It's a brand new era for the Philadelphia 76ers. The arrival of newly acquired head coach Doc Rivers has definitely given the city something to be excited about after a series of heartbreaking seasons. Rivers is adapting a solid young core in Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons and it's clear that their main objective is to bring back the trophy to the City of Brotherly Love.
Together with GM Elton Brand, these two form a unique duo and they are hoping to bring back some hope not just to the city of Philadelphia, but also hopefully, around the league – especially in a time like this where conversations about racial injustice is at its peak in society.
“It has a lot of significance that we have a Black general manager and a Black coach,” Brand said (via NBA.com). “The goal was to get the best coach, so it just happens that the best coach for our program right now is Black.”
Aside from the duo of Doc Rivers and Brand, there are only four more other Black head coach and DM tandems in the NBA right now. Rivers, coming into his 21st season as an NBA coach, is just one of five Black head coaches in the league. They are hoping that their success can change the way things are done not just in the league, but in sports in general.
“When I leave this place, and decide to go off to some far away golf course, my goal is for it to be said that Elton Brand is the best GM in sports.” Rivers said. “[In the NBA] we don’t have a lot of Black GM’s, or Black front office people. If he’s successful, then someone else can be.”
For both Rivers and Brand, the main objective is to push for more than just wins inside the basketball court. These two Black personalities are hoping to pave the way for a better future in the NBA.
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