was always a part of Brett's life. At this time basketball was also beginning to gain traction around the Australia and New Zealand area. Brown offered to coach anyone that would listen and began working his way up the basketball ranks in Australia.

Having success early in his coaching career in Australia, Brown believed he was ready to try his hand coaching in America. Brown had met the GM of the Spurs at an NBA overseas camp located in Australia in previous years and hit it off. He used this contact to reach out and was given a chance as an unpaid assistant with the Spurs. He learned a ton in his time around Gregg Popovich and was promoted to Director of Player Development the following year. Brown tried to soak in every bit of info in his time with the Spurs to the point where he became the head coaching candidate that Philadelphia was first introduced to him as.

It is tough to find anyone to speak a negative word about Brown. Tim Duncan has repeatedly called him one of his "favorite people" he's ever met. In the dark days of Sixers basketball where 10-game losing streaks were routine and an unknown name who was given a contract the day before leading the team in scoring was commonplace, Brown was absolutely the right man for the job. Every night he brought infectious energy and contagious optimism. To the best of his ability, he put a team full of borderline NBA players on the court and had them competing to the final buzzer. Brown grew as a coach in front of everyone else's eyes and right along with the youthful team.

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Now all this being said, it is absolutely the right decision to move on Brown as head coach. A new voice is needed in the locker room after an embarrassing sweep by the Celtics that sent the team packing from Orlando. Concerns with his X's and O's are still relevant as Brown has lacked the ability to draw plays and close out games, but the failure that occurred this postseason is not on Brown's shoulders. Despite the mudslinging that will ensue as the front office will do their best to throw Brown under the bus, the demise of this Sixers team is mainly due to factors out of Brown's control.

The Process was a time in Sixers basketball that carried such promise. Sam Hinkie was forced out largely due to Adam Silver and the NBA forcing their hand in this. Bryan Colangelo stepped in and only lasted from 2016-2018. He managed to make the genius move to trade up to the #1 pick and land Markelle Fultz and then was sent out of town after creating several burner accounts to defend his poor decision making. Alex Rucker and Ned Cohen were brought in by Colangelo and still make key decisions for the team. They hide in the shadows and are kept out of public scrutiny but are just as responsible (if not more) as the other names being thrown blame right now. Elton Brand was forced into the GM role this year and has proven not to be ready to fill those shoes, yet no one seems to know how much of a voice he truly has in decision making.

Brett Brown should be remembered fondly for his years here. He made a much more positive impact than any of the other names of guys who had a hand in The Process. Sitting through those painful years has ruined his coaching record (221-334) forever and it will be interesting to see how his reputation around the league will turn out. He is not Phil Jackson by any means, but there are far worse coaches out there than Brett Brown.

The criticism that will stick with Brown will likely be his ability to hold the team accountable. After his 3rd year in the league, Ben Simmons still refuses to shoot jump shots. The team would show up flat periodically which was evident in their poor away record this year. Brown wore it on his sleeve talking about how didn't do a good enough job this year, but the fact of the matter is no one could have taken this team to a finals run. All in all, Brown should be remembered fondly for his time in Philly. It is certainly a low-point as a Sixers fan but the Sixers are a better organization due to Brown's time here.

So as the Sixers look ahead to their uncertain future, don't remember Brett for the disappointing season this year. Think back to the youthful time where the team won the 1st pick in the lottery and were able to draft Ben Simmons. Remember Brown jumping and screaming in his Bostralian accent as TJ McConnell hit a game-winning turnaround jumper over Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks.

Don't forget about the promise and pure joy that was brought as Brown drew up a play to give Robert Covington a game-winning lay in after a terrible shooting slump. The Process has been such a fabled storyline for the Sixers. Brown coached 102 total players throughout his 7 years as the Sixers coach and made an impact on each one. What the final result will be is still to be determined but Brett Brown will be one of the names remembered the fondest in this era of Sixers basketball.