After a disappointing first-round exit in the 2020 NBA Playoffs, the Philadelphia 76ers were ready to hit the restart button and parted ways with head coach Brett Brown, who led the team in seven seasons from 2013 to 2020.

With a vacant spot on the sidelines, then-Los Angeles Clippers assistant coach Tyronn Lue was one of the top candidates. The 43-year-old tactician has strong ties with LeBron James, who shares the same agent with Ben Simmons in Klutch Sports' Rich Paul.

However, the idea of bringing Lue to Philadelphia reportedly didn't sit well with big man Joel Embiid.

Via Bill Oram and Joe Vardon of The Athletic:

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Sources across the NBA said the Sixers’ other star, Joel Embiid, ultimately opposed Lue as coach for X’s and O’s reasons and for the optics of Simmons’ “guy” getting the job.

While Lue would have brought a championship pedigree to the Sixers, the franchise ultimately went in the direction of another title-winning coach. After being sacked by the Clippers, Doc Rivers immediately packed his bags and relocated to The City of Brotherly Love, where he is hoping to open a new chapter in his coaching career.

With a champion coach in Rivers now at the helm, the Sixers are aiming to take the next step and make the jump of being regular title contenders in the years to come. Last season was a major disappointment, but new Sixers president Daryl Morey retooled the roster in the offseason around Simmons and Embiid, acquiring shooters in Danny Green and Seth Curry to make the starting lineup fit better.

Hopefully, if there's no trade for James Harden, both stars will be able to improve their partnership and ultimately thrive under the new regime of Rivers in a bid to take the historic Sixers franchise to greater heights moving forward.