Sixers owner Josh Harris said GM Sam Hinkie will remain in charge of day-to-day basketball operations and that the hiring of Jerry Colangelo to the front office isn’t a deviation from the team’s rebuilding plan, but not everyone believes that the move doesn’t represent a sea change. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports casts it as a reduction of power for Hinkie and hears that several executives around the league are wondering whether Colangelo will eventually persuade the Sixers to hire son Bryan Colangelo, the former Suns and Raptors GM. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com hears speculation that Jerry Colangelo will end up with an ownership stake in the Sixers (Twitter link). Still, owner Josh Harris insists not much will be different, as Tom Moore of Calkins Media relays (on Twitter).
“We’re still committed to the process,” Harris said. “We’re committed to Sam. Don’t expect radical changes to the process.”
See more on Philadelphia’s surprising hire:
- Harris admitted to reporters that he’s frustrated amid the team’s slow start, Moore tweets, and that he hopes that Colangelo will expedite the team’s rebuilding process, notes Dan Gelston of The Associated Press (Twitter link). Sixers management lost patience amid 20 losses in 21 games so far and a series of unflattering reports about Jahlil Okafor‘s alleged off-court behavior, Wojnarowski writes in the same piece.
- Coach Brett Brown said he believes the team will take free agency and the value of veteran players more seriously in the wake of the move, observes Derek Bodner of Philadelphia magazine (on Twitter).
- The addition of Colangelo gives the Sixers an agent-friendly presence, notes Mark Perner of the Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link). The team has reportedly upset agents with its tactics the past few years. “I went through four and a half decades of basketball on handshakes with agents and players,” Colangelo said, as Moore tweets. “My job is to be here to help.”
- It was Harris who reached out to Colangelo about joining the organization, Colangelo said, according to Gelston (on Twitter).
- Colangelo will continue to live in Phoenix, but he’s excited about the ability to collaborate with Hinkie, as Moore chronicles (Twitter links). “I think I can offer a lot of mentoring to Sam and make him even better at his job,” Colangelo said.
- Colangelo, who ran basketball operations for the Suns from the team’s inception in 1968 until 1994, is anxious to help the Sixers rebuild, as Jake Fischer of SI Now relays (Twitter link). “I’m intrigued quite honestly,” Colangelo said. “During my years in Phoenix, I tore down the team four times and came back four times.”
- Hinkie called it a “a really good day for the Sixers,” and said he feels positively about the hiring of Colangelo, whom the GM believes “will be a breath of fresh air in a lot of ways,” as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Moore all relay (All four Twitter links). “I think we’re ready to go to the next phase,” Hinkie said. “Jerry knows every player, every coach. His knowledge will be invaluable.”