Tuesday 28 September 2021

Sixers Shake Up Coaching Staff, Blue Coats Hire Familiar NBA Name

Doc Rivers isn’t going anywhere but the one-time NBA champion is shaking up his coaching staff. The Philadelphia 76ers announced several new hires on Tuesday (Sept. 28), namely Jamie Young and Dwayne Jones. Rivers enters his second season in charge of the Sixers.

Young has worked for the Boston Celtics for the past 20 seasons, including the last 10 as an assistant coach there. Young and Rivers previously worked together in Beantown from 2004 through 2013 where he was praised for having a “great basketball mind.” He graduated from Blackburn College in Illinois and went undrafted in the 1998 NBA draft.

Jones gets promoted to assistant coach/skill development after spending the previous five seasons in the Sixers’ skill development department. The West Virginia native played professionally for 12 seasons, mainly overseas, before transitioning into the coaching ranks. Jones was an accomplished college player at Saint Joseph’s University where he helped lead them to the Elite Eight in 2004. He is the G League’s all-time leading rebounder (1,770) and averaged 1.3 points in 82 NBA games.

“I’m excited to add even more talent to what I consider to be the best coaching staff in the NBA,” Rivers said in a statement “Having the opportunity to create synergy between the 76ers and Blue Coats is important for our program’s success and the talented coaches on our staff make our players and this organization better.”

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Coby Karl Tabbed to Lead Delaware Blue Coats

Coby Karl has been tabbed to lead the Delaware Blue Coats, the Sixers’ G League affiliate, for the 2021-22 campaign. He takes over for outgoing head coach Connor Johnson who left for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Karl is the son of NBA coaching legend George Karl.

The 38-year-old coached the South Bay Lakers (G League/Lakers) from 2016-21 and compiled a 102-92 record, plus a division championship and conference semifinals appearance. Prior to that, Karl served as an assistant for the Westchester Knicks (G League/Knicks). He went undrafted out of Boise State in 2007 and spent three seasons in the NBA, including stints with the Lakers, Warriors, Cavaliers.

The Blue Coats also added J.P. Clark and Isaiah Fox as assistant coaches under Karl. Clark comes over from the Los Angeles Clippers where he worked in player development. Fox returns to Delaware for his second stint as an assistant coach after leaving prior to the 2020 season.


Sixers President Talks Fines for Ben Simmons

The Sixers officially begin training camp at 1:30 on Tuesday (Sept. 28). And Ben Simmons remains missing at the practice facility in Camden, NJ. Team president Daryl Morey told reporters he expects the three-time All-Star to return at some point. If not, Simmons will be fined accordingly.

“We’re not going to talk about the specifics of fines or things like that,” Morey said, “but I will say it’s pretty clearly spelled out in the CBA and in the contract what happens.”

According to the CBA, Simmons can be fined “up to 1/145th of his base compensation” – or $227,613 for every practice and game he misses. That’s assuming the Sixers suspend the disgruntled point guard.

If not, the team could still impose the following basic fines (via ESPN): $2,500 for the first missed practice, $5,000 for the second one, and $7,500 for the third. It gets murky after that.


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