76ers reportedly plan to sign NBA veteran Elton Brand
Elton Brand played 16 NBA seasons, and appeared in 36 games for the Atlanta Hawks last season before announcing his retirement at a community event over the summer.
"I could get in shape if I got the call but this looks like the end of the run for me, right now it is family time,” Brand said at the time.
It appears as though the call finally came, albeit from a fairly unexpected place.
This is a complete change in how the Philadelphia franchise has operated in recent years, and it should be one that's extremely positive. Brand, who played for the 76ers from 2008 until 2012, has always been a consummate professional throughout his lengthy career, and has the type of voice that younger players will listen to.
And it's a role Brand is embracing, according to an essay he penned for The Cauldron:
The truth is, my decision to return to the NBA isn’t about money, and it isn’t about rings. It isn’t even about me, really, although every athlete would like to go out on his or her own terms. It’s about repaying what’s owed, about making sure that the young men who follow in my footsteps get what they’re entitled to (and what I haven’t always given them).
It’s not so much that I failed the guys I was tasked with mentoring over the years; it’s that I barely even tried. I never took the time to share the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s writing with them. I never sincerely answered their questions about what David West was trying to warn them about during NBPA meetings. I didn’t tell them why they should be reading Etan Thomas’ essays.
The team's lack of veteran leadership has resulted in issues with Joel Embiid, Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor, and it's an area which the team has finally realized it needs to address. Sam Hinkie has preferred to add nothing but young talent to the roster as the team continues to bottom out in hopes of acquiring a transcendent superstar through the draft. But with Jerry Colangelo now steering the ship, it's clear that there will be changes like these which may not yield on-court results, but will be an overall positive in developing the team's young players.
Brand averaged just 2.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 13.5 minutes per game with Atlanta last season, but he'll only play sparingly for these Sixers, if he even plays at all. He's there simply to teach, and given his prior familiarity with the organization along with his sparkling reputation, the team probably couldn't have found a much better match.
