The NBA Finals are almost here (probably will be by the time you read this), and once again, team members of the Philadelphia 76ers will be watching from home. The Sixers lost in the second round, yet again…and the quick out led to the firing of Head Coach Doc Rivers.
That the 76ers fell short this year was especially disappointing, since their road to the Finals was made a lot easier with the first-round elimination of the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that should have been a real contender, but not so much after the injury to the Greek Freak.
So now it’s head coach interview time for the Sixers. The team has plenty of power, with Joel Embiid and, hopefully, James Harden returning. Who should head up the team? Well, our man Shaq had a good suggestion on the latest edition of The Big Podcast.
Rivers was the head man in Philly for three seasons. Across that time, the story never really changed for the team. Analysts and game-watchers agreed: the team relied too much on shooting when they should have been dominating the paint, especially with a superstar big like Embiid.
As for Shaq, he thinks team ownership needs to find a new coach that can speak the tough truth to Embiid and other team stars. On the podcast, O’Neal said he’d be pretty sure Embiid must have been involved in the decision to release Rivers.
Shaq; “Probably it was time for a change. He [Joel Embiid] is going to need to get somebody that he respects, and somebody that could tell him the truth. Because the truth of the matter is, ‘you’re too big and too talented to be shooting jumpers all the time.’”
On the show, Shaq talked about the coach that brought out the best in his game, legendary head man Phil Jackson. It was the Zen Master who helped him develop into an MVP and a Champion… a big upgrade from “just” a dominant All-Star who enjoyed playing basketball.
Shaq said Embiid should have a coach who could bring the same out of him. While there might not be another Phil on the market, there are plenty of coaches seeking employment with different specialties.
So the hunt is on. There are plenty of big names out there with the chops to succeed in the City of Brotherly Love. Possible hires include Mike D’Antoni, Monty Williams, Sam Cassell, Nick Nurse, Mike Budenholzer, and Frank Vogel. There’s Championship experience there, too. Those latter three have each won the championship between 2019 and 2021.
Who will the next head coach be for the Sixers? Hard to say. And after the Finals, there may be even more big names available for the job. Stay tuned!
