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Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown doubled down on his verbal exchange with star forward Jimmy Butler being much ado about nothing, noting this is hardly the first time he and his star player have disagreed on basketball matters, but it is banter the Sixers coach welcomes and sees as productive.
“This is why I like coaching. I like that communication, the relationship. Sometimes, there’s subtle, respectful confrontation,” said Brown, according to Chris Hine of The Minneapolis Star Tribune. “There is in my home. I got no problems with any of it. I think where the thing pivots to ‘Oh, this isn’t typical,’ I don’t agree with that.
“It’s happened many times. This is just the first time it’s public.”
Jimmy Butler's coaches have often grown used to his blunt personality and actually preferred his straight-shooter way to get problems across instead of a passive-aggressive approach, which is only bound to linger throughout the season.
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One thing is sure — Butler is a ruthless competitor and that starts from the practice floor, carrying it into games.
His desire to be part of more pick-and-roll plays as well as see his Sixers teammates flourish in their areas of strength isn't a challenge to Brett Brown, but serves as advice from a player's field of vision, allowing his coach to see a star's perception in efforts to diagnose a problem.
The Sixers have won five of their last seven games, but head into a brutal 13-game run, playing 11 teams with a .500 record or better (.600 combined winning percentage) and 12 of them on national television.
