New 76ers head coach Brett Brown sat down with the media for a 35-minute press conference today. Let's take a look at the reports coming out of Philly a day after they officially signed first round picks Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams:
- Royce White, who the team acquired in July, is officially participating in pre-training camp workouts with the Sixers and is expected to be present for the team's Media Day on Friday, writes the Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey. Based on Brown's comments, it sounds like the Sixers plan to try to bring him along slowly, and this news certainly qualifies as a step in the right direction considering his rocky stint with Houston.
- According to Pompey, Brown compared the scoring potential of Temple product Khalif Wyatt to that of Gary Neal, his former pupil in San Antonio. Another thing Wyatt shares with Neal, according to Brown, is a body type for a guard that necessitates a concentration on fitness. Pompey adds that Wyatt's conditioning was called into question in his time at Temple.
- Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com writes that Brown's fixation on conditioning extends far beyond just Wyatt, adding that the new coach believes in the talent of Evan Turner, who is headed into the fourth and final year of his rookie contract. Brown will count on Turner as a team leader, writes Moore.
- Both Pompey and Moore report that Brown is still searching for another assistant coach. He has already hired Chad Iske, Lloyd Pierce, Greg Foster and Billy Lange. Although Brown implied NBA experience is not an absolute necessity on a team this inexperienced, Moore lists former Sixers assistant and Pistons head coach John Kuester as a candidate due to a previous connection with Brown. Last week there was a report that Kuester was the favorite to be hired as Brown's top assistant.
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