November 15, 2015
It took a little more than two hours Saturday night for the San Antonio Spurs to hand the winless Sixers their 10th loss this season.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich says he wouldn't last much longer than that coaching the team his squad beat .
Speaking to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Popovich said he wouldn't enjoy being at the helm of Philly's now three year long rebuilding process, but Bett Brown does:
"I'd last about a month," Popovich said. "And he, honest to God, loves coaching that team."
Brown is a pupil of Popovich's, serving as director of player development and assistant coach for the Spurs for 11 years and winning a title with the team in 2007 before coming over to Philly in 2013.
Although Brown has constantly preached his belief in the "process," he has acknowledged the roster turnover and losing during the past few years have been tough. Per a September interview with NBA.com:
"The losing, I can't sugarcoat any of it," says Brown. "As I now look back, two years gone by, it is hard."
Interestingly enough, Popovich went through a pretty painful first season as coach in 1996. Then the team's general manager, he fired head coach Bob Hill after a slow start and star center David Robinson went down with an injury.
The Spurs went 20-62, got the first pick in the draft, nabbed Tim Duncan and ended up winning the NBA title just two seasons later.
Apparently, however, Popovich couldn't handle the longer and more intentional Sixers rebuild.
