The Philadelphia 76ers are in the process of looking to find a new head coach after moving from Doc Rivers after three seasons at the helm. The Sixers won a ton of games, but they were eliminated in the Eastern Conference semifinals three seasons in a row.
The new coach is going to have to come in and now help the Sixers move forward on their title quest. Philadelphia possesses a ton of talent, but they just haven’t been able to get over the hump that is Round 2 at the moment.
Mike D’Antoni, who hasn’t coached since the 2019-20 season with the Houston Rockets, has been mentioned as a potential candidate for the position. Here are three reasons why he would be a great fit:
Familiarity with the Sixers stars
D’Antoni has obvious familiarity with James Harden from their days with the Rockets, but D’Antoni was an assistant with the Sixers in the 2015-16 season. Obviously, that was when Joel Embiid was out with foot injuries, but the two of them were able to at least see each other and build some type of relationship.
Would a possible D’Antoni hire influence Harden’s decision and have him return to Philadelphia? Probably not. The Sixers will also play the Harden situation smartly as they will think about years and money and everything else in between. However, D’Antoni obviously had a very positive influence on Harden’s career while in Houston.
Offensive creativity
D’Antoni’s Rockets teams were either first or second in the league in offensive rating in his first three seasons at the helm. In the 2019-20 season, with Harden and Russell Westbrook out on the floor, they were still sixth in offensive rating. He would be able to bring that offensive creativity to Philadelphia and help Harden, Embiid, and the shooters flourish around them.
When considering what guys like Eric Gordon, PJ Tucker, Clint Capela, Trevor Ariza, and others were able to do around Harden in Houston, one has to believe that D’Antoni could help Philadelphia’s role players take another leap.
Ability to help Tyrese Maxey flourish
Maxey had taken steps forward in all three seasons under Rivers, but playing for somebody like D’Antoni could help him flourish out on the floor. Maxey averaged 20.3 points and shot 43.4% from deep during the season and D’Antoni’s offensive style could help push him into legitimate All-Star conversations in the Eastern Conference. The young guard out of Kentucky has to take that next step forward and D’Antoni could help him do so.
Story originally appeared on Sixers Wire