I'matari's Mexi and you're listening to the seventy six Ers Insiders podcast.
This podcast is part of the seventy six Ers podcast network presented by Stern and Cohen Law.
Search seventy six Ers Insiders wherever you get your podcasts Oh Brah. Have you suffered a work injury? You need a lawyer? Call Stern and Cohen Workers Compensation Lawyers Sterncohenlaw dot com. The consultation is always free. They will ring the insurance company's bell. Go Sixers. Welcome back to Sixers in sixty. I'm Matt Murphy with Lauren Rosen. Thanks so much to our fanatic basketball insider for joining us, Bob Cooney. We'll have Sixers assistant coach Matt Brozi coming up on
the program. We're live for this one from the Center in Philadelphia before Sixers Bulls to contextualize any stats that we give throughout this segment. But some big news around the organization was the contract extension for President into Basketball Operations Darryl Moury through the twenty twenty seven twenty eight NBA season, adding to the continuity for this franchise. And it starts at the top with someone like Moury, and he.
Talked in turn, of course about his relationship with Elton Brand, his relationship, his long term relationship and working with Nick Nurse starting with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers during Darryl Moury's time with the Rockets, but the two of them, there's a lot of continuity. There obviously a lot of continuity now between Daryl Moriy and Elton Brand over the last few years, and the way that Daryl wants to
continue to build up upon that continuity. Clear. He also just talked about how much he loves his team, how much he loves this city, how much the city has embraced him, the good and the bad. He loves when people So if you're listening and you ever see Daryl Moray in the street, he wants to know what you think. He wants to know what people think about his choices when he's out getting his morning coffee. Talked about it
in his press conference. He's embedded in this city. He loves this city, and it's cool to just know if you're a Sixers fan that your sort of core leadership and your core on the court. When you think about Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey figure two be the same group of people for the next few years, and if this season is any indication, it's a group that's humming very well together. When you think about Nick Nurse in his first season with of course that supporting cast that we.
Just mentioned, Coach Brasi is part of that contingent that has connections earlier in his career with both Nick Nurse and Darryl Moury, and now Moriy and Nurse their contracts run through that same season together, Tyrese Maxi being included with the names Elton Brand Joel Embiid as well by Darryl at his press conference after the announcement, and what we found very interesting is that he mentioned the jump that Maxie has taken in year four is very very
rare because you always hear a year two jump.
And of course Tyree's Maxie famously fell to twenty one. Goodness, but Daryl talked about the way that a player that falls in the draft can sometimes exceed expectations their rookie season, the way that Tyrese Maxey did despite his rookie season not really knowing how much he was going to play. I'm thinking, of course, back to that thirty nine point performance in a game where he wasn't sure how many minutes he was going to have. And of course that
was a strange day that was the COVID season. The team was severely shorthanded on that day. But to think that that was just a little over three short years ago and to see how he's grown. Daryl reflected on the fact that, like I said, getting drafted and then making a leap, making a leap in year two, those are things that you kind of expect out of players that are going to end up being good in the NBA.
But what he said has set Tyrese Maxey apart so far is the third year jump and the fourth year jump. And Matt, if you're hearing a theme here, you're correct. That's a jump every single season and you can expect that now moving forward from Tyrese Maxey. It's not a fluke. If he's done it four years in a row. It's
something that you can get used to. It's something that Darryl Moray has been really impressed by, and like you said, it was cool to hear him named among the mount Rushmore of this organization right now, right the pillars of this organization right now, Darryl Morey and Nick Nurse, of course, but Joel Mban and Tyrese Maxey as a partnership in just three short seasons, the beginning of a fourth Darryl of course, Darryl's tenure in Tyrese Maxie's tenure match up
exactly almost to the day in terms of how long they've been with this team, and just watching the way that Maxie has risen to stardom has been a pleasure of course to you, to me, and to six Ers fans, but to Darryl as well, and it was cool to hear him talk about it.
One of the most fun duos to watch in the NBA, statistically, the best.
The highest scoring duo in the NBA as of this recording. I mean, Matt, we knew they were going to be good together. We know that they've been developing chemistry. We know that Joel has had a soft spot for Tyrese throughout the last three seasons, But we didn't know that they were going to be the best duo arguably in the NBA. In their first season as permanent starting stars together, They've just been awesome.
It's like the ball is on a string when they're pass it to each other in the two man game. It's very impressive and it's chemistry that's developed over the years and since training camp with this new coaching staff
empowering Maxi to use his voice more at practice. We've seen it firsthand all year and when you think back to training camp with this coaching staff, and that's something that I talked to coach Brossey about, is it's a new staff inheriting the reigning league MVP and someone like Maxi who is on his way to potentially all start
them this season as soon as this season. But they've been building this chemistry up since the Fort Collins, Colorado training camp, where there was a lot of messaging going around and some of that directed towards Tyres and using his voice, but a lot from just this coaching staff putting their imprint on this existing group with some key additions from the offseason too, and things.
Of course felt really different when you think back to Fort Collins, a whole new staff and a lot of new players, lots of roster turnover this season, so there was a newness a spirit that was different at that training camp. And to see how quickly they've all sort of assimilated to one another. Matt, I think has been really cool. You mentioned the way that the coaches have
been communicating with the players. They were speaking a different language at first, right, someone like Tyrese who we continue to mention, but a Jaden Springer another great example. Those two have only ever had one coaching staff in the NBA ahead of this season, so every NBA rep they
associate with their former coaching staff. So to get up to speed with a brand new staff that has different expectations, a different style, a different way of communication, and to just be a couple months into that tenure and be playing this well. This is a really impressive coaching staff, Matt, and I'm looking forward to listening to our first assistant coach interview tonight.
Yes, unpredictable staff, creative coaching staff spearheaded by a head coach, Nick Nurse, and players who are eager to take what they have to say and try to see if it will work on the court. And Joelle Embiid is always watching games afterwards on his phone and stuff like that and just getting ideas of what might work for him and his teammates in an NBA basketball game. And this is like the perfect coaching staff for that type of thing because they are just so interested in basketball and
how to gain any sort of advantage. It's a perfect fit for a coaching staff like Brozzie and Nurse and others that have made their careers from this.
Yeah, Coach Nurse said it on media day, I believe if I'm not mistaken, if not, his first media session in Port Collins, that the first thing he asked of his players this season was to keep an open mind. He said he was going to throw stuff at them that they've never seen. He was going to throw stuff
at them that he's never thrown at players before. Because of that creativity that you talk about, the innovation that has made Nick Nurse a household name in the coach that won a championship in his first season as an NBA head coach. He asked this team to keep an open mind. Thematically speaking, He's talked about the fact that he wants them to try things and then throw it away if it doesn't work. So the way that they
have done so that they have embraced it. Matt over the last few days, weeks, and months has been very impressive.
And now our first coach is corner with assistant coach Matt Brosie, Matt Murphy with seventy six ers assistant coach Matt Brazi and Matt for those of you for those out there who don't know your shared history coaching wise, with seventy six ers head coach Nick Nurse and Darryl Moriot as the president of basketball Operations. Where have you been with them before?
Yeah?
So I started out with the Houston Rockets as an intern and Darryl was the the GM at the time, So got to know Darryl and my first year and that was that was Nick's first year as a J League head coach, so met him a little bit in training camp. It was actually the lockout year, so everything started a little bit later.
I got to Houston, met Nick real quick during training camp.
They went down and Nick had his season down in Rio Grand Valley, and then the next summer, you know, they kind of put Nick and I together and interviewed for a job on his staff.
I had coached college basketball.
Before, and my role as intern was more in the front office side with Hugh Houston, so it was an opportunity to me to get.
Coaching experience at the professional level.
And so I met with Nick and uh, you know, fortunate enough that Nick hired me on the staff and you know went down with Nick to RGB with with Doug West, who's on our staff here now. So just you know, a great opportunity, right place, right time to get my first start, to be with a coach like coach Nurse.
How does it feel to be reunited with them and have things come full circle in Philadelphia.
It's awesome.
It's it's a great, great, uh great thing that happened to me. And I think think all of us involved in this situation that.
You know, kind of being reunited. Everyone's kind of done their own thing.
You know, Nick obviously very successful head coach in the league, won a championship, had great success at Toronto, and then an opportunity here and.
I'm just very fortunate to be a part of it. You know.
I was stayed in Houston for a couple of years after that, I was in Portland for a year, I was in Italy last year, but then just to come back, it's just you know, awesome experience with an awesome group. And you know, in life, you want to work with people that you respect and.
You enjoy working with every day and you know Nick fits that.
So you mentioned Doug West, who went from Villanova to the Houston affiliate, the Rio Grand Valley Vipers, and he was in charge of the defense that I've gathered. You were in charge of the offense for Nick Nurses D League now G League staff. Is it true that the guys preferred your drills in practice because you were the fun offensive coach and Doug had to lay down the law on the defensive end.
I don't know about all that, you know, I think we had a great group of guys. I mean, Douck Doug ran the defense, and you know a lot of players want to have the ball and they want to score the basketball, so you know, but we had a tough group. We had a resilient group. They fought hard and you know, we ultimately won a championship. So they
were locked in on both sides of the court. That you know, we valued it all, you know, being very efficient on the offensive side of the ball, which we were, and then just being tough and gritty on the defensive end.
You know, a Nick Nurse type team that you'd back to see in the NBA.
We had the D League that year, so Yeah, just kind of a cool, you know, synergy of three different people with different you know, kind of personalities that all all messed together in the right way.
Which current seventy six ers players did you cross paths with and coach before they got to the NBA or when they were in the G League.
So we had Patrick Beverly his first year when he came over, he played a couple of games for US. That year he was over in Russia, came back and played a couple of games for US, and then went to the the Rockets after a couple of games. So and then when I was in Houston, I was with Pat for a lot of years. So I've spent a lot of time with UH.
With Pat when I was a.
Player development coach was Robert Covington's rookie year and Robert was back and forth between the T League Nevada. Smith was our head coach at the time, but spent I was director of player development, so he'd be doing you know, player development stuff with us and being assigned to the G League a bunch and actually Covington and I as our fourth stint together. Wow, we had we had two different ones in Houston. One in Portland and then now here.
So a guy I've known a long time, danielell House, when I was a head coach in the G League. It was his second year. He had his first year with the Wizards. Then he came down his second professional year and played for me for I want to say, fifteen games or.
So before he got a two way contract with the Sun, So I.
Think the year before he actually was assigned to Delaware Oka by the Wizards because they didn't have a G League team at the time, so he believed they or not played for the Sixers G League team while not being in the six Ers organization early.
In his career.
But yeah, so that's that's just a great story of you know, a guy and using the the G League system to you know, carve out a good career. And all those guys have carved out great careers so far with with the use of you know, a developmental league.
Matt Murphy here with seventy six Ers assistant coach Matt Brazi and what are some of your responsibilities within this Sixer staff.
Yeah, so with the staff, you know, I help out a little bit with the offense. You know, Nick has a lot of great ideas that you know, he's he's brought to the team that we kind of you know, back it all up with him where there's certain drills, helping out with them, put it in different aspects of the offense, helping with that, and then you know a handful of scouts. You know, we kind of split up the scouts throughout the staff, So I got a couple of those that we do. But just you know, the
great thing about our staff is we're very versatile. A lot of us have coached in the G League that we've all worn a lot of different hats, and Nick doesn't want guys that are you're just this.
Guy, You're just this guy.
So we all kind of have like a lot of different roles that kind of maybe are a little different than your traditional NBA staff and we kind of, you know, mix and match different things together that you know a lot of staffs don't and it makes it better for for ideas and decisions are based on the group rather than I'm the offensive guy, or I'm the defensive guy, or I'm this that you know, we kind of share a lot of things within each side of the ball and that you know, makes.
Our decisions when we work together as.
A group, you know, more fluid, and you know, it's kind of more open mindedness instead of making decisions to help maybe what might be your segment.
It's largely a new staff with the reigning MVP. What's it like to coach Joel Embiid?
It's awesome. I mean, Joel is incredible.
I mean, he's super talented, he's a great team guy. He's you know, he's a he's a willing learner and wants to be coached. And you know, he's got a great personality as a lot of people see when when they watch him play, and you know that's that's a daily thing. So being around the talent of you know, obviously Joel is our guy, but you know all the supporters around him too or is just just an awesome group.
And you know, because they are very coachable, it gives us, like you said, a brand new staff that we.
Can throw ideas out.
They're they're receptive to them and they want to do it and you know, if it doesn't work, we try the next one. And so so that's kind of the fun part about you know, working for a team that Nick runs is you know, we try a lot of different things, and we want to see what works, and you know, creative ideas are strongly encouraged.
Ending with a little bit more about your own individual path. When you were playing and you were on the team at the University of Arizona, you were coached by Hall of Fame coach Luke Olsen, who is your grandfather. Rest in peace, of course. But what was that experience like to play for him?
It was awesome.
I mean his resume speaks for himself of you know, as a coach and a Hall of Famer, and win in a bunch of games, in a national championship, in multiple final fours, but you know, just being able to learn from him every day, you know, going to the coaching profession. I mean, my sister was a coach in the WNBA for seventeen years with the Phoenix Mercury. She's won multiple titles too. That I mean, that was just all we knew as kids. That's all I know as
an adult is how to coach basketball. That it's uh, you know, he would pick us up and take us to practice as we're kids, and then you know, as we got older, you know, going to his camps and working his camps and you know, I went to to junior college to play, and then you know, you have a couple opportunities to go to maybe smaller schools to play, and you know, I had a conversation with him about being a walk on his team and you know, kind of learning basketball at that level at you know, what
I believe was the greatest school in the world, the University of.
Arizona number one as we speak in mid December and the a people.
For sure, we got a big one against purdueing in Annapolis this weekend that we'll get done. But yeah, just you know, to be able to learn from him, and you know, I had the unique opportunity of being a walk on his team and seeing the day to day stuff of preparation and getting the team ready to go.
And then you know, I had.
A unique opportunity after that, after my graduation that I was on his staff as well. So just kind of seeing everything he did and learning from him, and you know, he taught a lot of life and basket well lessons to me that you know, I'm fortunate to be able to you know, have a grandfather that was, you know, in the same profession that I'm in, and the type of character that he was and just kind of learn from him firsthand that I'm I'm very fortunate to be able to have that opportunity.
And finally, how did you end up coaching Haities national basketball team? And when did you do that?
So I'm still currently the head coach.
There's a lot of you know, hoops that we go through with FIBA and competition and stuff like that. But I was coaching CHI League team in Real Grand Valley and one of one of our guys on staff, Nick Friedman, He's went to grad school at University of Miami. He was on staff there and then he was with me and rgv's currently with the Charlotte Hornets.
Kind of came up to him. He was like, hey, man, we got this opportunity.
We know these Haitians they want to have a national team hadn't played in like thirty seven years, and they want to have a team. They want to have a program, but you know they want to have a coach that coach at the professional level, and you know, would you.
Be interested in doing that?
I said, yeah, let's do this. He said, well, they don't pay any money. Then I said that's fine. We have the opportunity.
We want to have this, this this journey.
Of a group of guys that we like, our coaching staff, and you know, it's a it's a beautiful country.
We've done. I've been there two different times.
We've played in a pre qualifying tournament with them, and it's just it's just a great experience to to be able to give back.
I mean, we're all very fortunate to be.
Able to to coach basketball for a living.
And then there's perspective when.
You go to a country like Haiti that's you know, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere that you go in and you know you're able to change lives, you're able to go there. We go, we do camps for kids, we do camps for boys, we do camps for girls, we do uh, you know camps you know that include coaches to help them coach and you know stuff like that.
So it's really, you know, it's it's it's a good opportunity for us to give back to the game of basketball because we're able to you know, get a lot from the game that we can give back. We can go to the country and you know, it's an ongoing project of we're you know, always looking to grow it and you know, just waiting for more competitions that we're able to take part of and just keep growing the game throughout the country.
That's great stuff. Thanks so much, Matt, awesome, appreciate you