Coat Check | A One-On-One Interview With Jameer Nelson

to hear this interview. It is a very special guest, new Delaware Blue Coats Assistant general manager and Philadelphia seventy six Ers scout Jamir Nelson. He joins myself and Bluecoats Ambassador of Basketball Joe Richmond, and you'll hear the rundown of topics that we cover with Jamir in just a moment when the conversation begins. Thanks as always for tuning in, and don't forget to subscribe to the seventy Sixers Podcast Network. Here's our interview with Jamir Nelson and we are pleased

to be joined by Jamir Nelson. You don't need to know the bio, but we'll give you some brief stuff anyway, you probably already know it at Saint Joe's University, legend Saint Joseph's University, then a fourteen year NBA veteran and now Philadelphia seventy six Ers scout and of course the assistant general manager announced recently of the Delaware Blue Coats. As we record this in the middle of November, coming fresh off the announcement, Jamir, welcome and thanks for coming on.

How does that new job title? How's that been sync in for you? Um? Every time I hear it, it it sounds weird, um, but it's cool. I mean, I'm fortunate to be able to uh work work under some guys who have a lot of knowledge and a lot of success uh in the office Elton, Daryl doc Um. You know, it's a lot of other guys, um, that are on a team that that you know, have been helping me through the process that you know, I really appreciate. And Joe, I know, we're really excited to bring Jamir on board.

It's huge news for the Sixers organization as a whole. It's it's huge news for the whole Tristate area. What's up, Jamir, Yes, Sir oh Man, I never correct you, Matt, but I had you left one thing off. He is chester Chester Chester legend, Clippers baby all day long. Yeah, I skipped

right ahead to college. But of course chester Chester native Jamir Nelson quick rundown for our listeners of the podcast and anybody that might be watching on YouTube Delaware Bluecoats on YouTube if you're listening right now on the seventy Sixers podcast Network, We're gonna talk about Jamir's new role with the Sixers and the Blue Coats. We'll get into some of his story playing career, and then we'll hit some final questions random things in our at the Buzzer segment.

But we're really excited for this episode. So Jamir, first, before we dive too deep, explain a little bit more about your new role and what the day to day is going to be like for you. Well, it's it's still a little up in the air. I mean, trying to figure out all the rules and regulations that's gonna go on, you know so far. I mean, just especially

with the G League. I mean the NBA you know, historically goes first and then the G League normally goes a month or so later, so hopefully we get everything rolling with the upcoming draft and free agency and then we start focusing a little more on the G League Bluecoats. Um. But yeah, man, I'm gonna being involved in the UM. You know, looks like I'm gonna be heavily involved in in the day to day and administrative and you know, making some decisions with the roster and certain things with

the blue clothing as well with the Sixers. I mean, um, every everything I do is gonna be a learning experience. UM. You know, UM, you know some things, I know, some things I don't. I'm going into it as if I don't know anything, so I can learn as much as I can, you know, UM, coming into a very humble and and very appreciative of the opportunity. So UM, I'm

looking forward to it. Man. It's gonna be fun, and it's gonna be a great challenge and a great opportunity and Joe and an exciting offseason for the Sixers and big things ahead, uh for this franchise. And I'm excited

because it kind of flows right in. You're looking at him scouting for the Sixers with and he's right with there with Elton, which is a laid back guy, because Jamie is like a real laid back guy, unassuming like if then he's right there with Matt Lily as a sistant general made another laid bad guy look like like like yo, this guy, and so you can see that their personalities is going to hit it off right from

the back. And Jamir speaking of seventy six years, GM Elton Brand, what has your relationship been like with him, not only over the years, but then kind of as this has all come about as well. Yeah, it's it's interesting how things transpired. Um, you know, Elina myself, we've we've been we were cording, you know, when we played against each other. UM, probably put him in you know a couple of picking rolls and blew by him a couple of times. Probably black my shadow coach or whatever.

But you know, over the last couple of years, you know, the last few years of his career, we worked out together. Um, you know, we we we um developed a bond, a relationship and the friendship and over and just continue to to to to grow that over the last few years after he got done playing, Um, you know, bounce questions off him about the front office he would, you know, try to help me and put point me in the

direction I wanted to be in. Um. You know, we had a couple of different UM, couple cups of coffee, you know, a couple couple you know, bites to eat. UM. You know, you know, basketball is a brotherhood, man, It's it's it's like a big fraternity where you know, you you develop their relationship with guys and that trust and you know they want to help each other. So he's a guy that wanted to help me and put me

in the right direction. And you know, logistically, it just made sense for me to um, you know, take him up on his offer this year rather than somebody else. I had other offers, but opportunities. But who who like Like what organization is better than the Sixers to start with? For me? Um? Great and the Blue Coats. You know, the six is great. Rids are great young talent pieces and you can you can see everything's fall into place

piece by piece like a puzzle of force. And Joe, I want you to jump in on Elton and maybe even touch on when he was the Blue Coats GM, because you've been around the Blue Coats for a while yourself. But before we go back to Joe Jamir, what what promise do you see with the organization as a whole, the Sixers in particular, like what promise around this franchise? Obviously Joel and b Ben Simmons and the list goes on. Well, you you see the moves that that has been made

in the front office. So let it tell you right there, they're focused on winning, um and and it's not it's not saying like, oh, we're gonna win thirty forty games, you know, trying to build a championship caliber team. You know, um, you have two really good or great pieces in Joel and then and some other good ones around. So you know, like I'm new to it. Um. You know, I would be foolish to say, you know, we're gonna do this, or we're gonna do that, or we need to do

this and need to do that. But my job is to get or gather as much intel as possible as needed as a scout, um given to the guys that are higher up that's above my prip thay grade, and you know, allowing them to make the decisions and support that. And you know, I think we're in a good spot in terms of the roster in terms of the talent. Like I said, some things may may need to be tweaked, um, whether it's the style of play, whether it's it's you know,

personnel or anything like that. But for the most part, I think we're in a good spot. Wow, I'm listen. I'm a Man Nelson fan. I'm sorry. I'm like you know, I'm gonna be the hype one up in the here, y'all gonna be all professional, y'all. What in fact, like you ain't sitting here, But this is this is amazing because you know, you talk Matt talks about the young and and and the piece that we need. But I'm just going back to who you are as a person,

jahmyor who you are as that leader. You know you've done it at so many levels at high Saint Joe's in the NBA. Is amazing that we picked the right guy, or you chose us, whatever the case may be, to do these dual things that you're about to do scout and assistant GM because that's who you were on the floor seeing things, seeing things developed. And this is amazing

how the G League is all about development. So talk to that piece about the young pieces that the things that you can bring to those young because you know, it's a different generation of guard, you know what I mean, And there's a different generation of how they play. But you've seen it on so many levels, in so many different aspects. Touch on that part, JA man, about what you can see in that player that was like you when you know you had all these naysayers of this.

That the third because that's what that G league is about, the guy that's still hungry trying to get there. Just talk about that and what you bring to those players when you're go in that room and you can talk to them on that on that level. Well, I'm you know, I'm fairly young. I'm still not I'm not too far removed from the game. So and it helps for me to have a son that's a sophomore in college, So I'm able to adapt to different things in the environment

that some of these younger players are going through. Um. They probably won't go through a situation that I haven't been through. UM, so I can help in terms of that. I can also, um, you know, when when it comes to working out, you know my work ethic it kind of speaks for self, so I can kind of push them in that direction. It's just so many different directions. I think I can help um with with the development of a G League player and in the roster um.

You know, my main my main focus is, like I said, to be myself. Uh be who I've been leading, and bring my knowledge to the organization. Uh and and and let those guys use me, use me in a productive way and the way they they meet me. More to come, but first, Christiana Care as doctors, nurses and caregivers and as neighbors and friends. Christiana Care is a partner in everyone's journey to greater health and well being. Why do they do it for the love of health? Visit Christianacare

dot org. Jamir, We do want to go down memory lane a little bit from your playing career. I know we don't need to touch on each one of your fourteen NBA seasons or anything like that, or the college career too in too much detail. But before we transition to your playing career, my last thing is just about the homecoming and the reaction. So it's it's Philadelphia, it's the seventy six ers. What has the response to your

new position and the announcement been like? And who are the messages and calls coming from I mean, I you know, when when it kind of like, I guess it broke when you know, on social media Instagram and Twitter or whatever else it says sources said, you know, jamir Nels is going to be and I got a bunch of texts and if it's true, congratulations, blah blah blah. I shouldn't say a couple. I got about three or four hundred texts. My wife was like. My wife was like,

I don't even know that many people. And I guess I didn't realize they had to many people on my phone that had my number. Um, but it's you know, it was you know, it was hard warming man, just to get the support or no, you still have that support even though you're not a player. Um. A lot of people say when when when you're done playing, the phone stop ringing. My phone has never stopped ringing. So, UM,

it's been. It's been. It's been a fun uh a few weeks and and and just knowing, like I said, to have that love and uh, to have the support and and uh, you know, it's it's it's it's different. It's a differ. It's in a different way because now I got people call and say, can you get me a job? Um, but but it's it's to be expected.

And and and um, I'm ready for the challenge, man, And and I'm ready to do good things and and uh, you know, basically make the people that are proud of me, I'll make them proud of even more proud of me. That's awesome. And and a quick one on Saint Joe's I mean, you you talk about it, your story career there all the time, and it's that two thousand and four season, the perfect regular season twenty seven and oh yeah, just a quick one. What sticks out in your mind

from that tournament run. I'm always intrigued by players that have gone on an NCAA tournament run, um that experience, Like, what what are the top things that stand out to you on or off the court from that time period. Well? The two things is how close we were as a as a group. I Mean, it wasn't like we were up. You know, you don't have any money, huse, so you can't hang out and do things you can do like in an NBA. UM, but we were close. You know,

we did a lot of things together. We did, you know, things that we can afford together. We we hung in there. We fed off each other energy on and off the floor and on the court. Um, I you know, maybe maybe one other team that I can say this about. Everybody knew their role and that's what made it so Uh, that's what made it so successful and and so fun. And when people say that it was a fun team to watch, and that's that's that's why. Because they knew myself, Delonte,

we're gonna shoot all the balls. Um, you know, Dwayne Jones who who's in the organization, uh, you know, and John Bryan who was an organization that they were gonna get all the rebounds and do all the dirty work defensively. And everybody accepted it. Were like so it wasn't like you know, I can just give you one story. Delonte didn't play and we were playing Xavier. This was my junior year and Delonte didn't play. He had a bad ankle.

And what happened was I was tired. Dwayne Jones came to me and said, you have to shoot the ball every time, and I was cramping. They were picking me. It was almost like the flu game for Michael Jordan. They were carrying me back and forth. I ended up taking thirty fourth shots, you know what I'm saying, And that was the most I've ever taken. And I you know, in college, I probably wanted to take fifteen and seventeen shots, and I doubled it and they were fine with the results.

Offen the rebound, they were like, come getting the ball, Come get I'm like, Joe, I'm tramping um. But they knew. Um. You know, I felt like we all had like I played a role, but in that particular situation, they felt like I was the only guy that can help win win us the game. We can't close. We end up losing. But that just that's just the testament of who we were as a team and who those guys were um

as teammates, Joe. I mean, we talked about players making the transition from playing too, in this case the front office, and a career like Jamir is to draw off of not only those college experiences, but fourteen years in the NBA as well. He's got quite the well to to pull from in this new role. I mean, well, for those that really know Jamir, I mean, and you knew

that Chester, that's that, that's that DNA and him. You talk about the Zane Shawls of the world, the Solos of the world, the Rad Carlson world, the poo evans Is of the world, Guys that came and guys that you were weird, guys that you looked up to, Guys that looked up to you, and for you to carry that tradition on. But all that he's talking about, it's really I want to say, outside or you're probably your parents, was probably one man that shaped a lot in your life.

And if you can't touch on a coach Pikett, can you talk about that a little bit? So coach you know he was. He was a father figure to me on and off the court. You know, Betimes, Um, you know, I have to stay over his house for days at a time, and uh and it wasn't even like something was going on in my house where I couldn't stay or anything like that. I was really comfortable. That's just who he was. He accepted me as a as as you know, as as a person and as a as

a young man. You know, he helped Roomy, he helped Um I do a lot of different situations. Um, you know, I I honestly say it wasn't a coach Pikett man, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be where I'm at now. You know, he's a guy who, um you're talking about helping the community. He was a guy who who saw

me as at a young age. I probably was like, man if I had to guess ten, eleven, twelve years old, and he recognized me then and was like followed me and wanted me to do well, um and put me in as in a situation in high school as a player to be successful. I could have played varcity as a freshman, but he, you know, he was like, look, you know, play play JV you know if you want suit up for some varsity games. We wanted to develop.

Then the next year came, you know, he had actual playing for me and and and you know at worked, you know got you know, I wish he was still here to see, uh what's going right now? But not

necessarily just me. Just so many different things going on in Cheston on a positive that you know, he probably had his hands in it and probably helped out with that that people don't even realize or no. And I think that's that part of you, is what you're going to see as you start working way around these players, Um, coming to the blue coach, that youngness and those things that you can tell that place, like be patient. It's okay like you said, you could have went to play varsity,

but he said, and you can be that person. You've lived it. It's not something that you heard. And I think that's what you're going to bring to the table more than anything. Yeah, and you know, the world we live in right now is fast, noisiest all over the place, social media and a lot of young a lot of

young players or young people in general. Um, they want instant gratification because I can post the picture and get instant lights or people to uh validate how you know, how how my work ethic is and stuff like that right away. Where when I was growing up it was it was more about just relaxed with your time. Like you said, I come from a city where we're guard heavy. You just you name a bunch of guards that came out.

I mean you didn't even name like a core of them, like you know what I'm saying, Like you just I had guys in front of me. So you have to be patient. You have to be patient, you have to be uh and you also also have to be confident. And that's the one thing that grown up a Chester is known for me is helped me with my confidence.

So before we get to our final few questions at the buzzer and squeeze a couple more in, I just want to talk about the transition and when you started thinking about it, because I've I've heard and read that you said towards the end of your playing career that you kind of acknowledge that you might have to bounce around a little bit to a few different teams. When did you start thinking about your post playing career and what you wanted to do. Probably around my tenth year.

You make it, You make it to ten years, You're very fortunate. I mean, you make it to seven five, you're very fortunate. So make when I got to ten, I'm like, okay, was my goal honestly to get to ten and then you know, figure it out from there. And then I got to ten, I was like, all right, my body feels good. My body felt better at ten did it did at five? So I'm like, all right, I can get the fifteen. And then I started bouncing around a little bit. I'm like, all right, I don't

want to deal with this. My family, you know, putt my family through the Ringer Um. You know, my last few years they lived back in the Pennsylvania area without me, and I was in Denver. So that took a toll on me and took a toll on us. So yeah, it just it just was you know, I've always thought about that, just didn't know. Like I told somebody the other day, you played fourteen years in the NBA, then you say, all right, now, what do I want to do when I grow up? You know what I'm saying.

So it's like, all right, now, what's next? Um, Whether whether you set financially or not, you still have to do something. I'm a competitor. I love to compete. That that's the one thing that people don't realize about athletes, Like, we're gonna do something that's competitive, whether it's another sport, whether it's a business world, We're gonna do something where we continue to uphold and and to quench that thirst of the competitive drive. So for me, I went back

and forth with coaching. Opportunities presented themselves right away, front office right away, and I just didn't know what was right for me. And I've always I've always been a guy when I had to make a decision about college, um, contracts, you know, different things. I go with my gut um And again here we go Elton, Hey, man, what's going on here? Doing blah blah blah. And you know, he's like, look what you're thinking. And I'm like, well, what you're thinking?

So make a long story. Sure, I know it's getting a long, but I was like, look, you know I heard, I heard what. You know, the job title was in the description. I was like, that's it, That's what I want to do. Um and and and I'm here now man, yeah, all right, hold on back. Talk about competing and competitive. I want to know, like Ai crossing Joy and that was his moment. When was your moment when you got in the NBA said yo, I can do this. This is this is it? Like the games that number of

vis It was probably the first time I made the playoffs. Um. It was against Detroit and I had a really good series. We ended up getting swept. Um. You know, looking back on it, it's just they were just that much better than this. We were gonna get swept no matter what. But I kind of showed, like, you know, um, who I was as a player in the NBA then. And I remember like Chauncey Billups coming up to me and ripped and just telling me like yo, like this is

your team. Take it over. Um, you know, nothing against like anybody else, like Dwider those guys, but they were like, look this, we see it in you. You got it. You know, just work and you know I would have talks with Kobe and you know, talk to him and that was his message, just work your butt off and let the sas fallard. They mean and and and that that was my moment right there when when I when I made it to the playoffs that first year, we like we got swept. But it's not like I was like,

oh man, I arrived. It was like, all right, I gotta get my stuff together. These guys really think I can do it, So I'm gonna I'm gonna live up to it. I'm gonna work harder. And that's when I kind of started to Um, I've always had a really good work ethic, but I took it to a different level after that year. A quick message from our friends at Nemours the Moors. Sports Medicine believes that highly personalized one on one physical therapy for young athletes is paramount

to a speedy and complete recovery. Learn more at nemours dot org slash pt. So I've got two quick ones. Joe can squeeze one in before we get you out of here. But these are the app buzzer questions, just some fun random things. The first one is travel. I always ask everybody that played or coach or whatever favorite road city to visit outside of your home city. And why I love Chicago. I mean, I like Chicago. Um, I'm I'm I'm a I'm a I'm a people watcher. So I like to go to restaurant and got really

good restaurants normally. Normally I'm not like a VIP person, so I see that at the bar eat a lot of times I would go by myself. Uh uh. So you know, for me, I'm five eleven three quarters, so I can get away with sitting somewhere and people not actually like looking at me like, oh, that's a big person. He must be a basketball player. I would always get like, I know you from somewhere, and I'd be like, nope, she's drinking, but yeah, probably Chicago because of that. Joe,

you got one, all right? How did it feel? From the movie? Just right when Common said Dwhite Howard, let you board your men? No, i'mould give it to us. You know what. What's funny about that? I was supposed to be in the movie, but that's the year I had UM. I had shoulder surgery, so I was rehabbing, so I was trying to get them to get me a place in that area. I wasn't I wasn't big time enough as an actor to say, Hey, I need a trail, I need a gym. They like, They're like,

not really gonna use your name. I was like cool, you know, but it was cool though. I mean, you know, to have you know my name in the movie, and you know, it's funny. I just got my agent called me about a month ago. It's like, can um uh? You asked me if um Family Guide if they can use me in the skit? Of course, so funny because El was in that movie. Yep. So when I heard

your name, I was like wow. And and when we're doing this, I was like, wow, what a coincidence that would have been if you would have actually been in the movie. And El was the one that Latifa went to to be in condition. I was like wow, I was But I'm glad that they did use your day because I was like, yes, yes, yes, yeah. Now I'm being a family guy too. Um from the All Star I think they're gonna show a clip of with me

sitting on a bench or something like that. But yeah, I don't know, man, I mean that was It's cool. It was cool. Like from It's more for like my kids to be like, oh my dad name like I mean, they're probably at the age now where they really don't care, but that's awesome. Last one, favorite hobby when you have some downtime or you can give multiple things that you like to do when you have some free time. I'm mainly I'm mainly, uh in a supporter of my kids.

I mean my wife. I just you know, whatever I can, whatever I can do them to lighten the load for my wife and that driver crazy um and support my kids and whatever they're doing. But for myself individually, I love the cook I mean I watched the Cooking Show. Like a lot of people don't, I watch cooking shows like all the time. Like when I say all the time, it's like I I probably watch more cooking shows than I do sports. Um, So I love to, like you know, throw it down in the kitchen. Like I said, I

love I love restouries. I love to eat. I work out to eat, so you know, whatever I do in the gym and so I won't get fat because I know I'm gonna eat something bad. What's the best thing that you make? Um, I don't know, man, I mean, I you know, I'm not trying to like, you know, toot my own hornor anything like that. But I feel like I can make a lot of different things good. I'm not like specializing like one thing, and I don't

I don't follow ingredients. But when I watched the cooking shows, I get ideas and they want I'm in the kitchen, it was like this is uh they come out and I don't use like ingredients and stuff like that. I just I'm like, oh this tastes good with this that taste, and you know, my kids like, can you make it the next time? Like, I don't even know what I did, but I try to even this cooking mirror his game everything you like, I don't spend the one thing I

do a little bit of anything. It like I don't know I did it, but I knew I did it real real quick. Derrek Jones, Tyreek Evans. Uh, come on, who am I missing? How is Jefferson? Who's the next one coming out of Chester? Man? Come on, I don't know, man, I mean for think about this, right. You got Dwayne Jones too, right? Yeah, okay, yeah, mister Wayne, myself, Dwayne Rande, Derek Jones. That's four pros, right and Tyrek and ty Yeah. So you're talking about forty thousand people. You got four

or five pros come out of one city. Yes, you know, per population, like that's that's pretty amazing. So even if we hopefully we do, but even if we don't, you gotta throw throw Kevin Jones in there too as a football player, a couple other guys professionals. You know, it's the market. We have a bunch of professional athletes coming from a city that only has forty thousand people. Um so, and then you're talking about other guys, um who who grew up in Chester but then moved to different places

that may have become professional or making. You know, some of them I can't talk about because you men say it might be draft probably. You know, you still got the best of the Best Grammy award within the John Little Beats got Little Beats, I mean really different positive people in Chester. I mean, you know, I have somebody really close to me who Um, you know these stories

right here aren't talked about enough. Um, just moved to Urlando and this is more realistic than being a professional athlete. Just moved to Orlando. Um, you know, got got a really really good job offer. Um, if I had to guess, I don't. I don't count people pockets, but they're probably making over a half million dollars um. And that's that's in the workfield. So it's a lot of positive a lot a lot of positivity coming out of Chester that that's not talked about. Um, that needs to be brought

to light. Well, this was so much fun, a lot of good stuff. And if if a major takeaway for some fans, maybe six Ers fans, was Elton and all of our conversation about you and Elton figuring out what you wanted to do. Was it gonna be coaching, was it gonna be a front office path? People forget Jamir. You broadcast a Blue Coats game last season at the G League Showcase. So you went from broadcasting a blue Coats game, so now you're the blue Coats assistant general

manager in just about a year. Yeah, I hope, I hope I didn't say too many bad things. I mean I could. I did some college games. I was a little critical, and the Saint Joel's fans they got all me. We got to pull the tape Butler, Saint Jose and Butler fans hated me for a couple of weeks. But whatever, we'll pull the tape on the Blue Coats game that you did. But thanks again for spending some time with us. We're looking forward to this next step for you and

it was a lot of fun. Thanks again to New Delaware Blue Coats assistant general manager and Philadelphia seventy six ers scout Jimir Nelson for my partner Joe Richmond, the Bluecoats ambassador of basketball. I'm Matt Murphy. Until next time, take it or leave it at the coat check.